Shadows: Whisper | Assassin's Creed

[RainDash]

He asked about a man, and Lucia didn't react. He was no asking about her family. She'd never met them. She only remained quiet. She was crying now. It didn't matter if they never saw her again, no one cared anyway. Anyone who did was dead, and dying only proved that she outlasted them. Lucia felt the hot belt smack the side of her face. She cried out, Lucia could feel how hot it was now. She could feel her cheek bleeding now, and the tears only served to cause it to sting even worse. She wouldn't break, she had to stand tough as long as she could. If it meant dying to keep their secrets, she would do it. She didn't make promises or take Creeds lightly. The plan could be amended. "I did nothing but what was asked of me." Was all she said, waiting for another belt buckle to the face.

[TwilightMoonDragon]

The woman cried out, which sent a sharp pang to Tano's heart. He was not used to beating women half to death. He was accustomed to men being his victims, whether ordinary men or assassin men. At times he had one or two die at his hands, but he never killed a woman. He would spit and claw at her, but he would never deliver the killing blow. He had no heart to do that. Maybe take women against their will, but never kill one. Blood was rising up on the assassin's face, making him grumble a Spanish curse under his breath. Maybe he would get Alan to kill her. Alan was a loyal Templar, right? "You assassins always say that you live by this..." he quirked an eyebrow. "Oath. What is it? What it about? You have lives, even in the darkest of hours. Most people fall victim to the guild because you think that you have no where else to turn." he straightened. He would only verbally abuse her now. "Yet, your hearts are weak. Staying to the shadows, murdering men and taking money from the innocent!" he spat at her feet. "And yet you call yourself selfless. You stand to help the people against the Templars. We are right, you are wrong, and the whole city agrees to it!"

[RainDash]

"It is a creed. Nothing is true. Everything is permitted. And if I am a victim, why am I proud to call myself an Assassin? I have nothing left to lose!" He called her weak. "I am weak. However, how can I be strong? By joining the Templars? I know stealing is wrong, but we must feed those who have fled to us in refuge. The men I have murdered tortured his slaves. Stuck us-"Lucia stopped and corrected herself. "Them in dark rooms for days. For doing nothing but looking up into the sun for a glimmer of light and hope. He wanted to feel before being shoved into an emotionless room. A dark room full of hate and cruelty. And he would laugh when they cried to be released."

[TwilightMoonDragon]

Nothing is true? Everything is permitted? Tano had to furrow his brow again. The woman in front of him seemed horribly confused. Who would believe in that? Did they teach the young that nothing was true and they could basically due whatever the hell they wanted? He had heard that some were actually born into the guild and was raised in the guild. That was kind of sad, really. "Templars are better than assassins." his voice was smooth, seductive, coaxing. It sounded like the purr of a cat, and he bent down. His gloved hands touched her smooth face again, grazing her cheek softly and his voice lowered to a whisper. "... Templars get paid and... They actually get paid... And you'll be protected and have a less chance of dying..." he stared at her face, a small smile on his lips. "If you change to the Templars, you will have a hearty meal at the table every day. You will actually be liked." he looked at her buckle wound and her tears. "No more tears or blood will be shed from you, Assassin. Just come to us... We will provide everything that you never had in your little guild of assassins."

[RainDash]

Lucia looked him in the eye. Though she was bloodied, bruised, and dying, she stared him straight in the eye. She didn't waver for a second through his whole speech. Her mouth twisted into a snarl as he spoke. "At least I know what I'm fighting for. I don't need to be paid, they take care of me. I preferred it when you were hitting me." Lucia finished. She closed her eyes again. Templars never provided any of that for her. If they were so great, how come her only friend died killing one? A Templar to the core, her master taunted them with nothing more than stories of kills to disobedient slaves. How emotions had been the bane of society. How if she didn't shape up, she would be killed and left hanging on the tree outside the stacks of wood he called 'houses'. What were Templars doing telling her that she would no longer bleed or cry? She was never safe from Death so, she had to become it. Lucia then spat in Tano's face again, with what little saliva she could muster up.

[TwilightMoonDragon]

Tano growled when Lucia seemed stubborn and hard against his testament. She didn't believe him. She was smart. If she would of spilled over, he would of listened to what she had to say and then slit her throat. She would leave it hanging on a building for another assassin to see. And that would surely shake their spirits. His green eyes flickered over her bloodied and bruised face. She said that she liked it more when he was hitting on her. Hitting on her! Pah! Another show for her to fall for. If he won her over, if he seduced her to be trusting of him, then he would slowly seep the information out of her. Until then, he would feed her, clothe her, and seal her wounds. Which of course was not what an assassin deserved; they deserved to be hanging from their necks from a tree. "What is your name?" he couldn't hold back a bit of disgust as he wiped the spit from his eye. That was stupid and disgusting. "My name is Tano. Tano Gonzalez." he said, narrowing his eyes. "I come from Spain. I lived all of my life seeing Templars being struck down like pigs by the asssassins."

[Mousia]

(Sorry for being gone so long, I was really tired last night.)

 

Aelia nodded grimly. "Let's keep going. If he was so sure that we would find something, we will." With that, the woman marched on. She was careful to avoid spots that looked unstable in the ground. "Look for paper," she ordered, not pausing. She looked around, too. But she was searching for anything. Clues, markings, signs that Casio was still alive. "Casio...?" she whimpered softly, almost inaudibly. Aelia knew she was being foolish, but she didn't care. Did it matter? Could anyone judge her? Did anyone dare to? Well, God dared to take everyone from her. He dared to challenge her. Even after the challenges of the past. Oh, she'd show Him. She'd show them all.

[TwilightMoonDragon]

[it's okay. ^^]

 

Ambra kept her eyes low, looking at the gray stone that she was stepping on. She had taken a place between Scipio and Aelia, wanting to be comforted just by being in between them. Ambra looked down the steep canon that Casio had fallen in. Imagine, smashing against that stone... She shuddered. She hoped that Casio had a quick death, that was what he deserved. He didn't deserve to suffer. Parting her lips, she began to pray quietly, softly. Praying for them. Praying for Casio. They would get through this, right? They would shake off the death of Casio like they had shaken off the deaths of other assassins. But then again, Casio was important. A master. It would be hard to cope without him. Sighing, she saw shadows moving amongst the rocks. For a second, she thought that they were animals such as wolves that had gotten trapped in here after going into the house looking for food. But when she looked closer, she noted that they darted around on two legs, making her blink. People down here? Really? And they had weapons... She paused in her praying to stare at a few that had paused and looked at them from across the canon. Weapons. Metal armor. Templars. "Oh ," she cursed out loud. She hoped that the others would see what she was looking at. She didn't need Eagle Sense to know that they were enemies.

[Mousia]

Aelia looked up from staring at the ground. She had been looking at everything. Looking for clues. Looking for anything. SEeing a shadow move, she extended her left hidden blade.

 

(Gotta go. So sorry for my crappy post.)

[TwilightMoonDragon]

Ambra noted that the Templars didn't know what do to. They would have to find a way to their side of the cliff and then look for them. She knew that Templars were stupid, but they were not prepared to throw themselves down cliff paths and rush toward them. She blinked when Aelia unsheathed her left hidden blade. "No." Ambra gently touched her fingers against the master's hand. Her eyes rested on her for a moment. "If Casio were here, we would have a chance since we had two men. But now we only have two women and one man. They would take us over in an instant." while Ambra hated saying men were stronger than women, it was true. The Templars, if there were at least thirty of them in here, which she sure there were, they would never be able to hold them off. "Let us hurry before they get any more suspicious of us. There are too many for us."

[RainDash]

Lucia waited. He was spainish, a Templar, and liked to be snake-like. She jotted this down in her mental journal. He them mentioned Templars being struck down like pigs. At this Lucia almost laughed, but only a sharp exhale of breath escaped her. "They probably deserved it then." Lucia was smiling like a madwoman. "Templars all deserve it. The little pigs that decide they are better than society!" At this Lucia laughed. How they though they were better than society was hilarious! At this, she began to laugh, her sides still aching and her face still bloody and searing hot from the buckle. But she was laughing, tears rolling down her face as she did so, it was so funny. "You think you've lost only Templars to this war? I have seen my closest allies die at Templar hands! You're just... hilarious!" Lucia laughed. Maybe it was the pain, the ache, and the hurt, but she just couldn't stop laughing. If she died or was hurt because of this, it wouldn't matter. She was going to laugh at her captors. Just because she was seeing exactly what they saw of Assassins, and how they thought Templars were slaughtered like pigs. She could watch the life drain out of Ambra's eyes as she made her first kill. She was the one who cared about these monsters. Not Lucia, she could watch them all burn.

[TwilightMoonDragon]

Tano stared at Lucia with a shocked and angry look. This woman was saying that he was hilarious, and that Templars deserved what they got. What the hell..? Who the hell did this woman think she was talking to-?! He felt his face flush and he snorted loudly. He didn't like being embarrassed, not at all. The Spanish man was a proud man who did not like being struck down by anyone, especially assassins. Assassins. The word was burnt into his mind and heart with hate. Kill them, they said, before they kill you. They can't touch you as long as you remember your training, they said. Yet the scars that he bore showed that it wasn't true. He remembered once, on his first patrol, there was an assassin causing trouble. Drunk, he supposed, like Lucia was. And when he ran to help, he smashed him right in the face with the hilt of his sword. The pain and the suffering that he went through as he clutched at his broken face. From there on, he hated the assassins more than ever. His green eyes became hard as he spoke. "Hilarious," he snorted, shaking his head. "You may think so, but I don't. How many allies have fallen at our hands because they were told that we were evil? Brainwashed, brainwashed!" he growled, pointing at her with an accusing finger. "The guild has bore their words of darkness into your mind!"

[RainDash]

"And are you so different? They say assassins are bad and you seem to be okay with hurting other human beings. What is darkness but the unexplored? What are shadows but where the mind deems to be evil? To me, it seems darkness has been branded into your soul, and yet you call me evil?" She laughed again. "Evil is what the mind is persuaded to believe. Nothing is True, because everything put down cannot be. Everything is permitted because the world must be fixed. We cannot fix it within the society's boundaries. You can promise me everything and the world, but face it. To the other, we'll always be in the shadows of society. Do the people enjoy watching thieves be killed in the streets? Have you ever asked them?" Lucia asked. She knew what they thought of Assassins, but she wasn't stupid, they would always be hated. You could save the world and the whole world will still hate you.

[Mousia]

Aelia felt Ambra's hand against hers. "I am going to fight. You can run. I wont judge you. Nobody would. I will go down fighting, though. I will go down thrashing and yelling. This is what I grew up doing. Not fighting Templars on streets. No. I fought to protect myself and the others. So go, both of you." With that, she set off running. Well, more like jogging. But she was going faster than she had been going before. She saw a Templar before her. Probably inexperienced, as he had strayed from the group. She killed him cleanly enough, as she hadn't been seen. After that, though, a group of ten or so Templars came at her. It was then when she knew she was in trouble. How could she fight off ten Templars alone? ~ Scipio watched as Aelia set off. After standing in shock for a bit, he turned to Ambra. "Go back and tell the rest about this." He knew he was supposed to be a Master Assassin, but it didn't matter to him. Casio would never be dead to him. Casio would live on. He would live and live and live forever in the hearts, souls and minds of those who would pass after him. Scipio knew he wasn't really cut out for being someone to be looked up to. He couldn't take the responsibility. He couldn't fathom how the others could deal with it. Either way, he follow Aelia. He watched as she made her first clean kill and he saw her get bombarded with attacks from ten other Templars. He grabbed his sword and started swinging. A part of him knew that Aelia would be angry at him for a while, but would be secretly thankful. Even she knew that she wouldn't be able to take ten strong men with one hand. No one could. Though she liked to think she was perfect, Scipio and she both knew that she wasn't. He had been a pupil to her when his mentor hadn't been around. He had seen her mess things up and stumble on her words and fall. He had promised not to tell anyone, but he thought of it often. How she lied to everyone daily without saying a word.

Edited September 8, 2012 by Mousia

[TwilightMoonDragon]

Ambra stared at the side of Aelia's hooded face. She couldn't be serious. Her, against all of those Templars-?! While Scipio and her run away like rats-?! She would not take that. She couldn't. Abandoning Aelia, letting Casio die... What the hell did she think she was? Pulling the bow from her back, she strung it up with a sharp arrow she retrieved from her quiver, which was attached to her back. She aimed it at the closest Templar and fired at the shadow. The form collapsed to the ground, with of course, a pang in her heart. "No." she looked up at her master. She would usually never go against Aelia's word, but this was different. "I will not allow you to die alongside Casio!" she hissed, aiming her bow at another Templar and firing.

Ambra was not fond of fighting, but when it came to times like these she decided that she had to. To defend her loved ones. To defend Scipio. But before anything happened, Scipio told her to tell the rest of them. So he was telling her to run? To run away? Anger, an emotion strange to Ambra, welled up in her body. "No!" she yelled, staring at Scipio as she ran up to him. "I will fight by your side! If you die..." her eyes stung, but she didn't finish her sentence. Screaming in anger, fear, and frustration, she turned toward the Templars and shot another arrow. Tbey were coming cooler and closer...

 

Tano growled deeply at Lucia, his eyes narrowing. There was a time that he thought of joining the assassins when he was smaller. But then he regretted even thinking about it when he saw Templars get cut down on the streets. Thieves were different. "I personally think that people like it when they see another assassin or thief fall to our hands. Have you noticed how much they watch? They cheer at the end. But an assassin cuts down a Templar, the people scream and run from you. You think that you are the authorities." he growled, bending closer to her face and snarling deeply. "How dare you think that assassins are better than the assassins!"

Edited September 8, 2012 by TwilightMoonDragon

[Mousia]

(Assassins are better than assassins! LOL)

 

(Cooler and closer! Yeah...)

 

Aelia saw Scipio come and started slashing at Templars. It didn't do much because of the armor, but it was something. It was distracting some of the Templars. The woman saw the Templar she had been fighting fall to an arrow and looked into the shadows. Ambra? Ambra! "Run! That's an order!" She, then, proceeded to slashed and stab wildly with her left hand. She knew she wasn't doing much damage, but she'd already killed two Templars and made one run away, so she was okay.

 

(Gotta Go.)

[TwilightMoonDragon]

[EVERYONE KNOWS THAT ASSASSINS ARE BETTER THAN ASSASSINS!]

 

"No!" Ambra cried out, staring at Aelia and Scipio with anger and fear! "I am not to let you die!" she couldn't hold her tears any longer. Growling, she shot at another Templar, but the arrow rebounded off of his armor and slammed into the ground. Within moments, they were surrounded. Guns were aimed their way, toward their heads and their hearts and stomachs. Ambra raised her crossbow, but lowered it again when they cocked their rifles. They were cornered. The Templars came closer, and closer. Ambra wept openly now. This was where she died. She couldn't help it. This was where they all died. As the Templars readied their fingers on the triggers, she saw another shadow on the rocks. It was quicker than the Templars, and she watched as, in an instant, it darted amongst the rocks toward them and came upon one of the Templars with sword unsheathed. Blood splattered the ground and cries rang through the air. The attention of the Templars was torn away from the three assassins and toward the fourth hooded figure slaughtering their men. Ambra stared at the man. It was obviously a man, with a young face. The fierce glint of blue eyes shone from the shadows. She couldn't believe it. "Casio-?!"

At that, the hooded man perked and looked at the three assassins. A cocky grin was on his face, along with an arrogant tip of his head. "That's the name." Ambra's jaw dropped. "Don't wear it out for me, pretty face."

"But... How-?! We saw you..."

"Fall? I woke up with a vine that I had crashed through wrapped around my arm. Hurt it, but I was just above ground and I cut it." Casio winked and turned back to face the Templars. Most ran away, and only a few more came at the four. "Come on! Let's do this!"

[Mousia]

Aelia felt the barrels of three rifles pointed at her back. Gulping, she put her left hand up in surrender, concealing her Hidden Blade before she did so. "Put both hands up." The gruff and forceful reply came soon after. "I can't. I am bleeding." Aelia decided to exaggerate. Perhaps there was a change for her to be taken care of. Perhaps she could help Ambra and Scipio escape if the Templars let their guard down. "Put both hands up." Apparently the Templar could not say anything more. With a chuckle, she raised her right hand up, revealing a bloody hand and sleeve and dress. After some consideration, she heard the click. This is it, Aelia. This is where the Cato family tree ends. She waited and waited. She waited for the release. The slight pain before she was gone. After a while, she looked down and saw the dead bodies. She saw the dead bodies near Ambra and Scipio, too. She heard his voice. Aelia struggled not to show her feelings again. Sighing away the cold thoughts, the woman extended her Hidden Blade and placed her arm in it's familiar place. With an angry swipe, he was gone. Another man who had been alive for one instant had passed. Kicking the corpse, she chuckled and spat on it. "Die with that," she whispered.

 

(I know, right!)

[TwilightMoonDragon]

The area had exploded in contact again. Ambra, after shooting her last arrow, pulled out her sword and lashed at the Templars. Casio swung back and forth, stabbing his hidden blade into the throat of one victim and kicked another where it hurt. The assassins were killing off the rest of the Templars, and the others leapt away in fear. Casio growled and swung toward the last remaining ones, unsheathing his hidden blades and coming at them with a dangerous attack. Within moments, the two Templars screamed and clutch at bloodied throats, writhing before dying.

 

[Leaving...]

[Danniphantom]

Aero saw the fire and chaos in Joan's eyes. "Live today, forget the past. A person who worries about the past distresses about the present and fears the future. So let the past flow with the water and downstream as we continue on towards our goal." Aero said smiling, placing a hand on Joan's shoulder. He looked out at the Tiber and smiled. He loved the water. The tide pushed them along with the wind towards the older district. "And to answer your question, no, it's just a retrieval of a relic. Very valuable, we need to retrieve it from some ancient ruins. Believed to be connected to Romulus and Remus." Aero said letting the wind blow through his hair. The blonde strands flowed like water as the wind touched it and ran along it's length. He sat down and relaxed calming himself and preparing for the mission ahead.

 

((Short post, sorry for not being as active, it turns out I'm busier than I thought I was.))

Edited September 8, 2012 by Danniphantom

[Mousia]

Aelia saw that all the Templar were either dead, dying, or running away. At that, she stalked up to Casio and smacked him again before pulling him close into an embrace. "Never, never, never leave us again." She struggled not to weep, but she buried her face in his chest anyways. The mere smell of him was enough. He didn't need to say a word, though she hoped he would. She hoped he would spare his voice on her. She hoped he would not say something stupid, though. She hoped his feelings had not gotten buried under his overconfidence as hers had been in discipline.

Though her thinking, she forgot to keep reign over her emotions. So a tear escaped. As that first tear pioneered the way, more tears followed. More and more droplets of water until her body rattled with sobs. "You...left us...all alone..." It was there where she left her stone-cold exterior. It was there where she let out all the emotions. The anguish and the agony. Happiness, too. Sniffling, she fell into him, ignoring the burning of her side. The screaming for attention. The wound was no important. Casio was important. She realized that in the moment, too. She realized that Casio was irreplaceable. No one would ever be able to fill his shoes.

[TwilightMoonDragon]

Casio smiled wildly when the Templars were defeated. Blood splattered against the rocks and stone and the dying rasps of the men around them echoed around the caverns. Amongst the death they stood. Casio tried to regain his composure when someone just smacked him. Yowling, he clutched at his cheek in surprise. The scalding voice, the harsh voice, saying that he would never leave them again. Aelia. He smiled. That was what he thought of first, actually, as he woke up. And then Scipio and Ambra and Aero. What would they do? Of course, he was the oldest of the masters. He was the most reliable. All of a sudden, her face was buried into his chest, and he felt her warm breath on his clothes. The man put his good arm around her and sighed softly. What would he say, to the three loved ones in front of him.

"... ... I won't... I won't leave you..." he blushed softly at the comment. "Any of you... Now... ... I have to show you something." he pulled away from her and hesitantly reached a hand out and softly brushed her tears away. His torn, tired arm was limp at his side, and he figured that he would have to get a massage. Not to mention that his lower back was burning sharply as well. "It's the paper."

"Paper? What paper?" Ambra said.

"The paper that leads to the Book of Altair is here." Casio said, a smirk on his face again.

[Mousia]

Aelia nodded, wiping her face and collecting herself. "Let me see it." The woman snatched the paper, also putting her arm back where it had been. "You still owe me, Portabello," she stated as her eyes flickered across the paper. Greek? Oh, that language was so rusty... She could barely understand a word, but one stood out. "επικίνδυνος..." The word meant perilous. What was perilous? What did it mean? Confused, she furrowed her brow. "ταξίδι...?" Journey? What did it mean? All the strange words and sayings. Aelia suddenly regretted not being proficient in Greek. Flipping the page over, she saw more words. Words of a familiar but confusing tongue. English. "Greek and English..." Altair must have been well-read. Or he had good connections. Either way, he was...a beautiful man. A journal had said that a long time ago...

[TwilightMoonDragon]

Casio blinked when the paper was snatched out of his hand. A frown creased his features. He owed her? He... Owed her? He had saved everyone twice. Twice! He shook himself out and listened to her read from it. Greek and English? "Altair sure was some strange guy," Casio sighed and closed his eyes. He started to use his Eagle Sense, and spanned it as far as he could. There seemed to be no threats around here, and not even further down the valley. He sighed lightly, and looked around. "And Miss Cato, I believe that you owe me." he tossed his blue eyes at her, and a smirk crossed his face. "You forgot about me jumping for you? You forgot about me saving you from the Templars? And I expected you to be smart. Now, where is the exit?"

"The Templars would have to get out someway other than the way we came in." Ambra said, her eyes looking around the area. "Maybe I can use my Eagle Sense..." she started to focus down the valley, her head hurting slightly. Ugh... Maybe she could focus a bit more? She concentrated more, but she raised a hand to her head and swayed lightly. Ugh, how could someone use this for so long? "I can't do it... Sorry..."

Casio blinked and looked at Scipio. "Maybe you can do it?" he said, clapping his best friend on the shoulder. "You should lnow how to use it. I remember when you trained you used to have the same exact problem as Ambra. Then again, didn't we all?"

[Mousia]

Aelia sighed, clearly exasperated. "I am the one who saved your life, actually. Remember when you were too drunk to walk? Remember when I carried you home? Remember when I had to sweet talk a Templar so that you didn't have to die to his sword?" She was tempted to add the part about kissing him to sell the story, but she was unsure about that. She still didn't know the definite reason. She still didn't know why she had even cared. She could have hugged Casio. She could have chosen Scipio. Well, Scipio was worse off. And Casio was the first person she saw. But, still. Why had she done it? As her head started to hurt, she tried to think of something else. She tried to redirect her attention. She tried too hard. Why was she denying it? It was heat of the moment. It was what she felt she had to do. Why was she trying so hard to decode herself?

 

Scipio watched and stood aside. He had only had to kill one Templar. He watched as Ambra and Casio spoke and was a bit taken aback at Aelia's explosion of emotion. Was it going to be a normal thing? Was she always going to burst out crying? At the mention of a paper, he was a bit interested. Upon listening further, he learned about the English and Greek. Hm... Casio asked about his Eagle Sense and he shrugged. "I guess I could try..." He willed his pupils to dilate and, as they did, he could see with more clarity. Stepping over the bodies, he looked and looked. After a long time, he stumbled upon something. Literally. "These rocks, here. They made a hole right here. If we're careful, we should be able to climb up this pile of rubble to get out." The man finished his last sentence as he started to climb.

Edited September 9, 2012 by Mousia