Cold, humid, freezing air pierced through my nostrils, putting in movement every single mechanism on its way to my lungs. I opened my eyes, as slow as worn curtains would, feeling my heart beat again, and soon I'd find myself lost in the darkness. Only the dimming lights would paint even the faintest orange light into the room, and hence, the darkness taking over the rest of the room.
The city was alive once more not, for it never slept. The orchestra of rubber sliding against ponds of water, of tires firmly making their way among the concrete jungle, of multiple and different kinds of loud horns trying to move away problems with nothing but sounds. Spain, my old love. You are as pretty in rain as you are when your dry streets welcome my feet. And even when the shiniest Sun comes or the darkest night rises, your soul never rests, giving us life for another day.
Hard steps would hit the wooden stairs, building an echo up to my room. A sigh slipped between my lips, and thus, the silence was broken, but my spirit was just brought to life, knowing who the steps belonged to, knowing the owner of a pattern whose hints couldn't be more familiar to me.
Felix.
The golden doorknob would gently turn, as slow as the night aging. I turned myself until I could face the white door, feeling nothing but cold shivers as it opened at a quiet pace. And soon, a tall figure would appear near the frame, leaning against the wall while crossing its arms, and resting its head upon its left elbow. There was no need for any guess, for he would just stare at me the same way he always did.
He gave no time to our interchange of stares, and a dozen of sentences came out, carrying a heavy, gritty tone to them, breaking me out of my thoughts.
"Wake up, you little rascal. It's time to head out now"
Accommodating myself on the edge of the bed, grasping the transparent white sheets just to let them slide through my fingers. I would only turn my head to him, still hearing the beats of my heart in the background. I closed my eyes to the night for a moment, soon after looking at the red numbers on the alarm clock, sitting at the insipid white end table right next to me. With another sigh escaping from my breath, I would answer.
"3:12 in the morning. What gives?"
"It is important, trust me. We are needed right now, as the HQ has notified me. And well, the sooner the better, you know"
"Any fight or disaster waiting for us or to be dealt with?"
"No, not at all. Just get your clothes and meet me downstairs when you are ready. And please, don't take too much time...
...your highness."
He ended jokingly, as he leaned in to wrap his left arm around my head and using the other to mess with my hair. I let out a brief laugh, lightening up the mood as it flew around the room, resonating against the walls. After a brief moment he left go, allowing for me to look up and finally face him.
His golden, long hair covered most of his face, in such a way that almost none of his forehead was visible. He looked relaxed, as he did always, and all because of those thick eyebrows I used to call squirrels when I was younger, and he would make you feel relaxed as well, for his eyes depicted that tranquility of waves slowly sweeping the shores, and it was almost as if the ocean itself lived within his gaze. The full stop of his face was his smile, a little tweak on the end of his lip, showing the white of pearls in the other end.
He smiled even more at me, just before he grabbed tightly to my shirt and pushed me back into the bed, against the pillow. He laughed shortly, and I joined him after my pillow hit his face. He quickly picked it up and put it near the end of the bed. He left as fast as he came, leaving behind a last pair of words, and the echo of his way downstairs.
"I'll be waiting for you, just hurry up, alright?"
It took me some more time to reunite any will present at that time to get on my feet and look for my clothes. The cold, hard concrete floor was quite a welcoming committee for the morning. Shortly after, I managed to get my body in motion and began the search for my clothes, scattered here and there, inside different wardrobes or shelves, most of them sticking out, as if they were impatiently waiting for me to pick them up.
My old trainers, whose purpose had served more than a couple of years, turning from a bright blue colour to an almost black tone, yet still hinting out its original one. My denim jeans, having grown worn, comfortable and elastic with the heavy, prolonged use, and me myself growing attached to them. My white shirt, just as any other amongst my clothes, none the special the deal, but always practical and replaceable when needed. My white brotherhood hoodie, designed to conceal our identity, protect us from harm and be worn casually without any way for it to give our real purpose away, one of a kind, and one of the most practical things I've witnessed. Everything was accounted for, even the cold feeling of dawn upon my skin.
And then, came the hardest path to follow. That which leads to the bathroom when one is still not fully awake.
Stumbling here and there, mumbling this and that I made my journey, taking a few seconds to traverse from my room, across the living room and to the bathroom. I closed my eyes, still feeling the toll that a rest cut short takes. Facing up again, just to find the same insipid colour running through my face, where the only difference between chalk and my skin stands where the faintest tone of rose comes over it.
Dark hairs run disorganized and separated as water freshly washes over them, and the drops run down my face, to drip from my chin into the basin, and down the pipeline where they escape not without a sound. I can feel the mess of what whatever my hair is slowly starting to take figure, back into its natural form. My eyes meet themselves, and to their surprise find nothing but the usual darkness that inhabits them. As if the void itself manifested upon their gaze. Barely any sign of facial hair other than thin brows, whose figure looked like badly painted Japanese codex, there was nothing more. Devoid of life as space on the outside, yet filled with life as the universe in the inside.
And so I made my way downstairs, bringing back the echo that my brother brought. And with each step a bit of myself came back from wherever it was lost. Upon reaching the last few steps, and with the last cracking sound below my feet, my sight met Felix, playing with his fingers and filling the house with a calmness that only existed in times that look as far away as the Sun does.
I sat down beside him, and joined him in his dark solitude. Pressing down his fingers with passion and tranquility, but never looking around to acknowledge the world, even when I know he already had. With every passing note, he brings back a bit of our past. A past where another tall figure looks over us, always smiling and everywhere, moving around here and there, making breakfast, reading texts in books, reloading his gun. He looks both at us and smiles in a way that melts my heart now. I see him, despite he is no more here, and I know Felix does too.
Then she appears, and hugs him tightly from behind. She smiles at us, and we both smile back. Unlike him, she moves graciously and takes her time, almost dancing in. He reaches first for Felix, and then for me. And a kiss hits both our cheeks in the same order. Felix just innocently smiles as he enjoys his cereal. And I, being the child I used to be, sit there, quietly, looking down while moving my legs up and down. Then she sits down, awaiting for him to come here and join us. I've never seen Felix as happy as he was that morning.
Eventually I join in, and we both play the notes our hearts dictate, individually, yet as a pair. And then a flow of memories rains in, as heavy as a storm. I turn to Felix, and see a tear run down his face. Then I feel it too. The same scene, the same figures, the same routine, but before we can even react, the door blasts open. They come in, and point guns at us. His orders were to run, her orders were to halt. He pulled out his gun on them. She pulled her gun on him. And as we ran for the exit, she sealed his fate with a backstab whose cutting edge was a bullet. And Felix sealed her fate with a broken heart and a loud bang. And as we ran far away, we never looked back. And so, our lives were changed, and our concepts of life were born. We were four. Now we only have each other. And despite I miss him with all my heart and my mind cannot comprehend her reasons, I simply must accept what was.
We keep playing, but nothing comes to my mind now. Only the vast darkness around us, as if we were lost in time forever, and ever. Endlessly wandering until someone could reach out for us. Having only the other to lean onto. We finish our session, and he gently hugs me with one arm, around my elbow. No words come out, and we share a moment. We stare into the white wall for quite a moment, losing ourselves in our thoughts.
Shortly after our fairly brief eternity of memories we stand up, and he walks towards the door, as I follow diligently. We step outside and leave our heavy burdens behind. He locks the door with his assassin blade, as I stay still, looking at the empty streets. A dying rain comes down, and some drops hit both our faces. Our breaths have a gaseous form, a cold cloud. The smell of humid grass is the perfume of the newborn day. The sky is still as blue as the deepest part of the sea, with some lights of dying stars here and there. Felix stands by my side. He lets go a final gaze upon the house, and soon, he starts climbing over a building, putting his right feet inside a window's protection and reaching for another, higher one with his left hand. Quickly making a zigzag movement he reaches the top of the building and looks back at me. He makes a movement with his head for me to reach him, and runs away, quickly vanishing out of my sight.
By the time I climb to the top of the same building, he is already three roofs away from me. He doesn't ever look back, as he looks pretty occupied with his own movements. Inhaling as much fresh air as I can, I sprint towards him, despite he being faster than I am, I manage to keep a steady pace behind him, still keeping on trail. The dawn is younger than ever, and the rain passes from a dying status to a light one, washing away both our sad moods and our memories, leaving us lost in our focus, while we run away once more from that which sinks our hearts.
Half an hour passes, and the rain starts pouring in at its worst, accompanied by its lover the thunder. The sky starts tearing apart before our very own eyes and Felix came to a halt two buildings away from me waiting for me to reach him. Most of the roofs are covered in ponds or flowing rivers should their owner were wise enough to build their houses smartly. The city becomes the most beautifully organized chaos, both deserving of a depiction and fear itself.
As I approach Felix he points towards a sewer entrance, and he turned at me. I nod silently, noticing his soaked hood and the current of water coming down from the tip of his hair. He jumps down to hold himself up from the edge of a balcony, to finally hit the ground as he rolled to avoid any damage to his own body, and then approaching the sewer's lid, and lifting it up. I moved in down as he finished removing the cover. I came next to him once more, and he ordered me to jump down. After making the relatively short leap down, Felix followed, closing the lid before he would get to where I was.
The system of tunnels below the city of Madrid had been there for at least 590 years or so. The Spanish Inquisition gave both assassins and non-catholic people reasons to be feared, and from that fear the digging and construction for a secret system of travel all across the city, with certain key points scattered all throughout the city. With the passing of time and acceptance of foreign religions, it soon fell into disrepair and then forgotten, and we have kept it that way since, for the records may still be present somewhere, but our goal must be to keep our secrecy to us and us only. With the templars having hit the HQ back at Italy and totally annihilated our Irish brothers, we have no other option but to ensure the safety of our home.
But soon after we both moved a few steps away, the lid started opening again. The sound of metal screeching against the concrete haunted our ears and we became alert. Felix pulled out a gun from inside his hoodie, and ordered me to stand behind a corner in the opposite side. Doing my best to jump to a wall and slide towards it, trying to hide our presence to whoever may be coming in. Reaching my position, we both waited for the sound to stop. When it did, Felix nodded at me and he hid behind his corner at the same time I covered behind mine. We heard a loud pair of boots hitting the sewer's concrete ground.
I counted to three, and waited for Felix to make his move. I heard the familiar "click" of his gun after three seconds, his steps cutting the distance between him, the figure and myself, and followed by his own voice, in a demanding tone, asking for nothing other than the password of the brotherhood, our most secure method of preventing third parties into coming into unpleasant, "accidental" contact with us.
"Leaves fall dead, yet with others we must remain near..."
The trick holds in a simple system. Any subject has up to 5 seconds to answer. Should they fail to answer properly to it, they are to be taken into custody, or should they act suspiciously enough, shot in sight (if not pursued until the objective is dead). It has come to happen that initiates struggle to spell out the code properly (or let alone, the code itself at all) out of fear, pressure or just a lapsus brutus. Should that happen, we all carry our very own insignias with ourselves. One shall remain quiet and still until the asking party comes near and asks for the insignia to be delivered. Third parties associated with us such as the Guild of Thieves or the Hall of Mercenaries have a code on their own, changing at the will of their leaders, and we assassins are aware of it. Our own code changes weekly, and in such a way that can only be learned directly from assassin source. Should one fail to meet any of the requirements, the subject is usually subdued (should they not fight back, since they usually run away) and then taken into custody, where the brotherhood decides whether they are set free under assassin custody, assimilated into our very own ranks and ways for any kind of potential contribution, handed over to the Thieves / Mercs, or, in the most unlikely of the cases, killed, should they show to be a potential spy for the templars.
The target didn't seem to answer, and I kept counting each second as precisely as possible. One. Two. Three. Four. I reached for my throwing knives inside my hoodie, and prepared to turn and shot one should they turn hostile. Just when I took the first step out of my cover, a feminine voice broke out the tension that had been build up the last minute.
"...for we have nothing to fear, since the son of autumn is here."
Her voice was seducing and sweet, just like a good cup of wine after a long night. I knew who she was, and was none the stranger to my brother neither. The same "click" from before was heard again, meaning my brother had sheathed his gun away. He started speaking while I carefully accommodated my knives back into their own, specific sheath.
"Well, Violette, it's been quite some time since we have encountered each other in these circumstances, ce n'est pas comme ça?
"Oh, oui, Felix, it's always a pleasure to have you around, how are times treating you and your brother?
Her thick french accent was quite a joy to the ears, just like her presence was as delightful as watching a sculptor's masterpiece. She herself looked like she came straight of a museum. It was no secret that she put my brother under a spell, even more with her long, straight, black hair, which was simply magnificent to say the least; with her deep, amber eyes, that kind of eyes that could pierce through one's soul when being looked at, standing even more out with those sheets half covering them, those freckles that were as playful as ever when her so usual smile would come out.
Violette was part of the french brotherhood, as it was usual for master assassin's to send their agents across countries to check on the different statuses of the brotherhoods. As many of the travelers, she was given the option to resettle in here or go back. Her decision was to go, and then my brother met her, and despite being two days away from moving out, she ultimately stayed, and they have hanged out more and more since then. They are charmed with each other, yet they won't say a word about it. It makes my soul smile to see him in such a good mood, and to see her more than pleased with who my brother has become.
Before they could start the chatter, I began walking towards them, making an occasional splash to avoid any kind of two-hour prolonged distractions or any of the same . She laughed silently for a bit, knowing my intentions, and just smiling at Felix while they both looked possessed with each other. My words came out to the atmosphere as cold, thin air, reminding us of the on-going Moses-like catastrophe just a few meters above our heads.
"Shouldn't we close the lid once more before we continue with our journey?"
"Oh, non, Jonathan, je ne suis pa the only person coming down."
And as if she summoned him via spell, he came down, making a splash while doing so. He was wearing not our usual hoodie, but robes, carrying a messenger bag on his back. Field agents would usually dress like that, and he was no exception. A scribe. One of the many, yet one of a kind, I can say.
"At this rate we better start building our own ark"
He quickly closed the lid with his hidden blade just as Felix did, before meeting with us. Aaron is one of a kind, and he has everything a scribe could wish to learn, except for learning how to grow hair. As easygoing and relaxing he may look, his work as field agent stands out for how he really works, without mistakes and without half-completed objectives. Quite a personality, and quite the way to work.
"Hey Aaron, how's it going?!"
"Meh, all fine, and some tears on the way here, could be better"
"Tears, you say?"
"Not mine, little guy, ask the templars"
We all kept traveling to HQ, which was no more than ten minutes away from where we were. Of course we would run towards it, as it is important for an assassin to be fast and keep in shape. Felix and Violette would lead the charge, as Aaron and I followed ("hang out", as Felix said) in the back. We did our best to make our way to HQ, running through the long, dark corridors of the sewers. Occasionally we would meet other assassins both on their way out or on their way in.
We reached our destination in no time, reaching out for the entrance of the "Ciudadela". An enormous rock, shaped in an irregular form, with graffiti all over it, hinting nothing but a dead end. Felix approached it, and rested his hand over the point of the and "i" from a graffiti. Twisting his hand left, right, and left again the sound of rock moving echoed all across the corridor. He inserted his hidden blade into a groove that popped out right below the palm of his hand. The rock broke in two, and mechanisms like those of a clock could be heard. The entrance was open, and we all stepped in, Felix, Violette, Aaron, me and 6 assassins of those we found while traveling the sewers.
"Ciudadela", the main headquarters of the assassins in Spain. A cave whose main purpose was mining that was soon left abandoned because of mining related accidents and deaths, left alone with all of its treasures inside. Most of them, anyways, as we would still mine for them. It was Mentor Ezio's idea during 1512 to use the caves after the city of Cappadocia's model itself. A system of caves inhabited by assassin's, which our ancestors worked hard to build, and we still work up today to maintain in its condition, and occasionally find a gold deposit here and there, which greatly contributes to our finances.
The city itself is of an ingenious design. Not all assassins work as field agents. We must have eyes and ears everywhere, yet that does not mean we must force everyone to sprint, climb and jump. Field agents almost always use the roofs, zip lines and rocky formations to travel, keeping a constant flow of life, whether messengers travel, hunt squads travel together, trainers and recruits test themselves or the usual sporty assassin who doesn't stop moving at nothing.
The streets are filled with lights, mostly oil lamps everyone hangs around. Using electricity could draw attention from the city council right above our heads, so we have resorted to our very own means, using coal as well, which is abundant in the mines. Those assassins who don't posses either the physical aptitude or simply enjoy the traditional means of travel walk the streets, keeping the ground alive. And just as expected from us, not everyone lives on the surface. Some of our brothers and sisters have become either a very dangerous target for the templars or a very important individual within our ranks, so we have shaped the rocks and caves to serve as houses. It is also common for more than 10 assassins to live in a same rock formation, and they all make the best of it. Some of the two-story buildings usually have no way to reach the rooms upstairs with no means other than by climbing. Reclusive field agents or those who like peacefulness and meditation usually enclose themselves to find tranquility, even when an underground city housing a little more than 300 people is nothing near as peaceful as the Spanish streets at dawn could ever be.
At the very end of the cave, two enormous buildings were to be found, which stand erect one facing the other, a hundred meters apart from each other. Both hold different architectural designs, the one on the left, displaying sand colour banners, with a knife crossing a poison vial represented in brown; and with mats covering the entire building, even hanging outside and inside to decorate. Smoke constantly came out of it, and many of its members would sit and meditate around and inside the building. The Guild of Thieves had housed many members since we accepted their Counselor's request to protect them from templar harm. They are better fit for stealth and retrieval missions, for their ways are more discrete and agile than ours, yet they are not as fit for combat and prefer to work in total darkness, using throwing poisoned knives and poisoning darts as their main weapons, and direct fighting as the last. Their brewing skills have no match in the city. Cobra operatives are their special deal, capable of political assassination or instability, used only when truly required.
The other structure, painted a black coal tone, and with spikes covering the corners of the roof. The main hall was prolonged, and it represented weapons both on the outside and inside, where large wooden tables would fit at least 50 people in one. Their banners were black, and their insignia was of a silver colour, depicting a battle axe in the back of a metal gladiator armor. The mercenaries had joined at the request of their Battlemaster for us to house them from "the unseen harm" while they did the direct damage. The mercenary ways are brute, yet constant and efficient. They face templars in direct ways, and their value is worth and shown in large confrontations, usually packing heavy ballistic armors, shotguns, rifles, combat knives, grenades, grenade launchers and even rpgs, all of that in a single member. Their Wolfpacks track group objectives and clean up entire buildings, are better equipped than the European special operatives, but yet their ways are loud and should the mission require secrecy, it then falls upon us. They spend most of their free time in the shooting gallery and fist-fighting each other within their pits, competing for the title of best fighter.
And at the center of the cave, a rock tower stands strong. "Torreón". Thousands of assassin's have worked to shape it into an structure like the Tower of Pisa (just not as leaned). It is the main support of the cave, and the home to our Master. All assassins must report in to act, since our orders come directly from his word, or his / her squad leaders. Torreón holds millenniums of collected data, archives, texts, you name it. Our most powerful weapons and designs are stored and used at the Master's secrecy. The heart of our city.
Today, seven golden banners decorated Torreón in a circular way, starting from the middle of the structure and extending until a few meters from ground. All of them represented the assassin's insignia in them, along with an inscription in the same palid colour, right below it:
Nihil is verum. Omnia est licet.
"The seven cities of gold", representing the known assassin motto, in Latin. Something merely cultural of us, as with any cultural difference we were to adapt our own ways of representing the brotherhood. Even our robes, who were white just as any of the members, had seven golden strokes starting in the low back and going all the way up to the heart. Just like Violette's robes had a Fleur de Lis in the middle her chest whose middle petal was royal blue and the sides were a royal purple, the changes to the assassins looks changed across countries.
Many assassins came and go, creating a constant flow of energy. Our city shared one thing in common with that one in the surface, it never slept. But today, the inflow of members outnumbered that of the outflow, and they all grouped up around the Torreón. A different kind of occasion. One could guess it out by the amount of banners spread throughout all the city, the movement of life and the crowds gathering in a circle formation, surrounding the pounding heart of our underground home.
The Initiation.
"I thought you said we were needed. Why would you need me to assist an initiation?"
"Because you are not needed besides me amongst the crowds, but at the top of the tower, awaiting for your turn to come.
"You don't mean..."
"Yes. You'll be officially initiated. You'll bear our mark with power and responsibility, and your brothers and sisters will stand there for you."
"What Good Ol' Felix meant was that you'll be getting the robes, guns, belt and blade. And maybe even cool stuff like the zip liner or the reactive armor plates"
My brother turned to Aaron, raising an eyebrow and giving him a dead look in the eye, while crossing his arms and taking a stressed posture.
"Yeah, and the responsibilities and tasks and all that kind of thing too. Woohoo."
"Shouldn't you had something better to do, like delivering a certain important item to the tower, rather than acting sarcastic?"
"I would accompany all the way up to the top, but I was ordered to let you go on your own. Still, Aaron is on its way top, so would you join him in his way, A?"
"Looks like it's a trip for us two little guy. My orders are to deliver it to the middle floors, still, you won't be alone little fella."
"Felix..."
"Go on now, it's about to start, and you have seen for yourself what happens when they don't show up."
While Aaron and I made our way to the tower, traversing through the roofs and climbing up the tower, I couldn't help but remember everything I had been taught up to now. How many initiations I had witnessed, how many lessons I've been taught. The times I've fallen on my knees while practicing, the times I stood out from everyone else. Our ways, our lifestyle. The memories I've lived with Felix and a others. They were our only family. Felix and mine. All we had left, all we had been taught. We knew the risks, but we know that we fight for good, for freedom of our own future. Not everyone approves what we do, nor understands why we do it. But it's our task. Something that has to be done. And despite being around since I was less than a decade old, I still doubt here and now. I can't help but think of whatever dark times may be ahead of us. All I know, is that I've got a task to live up to.
"Hey Johnny, you're daydreaming again. We're already here on the middle floors."
We both climbed up, as he started walking towards the circular room a few meters away from us, the archived scrolls. Hundreds of archives stuffed inside the walls, guarding secrets that we had fought to recover. And so, Aaron walked towards the archives, reaching for his messenger bag and taking out a scroll. He came in and back in a matter of seconds, and then approached me at the edge of the tower. We stared at the scenery below us for a moment, that felt almost an eternity itself.
"Well Johnny boy, I know you'll do fine. We'll be waiting for you down there. You might as well want to be the first one to arrive though, the bar usually is kinda crowded."
"Thanks...I guess?"
"You have nothing to worry about. Just follow the protocol and the indications and you'll be fine. Adiós
He jumped down from where we were, without even taking a glance down. He opened his arms and assumed a cross position while falling. Seconds later, a loud splash was heard, shortly followed by people shouting his name in anger. He aimed for a deep, decorative pond near the crowds, getting more than one assassin completely soaked.
I decided to walk upstairs, and lose myself in thoughts, before arriving at the top. Met some other people on their way up too, getting initiated just like me. Whether they were a girl just reaching her adulthood, a fully grown man in his mid-thirties or a fifty year old woman whose achievements in life were truly fulfilled, we all walked the same path, and our destiny was tied together. So we kept our travel, without delay, without distraction. Just looking towards were our decisions had lead us.
We approached the enormous doors which led to the Master's quarters, and greeted with other initiates as well. Some of them nervous, leaning on the walls and sweating, just like that kind of cold sweat that being anxious provokes. Others were confident, leaning against the staircase wall. Some of them would exchange a few words here and there, but the feeling of keeping the silence alive overwhelmed the atmosphere. And after what it seemed like an eternity, the doors opened, and we were welcomed in by two assassins, both displaying their 4th and 6th rank within the brotherhood, respectively.
They let us in, inside the vast room. It almost looked as an spacial anomaly, since it didn't look as big as in the outside. Two rooms, one below, one above, yet no division between them. The walls all painted the same cream, warm, welcoming colour the tower did. It itself looked like a library, with books stuffed inside the walls, in a circular way. There were no visible oil lanterns, and the only lights came from what it seemed a thousand candles. The place made me feel peaceful in the inside, as it had been always my home. And just right in the right of the entrance, three extensive openings towards the city, as if they were to put windows in a triangular, extended form, but were never really completed. A pair of stairs each one on the corners of the first floor, leading to the second one. The home of our leader, the home of our cause.
A figure appeared in the second floor, apparently coming from a darkened room which was out of sight. His steps were slow, yet powerful, and as he traveled downstairs, his entirely golden robe with grey stripes stood out. Everyone's attention was diverted towards him, and despite his slow pace, he reached us in no time. Inadvertently, we formed an irregular circle of people, where only the two assassins who opened up stood out of it. Before reaching the last step, the master pulled his sleeve down, showing his assassin blade, who stood out for being entirely decorated with Spanish cultural ornaments. He inserted the blade inside a hole in the wall, apparently so well hidden that I couldn't notice it was there. The sound of rock moving was heard, and the ground began to tremble.
Out of the ground, a marble, extensive table elevated as the ground itself opened to it. It was totally white clean, and scarred with the signs of heavy use, visible where some pieces of it were missing, shattered or simply marked by a blade's use. Over the table, and accommodated in such a position that it was obvious what they were, seventeen black, rectangular boxes, with golden laces over them. Upon further investigation, as we stepped in to check them out, there were names written on them, apparently with black ink. Each one of us initiates looked for the ones with our respective names, and opened them.
There were four different articles inside each one of them:
-The Assassin's Insignia, containing our personal training information and being the pass for most of the brotherhood areas.
-The hidden blade, our most popular and used tool and weapon since the very foundation of the brotherhood.
-The assassin cloth belt, whose buckle contained our personal fighting style, and whose colour depicted the task we performed.
-The Spanish assassin robe, depicting the seven gold streaks on the white cloth, composed by a hood, chest, sleeves and an extension from the back to the ankles, and reinforced with ballistic weave.
The assassins gave the order for us to make use of our material, putting on the robes over whatever pieces of clothing we were wearing. All of us, whether field agents or undercover ones, were to make use of our hidden blade, then put our belt over our robes, and finally hang our insignias right where our heart may be. It took us no more than 15 minutes for everyone to be ready. I instantly noticed that the Master was gone for a while, since we put on our robes. After a short wait he came out of another dark room, right at the end of the first floor. He carried a golden box in his hands, moving at a quiet pace and taking no hurry in the ceremony. His face was obscured, mostly because of the lighting in the room, and his face being covered by his hood and a special mask design, meant to protect the Master's identity from everyone but the inner circle. He never faced us directly, and kept his view to the ground.
The Master stood in front of the opening in the middle, looking directly straight to us. We were ordered by the assisting assassins to form a line in front of the Master, aligned straightly and waiting for our turns to go. My number was a sixteen, out of us seventeen assassins present. The first assassin stood still at the front of the line, closing only her eyes now and then, feeling the same cold shiver going through her body that we all had. The time had come, yet the hardest act upon which act was here.
The Golden Box in the Master's hands was opened, slowly and carefully, to reveal our most powerful and guarded secret: The Apple of Eden. One of them, at least. Golden, rounded artifacts which hold power beyond imagination, capable of altering the world and reality itself as we know them. The filaments and fibers of the Universe open up upon direct contact with it, allowing the user to hold powers that had existed before existence itself, and powers beyond the end of times. Only through exhaustive exercise and study will one be able to control its power. Even as powerful as it is, the power within the apple directly flows into one's veins and body, making it difficult to control it as time goes on. Should one neglect putting it down and using it constantly, the power withing the apple would finally overcome the body, making it explode into diverse fragments of pure energy, which then are reabsorbed within the apple.
Yet my doubt was born when it first appeared on sight, as I was never aware of its use during the ceremony. I simply drowned my doubt within myself, and kept staring at the front, thinking of what was to come. It was then that the Master raised his right hand slowly, and made a signal for the first assassin in line to come near him. She would then walk slowly yet firmly towards him. The light within the apple began to glow, slowly increasing its luminosity as she approached him. Once they were one facing the other, he took her hand, and placed it over the apple, as it caressing its exterior. The light quickly faded as her hand touched the artifact, and its power traveled through her veins, the trajectory being visible to all of us as her veins illuminated in a split second. It took only two seconds before the Master took her hand out of the apple, and then stared at her. Her eyes were closed, and when they opened, a bright light came out of them, quickly vanishing into the past. He nodded to her, and she responded silently with a nod as well. Then she approached one of the openings, and waited, still and without moving.
My doubts began to rise. I didn't want to think the worst, but... what if he was controlling our minds so that we'll serve him? What if everyone acts a certain way not to disrespect him, only to fall under his orders and showing obedience? I couldn't ease my mind, and as the second assassin approached over to him, my worries grew bigger. I tried not to think about it, and put so silly thoughts at rest, yet they came back when the third one finished his own turn. All three assassins stood in front of the three openings, into the void. There was a moment of silence for a while, and then the sound of hay being hit reached all the way up to us. All the crowds shouted a single cheering was heard, and the ceremony continued. There were still more steps to go, yet the most important one was finished for them.
The numbers quickly dwindled as time went by, and three by three, the newest official members of the brotherhood proceeded with their initiation. After the 15th took a jump along with his two brothers, it was my turn to start my initiation myself. There were only two of us left, yet my stomach was filled with worries and anguish. A fire I couldn't put down just by calming myself down. I slowly approached the Master, and looked at him directly. He raised his face at me, still covered by his mask, not even his eyes where there to see.
"Do not worry. You'll understand soon."
His voice sounded so strangely familiar, yet so different from anyone I've ever met. His words startled the fire of doubt into a full flame, yet my worries were cured. As if he had read my mind, he nodded, and then looked at the apple. Indecisively, yet finally, I slowly raised my hands towards it. The dusty air, the coldness of my hands. My breathing was irregular. I took a deep breath, and finally decided to touch the apple. I felt the energy flow through my right hand fingers, then into my veins, and then into my body. I suddenly felt so tired, and sleep deprived. I closed my eyes and lost consciousness.
I opened my eyes once more, only to find the entire place gone. Instead of a cream white ceiling illuminated by candles, there were stars and space, apparently endless and vast. All of them stood still in time, as the time went by. It was freezing. There was no breeze, yet my body was as cold as ever. A weather as freezing as the coldest winter. Yet I could move, and feel. I slowly got up, and found myself standing over a black, circular platform, surrounded by what it seemed the darkness of the universe. Wherever I turned to, there was nothing but the darkness of the space, the solitude and silence of the cosmos. Yet I could breathe, and live as if no adverse effects were present at all. Even without light, I could feel myself safe, calm. Despite the entirely strange place, I felt... protected.
"And so, you have decided to come."
I heard a sweet, calm and slow voice all around me. The sound of a woman whose voice felt as the most powerful weapon ever. And despite the suddenness of the voice, I felt no panic in my skin. Whether an effect of the apple, her power or simply myself, it all looked strange and incomprehensible to me.
"Because you have never been here before."
"How did you...? Can you read my thoughts? Who are you? Where are you?"
"There is no need for panic, my child. This is out of your reach for you to comprehend."
"Where am I? Can't you at least tell me why am I here?"
"Because the piece of universe they hold in their hands for mere rituals has finally brought back my son."
"What do you mean? I am not your son, I don't even know how do you look like"
"Will creating a physical form for you calm your spirits down?"
"I...I guess...?"
A bright spark began to emit behind me. As I turned around, I found myself with something beyond words. The yellowish glow came from what it seemed a Sun, as the flames were present at the edges, yet, the Sun itself was black, devoid, totally obscured. And surely twenty times bigger than what the real Sun could ever look like in person. Slowly, the manifestation began to form a body, pouring a bit of its darkness in front of me. A female body, taller than me by a few inches, and made entirely out of darkness, appeared. Slowly, her body gained a pale colour, as white as snow. Her eyes were of the colour of space itself, and her body was as beautiful as a shooting star. She didn't wear a single hint of clothing, yet I didn't mind, for my sight was lost in the deepness of her eyes. Her hair, dark as our surroundings, and as full of stars, prolonged infinitely. Reaching even the dark Sun behind her, apparently it being part of her hair.
"I am the void. My form is not the matter for I have many, all across universes."
"Wh...Why am I..."
"Because you are back where you started. Despite you have never been here before and yet have been so. Despite you are here now and you are really not. Despite you will be here, and yet be gone."
"I...I...I don't..."
She walked graciously towards me, despite she was over no platform. I felt the urge to run away, yet I couldn't for my panic of falling into the universe into my death or the endless feeling of death... was more frightening. I tried to look away from her eyes, but despite my best efforts, I couldn't... or best said, I didn't want to. Despite my words stuttered and my body trembled, I was able to do something, yet... I didn't feel like I really could. Nor even motivated at the very least. So I stood there, simply doing nothing as her nude figure approached.
"That is, for a mother's love is always overwhelming. Now, you will not understand a sentence I pronounce, or any word I speak to you. For your time is still not, and you ready are neither."
She grabbed my hand firmly. Feeling the touch of her skin as freezing as ice, I wouldn't bother struggling or fighting back. Just as the apple of eden had illuminated other's veins before, her hand had the same effect, but instead of a white, pure light, my veins showed black. Almost as if shadows travelled through the narrow corridors my veins were. I felt no pain, nor hassle. My heart raced when I could feel her power approach it. And once it did, I closed my eyes, and expected to die. Yet, when I opened them once again, I felt calmness, and found myself in the same position I was. I felt power. I could feel myself somehow now connected to that place, yet I didn't understand a thing of what was going on.
Now, you are imbued with power, your original power. Power you never had and had used before.
As I looked around my arms and legs, I noticed that she was right. Darkness was flowing out of my body, just like a light flame would ignite around a burning paper, yet, I felt no pain, only power within me.
"Yet, your time is not, my child. I become happy to see my children back home, yet, you are required somewhere else."
"B-but I... I don't understand..."
"Just as this place, you will remain in darkness for now. But even then, I wouldn't let you face your fate alone. Your mother will protect you."
She let go of my hand, and used her other hand to touch my chest, still covered by my robes. I could feel the touch of her cold skin despite wearing clothes. As soon as the first finger made contact with me, I felt a burning pain, both inside and outside. As if I could feel my soul scream in unison with my body. I tried grabbing her arm in an attempt to stop the pain, but as as soon as I did, the pain escalated enormously. I felt my own skin tearing when her full palm was finally placed upon my chest. The pain was still overbearing, and I started to lose grip on reality. I was going blind out of the pain, and was losing consciousness. My heart started racing again, and I dropped on my knees, but she wouldn't let go. I passed out of pain, and felt my body lose all its heat.
I opened my eyes again, and desperately gasped, and inhaled all the air I could. My breath was heavy, and I found drops of sweat coming out of my forehead. I felt the warmness of my body once more. As I faced directly, I found my hand was being retired from the apple of eden by the Master. I couldn't help but feel lost, not having an idea of what had just taken place. As my hand was drawn away from the artifact, I was ordered to move into one of the openings. I felt dizzy and gone. I was told once more to move into the openings, and I started to move, almost drifting away, to the openings. I got in place, still adjusting my eyes. Closing and opening them repeatedly, in order to knock myself out of my trance. I was confused, lost.
As the last assassin finished her turn with the apple, she got into position, near the opening besides me. This time we were only two, instead of three. She looked at me, and I looked back at her.Then she nodded, giving me the signal. I closed my eyes once more, trying to haunt away the bad dream I just had. As soon as the dusty, rocky air entered through my nose, I let myself go, and both of us jumped down.
We had taken a leap of faith.
Faith in ourselves. In the brotherhood. In whatever our future had awaiting for us. In those around us and those who were not around anymore. In the trust that was put into us. Into the tasks we were about to be given. Into the freedom of the world, into a better hope for mankind. Faith not to be driven blindly, or by fear. Faith in the world.
Or so, it was meant to represent.
I felt the air rushing against my figure, breaking against my body. It entered my lungs and escaped through my mouth. The pile of hay was more than a couple of meters away, and so the next part of the initiation. Despite I had waited for this moment long ago, I couldn't really concentrate about it. What just happened was driving my attention away from the real purpose of the test. I began to doubt myself, to doubt between what was real and what was not. Was it just a premonition? An effect of the apple? An illusion?
Before I could keep on thinking, I felt the softness of the hay, receiving my body softly with a muffled hit.
As I stepped out of the yellow pile, a great cheer was heard, the first, and most important part of the initiation was over. Every assassin present shouted for us, making us aware of their presence once more. Half of them looked serious and passionate, while the other half looked smiling and cheering. She and I walked rapidly towards the crowd, where the next part awaited us. When we were within inches of joining them, two assassins stepped out of it, both holding their hidden blades out.For her, it was an adult, tall figure, whose olive skin and black mustache stood out of all his physical appearances.
For me, it was Felix.
They both took our left hands, and slid the blade across the palm of them. As soon as the blades left their trails, a river of blood began to flow out. I felt little pain as the warm blood began to drip of my hand. Felix looked grabbed my left shoulder and looked me in the eye, as the wounded hand was still stuck out in the air. He smiled confidently, and then began reciting the ceremonial words.
"Where others rely on their eyes to decide, remember..."
"Nothing is true."
"Where others are limited by morality or law, remember..."
"Everything is permitted."
"We work in the dark to serve the light. We are Assassins."
We ended the last phrase in unison, and then he covered my wound with a piece of cloth. He looked at me once more, and an even wider smile appeared on his face, which quickly spread to my face. My mind was still uneasy, but my time had finally come, and I couldn't feel any prouder of my self. I quickly joined the crowd, and the other assassin did as well. It was time for celebration, and many of the other assassins began to run away into the canteens, food halls and other recreational places. Felix and I walked over the streets for a while, looking for a place to go to. We wandered for a little while more when we found Aaron and Violette, who were exactly looking for us.
"Magnifique, Jonathan. It makes me happy to see you finally amongst us."
She smiled as softly as she could, and her happiness was true, as her expression quickly brushed a smile upon her face.
"That was totally rad dude, but you know what my favorite part was? When you found us in our way to the bar for some shots."
"And when was that? Right now?"
"Come on, are you really going to deny him a good drink just because he's 16? He's already a "fully independent, grown assassin, who needs no brother", am I right Johnny?"
Aaron was as amused as Felix was annoyed with him, but finally he gave in to his requests and we four ended up taking some shots in a brotherhood bar just nearby. It was filled with life, as everyone was celebrating (more for the even itself than the initiates though). Two of my brothers, playing the guitar, the bartender quickly dispatching beverages. We talked and talked, laughed and remembered this and that. Aaron spilled more than one drink on his robes, yet he didn't seem to mind. He ended up talking about that time he ended up mixing his target with a domestic ostrich...
"You know, little guy, I used to be as adventurous and dedicated as you, but then I got shot in the goddamn knee, and I decided to take it easy."
And so time passed, and ironically, day came, as dawn ended. The longest dawn I've ever lived up to now. We interchanged more than a few words, and got to meet more than one new friend. We enjoyed each other's presence, and let time fly by. Memories started to flow and create that morning. I can recall every single of the jokes Aaron said, every single story Felix shared, every single smile and laugh Violette let out. They are my family now. All I have here for me. But then, I started constructing my own way, following my own path.
I sat on top of the roof of my new room, located in the second floor of a two-story building with no access from the house to my room, just recently assigned that day. I took a moment to think the morning out, let everything settle inside my mind. My body felt like resting, but my mind was still looking out for some calmness. The atmosphere was not as silent as the surface, yet I was not even aware of my surroundings. I was spaced out, lost in my thoughts. I was happy, and uneasy. Calm, yet moved. Everything was going as expected, or wasn't it? I didn't know. I just wanted to enjoy the sight and my thoughts, and let myself go. I felt the cold waves of air hit my body and almost take my soul away. It was calm now. I was, at least. Despite the restless events just hours ago. I was uncertain on the future.
A certain pattern of steps broke me out of my meditation. Felix was near, just behind me, approaching me slowly. He finally stood beside me, and I didn't even look towards him. He sat down, just by my side and started fiddling his legs just as I did. We both remained silent for an eternity, just looking at the lights in front of us. Movement never stopped, and people were still on their tasks. Guards here and there, messengers out, delivering, scribes and trackers reporting in, hunters getting ready to go out or coming in. A whole ecosystem underground. It passed a long time before one of us decided to break the scenery up in our heads, still, it was not my voice the one that went out.
"I'll rest peacefully knowing that you'll be here, protected from them. Still, I'm gonna miss you around, y'know?"
"Even if I could go with you out there, my new assigned tasks require me to be here for now. Still, that doesn't mean we won't see each other."
"Yeah, I guess you're right."
Another silence broke through, and invaded for a while. The thoughts were about to flow back in, when I let out some of them into the atmosphere.
"You know, he would be happy to see how far we have gone."
"I know he is. Wherever he's watching from. I know he's proud of you."
"Do you think we'll see him one day?"
I noticed a single drop running down Felix's face. He must had remembered the music that we let out hours ago.
"I...I don't know. But we must do our best to keep his memory alive. We must never forget who he was, and what he did."
He stood up, silently and painfully slowly. We both kept staring straight into the city, yet we were lost in the abyss of our minds. He inhaled deeply, and let a heavy sigh out. He didn't move for a while, and neither did I . Maybe it's the path we had taken, but still... it is painful. It hurts the heart and scars the mind. I know this must be done, because someone must do it, but I really hope it was other way. Because I miss him, and I miss the "good" times. This a life not anyone should live, let alone suffer through. Sometimes, I wonder how different our life would be should we had taken a different path, and I grow restless when I do. A knot starts building in my throat, and I let it out with a deep sigh as well.
"I have to go. See you around"
"Hey."
"Yeah?"
"Take care of Violette, ok? She's not your little brother after all"
He let out a short chuckle, and lightened up the mood while doing so.
"Of course I will."
Felix walked away, and let me alone with my thoughts once more. And so, time passed, yet I didn't seem to mind. The scene was as intoxicating as a drug, for I could not move my eyes away from it. I simply imagined myself floating through an ocean of worries, responsibilities, tasks, ideas... I didn't feel like drowning anymore. I just let myself go with the night of my mind, and embraced my new title. Never before had I feel a change in my life so dramatically notable, so... palpable, like almost physically present. I never imagined my life going other way, yet never imagined it would come so soon.
I was finally inside the room, prepared to get some rest, both physically and mentally. The pain I suffered back there could had been nothing than an illusion created by the apple, and my other "mind-controlling theories" were ditched down. I was at ease with myself, and with the future awaiting for me.
I slowly, tiredly began to take off my robes, trainers, pants... everything I could to get to bed already. Leaving only my shorts and a white undershirt on. I gently crackled my neck and jaw, and sat on the end of the bed. I was about to give in to the fatigue when I remembered the silliest, simple thing to do: brush my teeth.
And so I walked once more, to the bathroom when I could barely think like myself. I turned the lights on, grabbed my toothbrush and out some toothpaste on it. I watered the thing slightly, and began brushing slowly, almost falling asleep in the process. By the time I finished I could hardly keep my eyes open. And so, I washed the toothbrush, put it down, grabbed water with both my hands and rinsed my mouth. Finally, I looked I myself in the mirror, taking a last look at me before heading to bed.
But what I found, made me panic.
Back when I was trapped in space, or wherever I was, she placed her hand on my chest, and the pain came in. Now, where her palm touched, an alpha sign, looking just like the brotherhood's insignia, appeared. Below, an "omega" sign turned upside down. They were dark as her hair was, and the golden sun rays that came out of the dark Sun surrounded them. They were so dark that even the colour went through my undershirt, making me notice at my own reflection. I stood panicked for a while, until I decided to turn off the light and head out to bed.
I don't know what this means. Now I have no doubt it was real. But... do others assassins have it as well? I doubt so. My confusion grows, and just when I found peace within myself things start shaking up again. I try to think, but my body is giving finally in to the weariness. I set myself the purpose of investigate whatever this could mean...
Author's Note
Version 3.0
Finally made my mind up about what I want and how I want it :)
