"Arabian saddles," the smaller Novice groaned.
"How do you sit on that thing again?" Desmond asked, gesturing to his horse.
"Use your legs to grab the horse," said Jameel as they began to settle in for the night.
"That just makes it go faster." Lex pouted and tossed a piece of stick into the fire. The stick crackled, sparks sent up into the air. The Master Assassin looked at him, a grin smeared onto his face. "Do--not--laugh!" Thankfully, he didn't. Simply looked at him and shook his head, grin still on his face as they closed their eyes.
Hooves thundered down slopes beyond the checkpoints set up by the guard. The city had come into sight, finally, on their fifth day of travel. Jameel's speckled gray horse was the first to react, moving into a full gallop, not stopping for an instant as passersby shouted at them to watch out for them on the road.
Concern sprang to his mind after the relative tranquility of the journey. They had to keep moving. The target was there for a short period of time, shorter than usual. They had to get the information and track him before he could move again. There had to be a reason he chose now of all times to be in Acre, but it was unfathomable for the time being.
His thoughts disipated as the two Novices caught up to his speeding mount, one on either side. Lex sat straight-backed in the saddle, reins twisted around his hands as his knees gripped the animal's sides. He looked like he was beginning to enjoy the rhythmic, frenzied pace. Desmond, on the other hand, had a stranglehold on his horse as it charged besides its stablemates, head and tail high, ears pricked up.
The horses slowed to a trot as they found what the city offered them: food. Desmond bounced to one side as his horse stopped, falling off into the hay as it bent its neck to eat.
"Is that Acre?" he managed as he looked up at the walls, speckled on the outside with small huts and more piles of hay, some against the wall itself, others interspersed around the road. Jameel dismounted and let his horse eat as he stared up at the entrance.
"Yes, that's Acre. Let's find a way inside." Lex dismounted and helped a trembling, sore-assed Desmond up onto his feet. By that time, Jameel had managed to climb up the wall and get atop the beams that spanned the lower half of the gate's arched entrance, standing directly above the guards' heads. He managed to control his bad leg long enough to hop across the beams and get inside, dropping down to the ground. He took a seat on the nearest bench and rested his back against the stone behind him. Now all that was left to do was wait for the Novices to find their way inside.
Desmond cracked his back and climbed up onto the beams, using Jameel's way in. He swung down and rolled to a stop in front of the Red Owl. The two men looked up as a group of white-clad men walked in through the guards, heads bowed.
"Who?" mouthed the bartender.
"Scholars," was the answer as Lex slipped between two of the men and walked over to them, smiling beneath his hood. Jameel nodded to him and explained the mission: "I'm in need of information about a man named Kadin. See what you can find." He dropped his head, looking like one of the scholars had decided to take a break. This worked to fool the guards and most Templars; with luck, it would possibly fool any Ravenwatch members.
"Kadin. Got it."
"Safety and peace upon you both." Desmond moved off from the bench and strolled into the crowd, disappearing. Lex waited a few seconds until he was sure Desmond had left the vicinity before pocketing his hands and shifting his shoulders. He waded into the throngs. Headsets or something would be really great right now. Suicidally insane as it was, he figured listening in on the Templars wouldn't be so bad for reconisance. The boy slid up to a wall beside which some of the knights had clustered and set his ears to listening.
His intuition paid off. The knights were talking about the man--trivial things, mostly, such as attitude, weight, height, rumors spread from the gossip-mills--but it was information all the same. Lex settled in to wait until they stopped chattering and jumped when the conversation came to a sharp halt. They'd been interrupted by the target in question. Rumor hadn't lied either. Kadin was huge. He easily towered over the other two knights; Lex estimated their heads reaching around five-foot-seven, six feet in height. The weapon on his back only made him even more intimidating. It was a two handed mace, almost the same size as its wielder, a large knob-like steel head at one end about two inches around and a balance on the other, deadly in its simplicity.
"You're not paid to stand around idle! Get back to work," said Kadin. Lex shuddered. The man didn't even raise his voice and the knights snapped to it. He walked on. The Sparrow moved after him.
Desmond stood beside one of the city churches, watching as the big man moved passed. A pair of black bodies stirred in the shadows. They moved into the light, what looked like skeletal Mardi Gras masks over their faces. They were as silent as ghosts, following Kadin just a pace or so behind. Whether bodyguards or not, it was hard to tell.
The two Novices could see plainly how they parted the crowds, the citizens of Acre backpedaling to get out of their way.
"You see that guy?" Lex murmured.
"How the hell could someone miss that guy?" Desmond snapped. "What do we do now? He's gonna get away."
"Go back and tell Jameel." The Eagle raised a brow. Lex looked at him flatly. "I'm less of a threat than you, Miles." Point taken, Desmond turned and threaded his way back to the Assassin as the Sparrow wandered along after the stupidly huge man and his black entourage.
The boy followed them through a maze of battle-scarred streets and backalleys. The tangy smell of salt reached his nose. Kadin moved toward the docks, his black-wearing possee still in tow. Lex kept an eye on the them. They looked like bird people with their beaked, white masks and the feathers that covered their heads like odd hoods. Black feathers on shafts peeked from beneath their equally plumed cloaks. Black arrows. Their shadows looked especially avian; the bandy-legged crows were almost comical. Almost. These bodyguards must have been what attacked Jameel.
One of them stopped.
This caused the other to stop, which caused Kadin to stop as well.
The mercenary held up one hand and looked over his shoulder. He walked back while Kadin and his partner waited. He halted and looked around, scanning.
The Sparrow stayed curled where he was between a pile of netting and boxes the dock workers had left behind. C'mon! he found himself praying. Move, damn you! Keep going! He swallowed soundlessly and held his breath, listening, waiting. Finally, the mercenary turned back and walked on with Kadin, the big man resuming his patrol. That was close. Lex took in a few long breaths, counting to five-one-thousand in his head before slinking along behind them once more, keeping himself to the crowds and the shadows. And the ocassional cart, barrel, or roof garden when needful. What does Jameel want to do to this guy if he captures him? Bludgeon him to s**t with big rocks?
The boy climbed out of the cart he'd been hiding in most recently, freezing on the spot and ducking down behind it. Both mercenaries had turned abruptly, arrows already nocked to their bows. Kadin raised his arm, a silent command to lower their bows. They did as told. The big man smirked.
"Come out, boy. I know you've been following us. I can hear your feet." Oh, crap.
* * *
Jameel looked up at Desmond as the man came into view. Wasting no time, he said, "What did you find?"
"We found the man!" Desmond snarled. "You said nothing about him being as big as a linebacker!"
"A what?" Jameel swore under his breath in frustration. "Never mind. I can't help my brother's height. I just needed confirmation that he's here."
"Wait, your what?" Desmond did a double take at the man, who glanced toward the streets where the people milled about. "Dude, I feel sorry for your mom."
Jameel nodded, "Yes, I felt sorry for her, too. My father as well." A familiar knot of anxiety was forming in his stomach, the same as when he'd returned to Masyaf. The Assassin stood. "Where's Lex?"
That was the question of the day. Desmond sighed, "I don't know. We split up. Last I saw, he wasn't in any--"
"He's following Kadin, is he not? He's in plenty of trouble..." He took off. Desmond hurried after the man.
"Hey! We don't even know where the hell he is!" The barkeep struggled to keep up. Injured as Jameel was, he was going quick as he was able, shoving those who wouldn't get out of his way aside. The gnawing apprehension was bolstered by what he knew. He had to find Kadin. His brother was not only strong, but agile for his size, proven by the many times he'd been cornered in one of the slim alleyways of Masyaf. Thin and lithe as he'd been, he hadn't been able to evade his grasp. No doubt now he'd be accompanied by Ravenwatch mercenaries.
The Red Owl's gorge rose. If things went Kadin's way, he wouldn't have a Novice anymore. His brother would deliver him a pierced, crushed corpse as a farewell gift. Jameel rushed faster, pushing himself to his limits as Desmond struggled to clip at his heels. He had to find Lex.
* * *
Fingers moved the arrowhead around his neck, clipping the twine with one of its saw-teeth. Lex came out with his hands up, the stringed arrowhead tucked into his sleeve.
"You heard me? Really? And here I thought you were all brawn, little brain, and no auditory function whatsoever." He gave the trio's leader a cheeky smirk. "Well, let's get this over with. I don't have all day to turn your fanboys there into disgusting mantel ornaments."
Kadin's smirk, which had appeared on his face the moment the boy revealed himself, became a diabolical grin.
"Sounds fun." The big man whistled sharply, more of the masked men appearing. His possee swelled from two to eight, four at ground level, two on the rooftop in front of him, two on the one behind. They each had arrows strung and pulled taut, ready to fire.
For a moment, all was silent, a stare down. Even the civilians, who gave them a wide berth simply for the want of not being hit by a stray bolt, had quieted down so that only the shuffling of their feet and clothing could be heard. The boy shattered the tension, lunging forward and swinging the arrowhead for one of the merc's throats. He dodged back as Lex released the string, the sharp point caught harmlessly in some of the feathers of his headdress.
Daggers drawn now, he wheeled on the others. They parted out of his reach, away from the stabbing points and away from the giant mace that was already coming down! The boy twisted to the side, a crater forming where he'd stood moments before. He shifted his weight, aiming for the man's outstretched arm. Kadin moved back, his mace taking the blow. Lex gasped, an arrow zipping by his cheek. He hadn't noticed how hemmed in he'd become, ringed by the four on the ground, daggers in all their hands, and the four above, who'd decided to take pot shots at this unlucky fish in their barrel.
More arrows rained down as Kadin picked up his mace and fled.
* * *
Jameel heard something shatter, saw many glinting shards flying through the air. One of the mercenaries had released a glass arrow. The Assassin hung for a moment in mid-stripe, the momentum of going quick as his body would allow carrying him to a sliding stop.
"There's a Bureau close by. It's a safe haven for both of you. Desmond, find Lex and get him out of there."
The bartender stammered, "Oh, yeah, and what the hell do I tell his stupid a** when he asked where you went?"
He received a heavy shove from the man, who ignored his question and shouted, "Quickly, before they have a chance to release more arrows!" The Eagle threw his arms up in the air and hurried on. Wonderful!
Jameel went off to find Kadin.
* * *
"I really hate you right now."
The last ten minutes had been a slow motion nightmare. Lex had all but become a Ravenwatch pincushion. The prong-ended, serrated arrows had buried themselves in his arms and thigh, one scoring his back and another clipping his shoulder.
One of the mercs had pulled out a clear-looking arrow. Literally clear. The arrow was released from the rooftops, shattering on impact with the ground. The other mercenaries promptly took cover from the merciless shards. Lex had dropped to a crouch and curled up, shielding his face and neck with his arms.
And now...
"Des?" He pried open his eyes as Desmond yanked out the arrow from his right arm, then the one in his leg. Cuts bloodied the bartender's hood-shadowed face.
"This better not scar, or I'll never let you hear the end of it," he growled, hauling the other Novice up and racing away from the mercs. The Eagle picked up the other time traveler, carrying him like a football until they were out of sight of the feathery possee. He set the boy down.
"Where'd Jameel go?" Lex flinched as the other arrow was pulled from him. Desmond groaned.
"We are not splitting up again! He told us to head for the Bureau, that it's a safe. Help's there."
"Good. Then go get them."
"Are you deaf or something? I said we're not splitting up again!"
"You've got longer legs than me and I'm already bleeding! Go get help already, for God's sake." The man gave him a long look before grasping his head. He looked around for a landmark, anything to indicate where the Bureau might be. His eyes widened. There! An eagle flew overhead, and Desmond watched it fly. In a corner of his mind, in some ancient memory not his own, he knew it circled above the Bureau, as if it knew it had to signal its grounded allies.
"Fine." He shot the boy a look as he took off along the docks at a limping run. The bartender turned and threw himself headlong up the nearest wall, grasping a window ledge and scrambling up. His fingertips scraped and bled as he hurried forward and flung himself out into space. His stomach lurched up into his mouth, then back into its proper position as his feet thudded onto the next roof. He staggered, righted himself, and repeated the process. I can't believe he talked me into this!
Splinters dug into the tender flesh of his hands as he hung from the Bureau's rooftop entrance and dropped down to the floor below. Panting, he entered the room. A man stood behind a desk there, an old man. His gray beard, streaked with white in patches, nearly reached his waist. A pigeon sat cooing in his hand.
"What are you doing here, Novice?" demanded the Rafiq, looking at him with steely eyes beneath the his hood.
"Shut up for a second," Desmond panted, doubled up, hands on his knees. Catching his breath, he rose. "We have a problem."
* * *
The search didn't last long. His brother was a predictable lout sometimes--get him running and he ran straight unless forced to turn or his way was blocked off. Jameel followed along the rooftops, eyes on the burly giant racing along below.
He'd found him. After all these years, he'd found him! He engaged his Hidden Blade with the ring on his pinkie and pounced for the fleeing man. What gave him away, he couldn't know. Perhaps his brother's paranoia was simply that great, or he'd somehow seen his shadow as he leaped down toward him. Whatever the case, he turned, and his mace followed.
The Assassin couldn't dodge it; he didn't even have time to turn in midair. Instead, he tried to shield himself from the inevitable blow. The pitiable attempt was for naught. The mace smacked him out of the air, smashing his left arm, wrist, and hand in one blow. Stone met his side. Pain rocketed through his skull as if it had been hit instead of his blade arm, where the nauseating sensation of stabbing, shattered bone was all too common. The top of his bracer was crushed in.
He managed to roll onto his feet, but there was no time to run. Kadin had already closed the gap. The air was driven from his lungs with a second swing of the mace. Multiple, horrible cracks were felt more than heard as the weapon's round, steel head drove into his ribs. They broke easily. His armor did nothing against the blow.
Jameel rolled to a stop at the edge of the nearest dock, his broken arm dangling over the water. Each shallow breath set his chest blazing afresh. His head lolled to one side as footsteps stopped beside him. Kadin restrapped the mace to his back and picked up the Assassin by the neck with one hand, holding him over the water.
"This will be your last try, little brother." The big man raised a brow as the man's unbroken arm grasped at his wrist, a weak attempt to pry it from his throat. The glare he received left him unfazed. He squeezed until the fingers scrabbling at his gloved hand slipped away, the hateful eyes beginning to roll back in his skull. "I won't kill you outright."
His free hand balled into a meaty fist. Blood shot from Jameel's mouth and nose as knuckles crashed into his face. The punches came down in quick succession, putting the point to his words. He wouldn't be killed outright. "No, first, I'm going to have the fun you deprived me of all these years."
To be killed outright is a mercy he'll make me beg for...
