A new era, dawn of the assassin

by Bratianu Catalin-Alexandru

As the sun reached out its final rays onto the city, the dark hours were almost upon us, the few people that were roaming around the alley started to disappear from this scenery, a small shadow made its movement towards the entrance to an underground tunnel, passing a few crowds which were chatting about the trivias of life. This shade of life was no more than a small flickering light that forgot how to glow in the darkness, as time get harsh some might find a way to get past and sometimes forget, however there are those who cannot really pass such moment nor leave them in the distant past, never to be remembered. Such as the memories that tend to walk in the shadows waiting to reveal themselves, so did this sole person like an assassin, hidden from sight, un-noticed by those around him, but who could think that a true assassin could walk among those in the present, none... The time of the assassin passed from long ago, that is what the Templars thought, 'they are all extinct' that is what they said. However who would expect that a spirit as old as the medieval era could indeed roam these lonely caves in these prosperous days, if it would be to believe what would be told during the political apparitions, but, getting back to our hero, there seems that despite the mystified darkness, which beholds this unholy place, a firm and distant ray of light approaches rapidly towards Edward, preparing to be welcomed into Heaven our hero reaches out to the growing light, only to realize this is no mere cave and that which he reaches for ain't no heavenly light, but will surely lead him to the afterlife if he does none at all. Upon the lighting of his surroundings bit by bit as his death seeker approaches, it would seem there is no way past it nor would it seem a way to outrun the strange movable item which comes forth, nay would it be the time to think of such gibberish, but not knowing nor having any time to react in any way possible but let thyself be led by the foolish human instincts. After all the years he suffered, those moments of loneliness and pain in which he lost all he had...the little things which he gave up unconsciously for the sake of fortune, a scar which was to haunt him for the rest of his life, he finally gave up the never-ending battle...but for some reason from somewhere inside his heart a continuous whisper kept struggling to be heard, as for unrequired thoughts kept crossing his mind, things he couldn't understand... The constant fear that was now running through his body, one which scared him more than giving up on one self...the fear of dying alone in this darkness, the fear of not knowing whose cry for help he keeps hearing, somehow without even realizing he just started running and now, without understanding...he knew he had to run, being led by something or, rather say, someone. Somehow it didn't take long to reach the place one's voice kept telling him to go, with haste he quickly broke through the locked door and got out of the way of the strange device that now seemed more than just a passing light. 'What the hell is that?!...'

As if to ask his question a shadow appeared besides him and was about to say something, but only to stop upon realizing a strange and quite impossible fact, how can one actually talk to himself...isn't that a bit freaky...but the sudden realization of the pair of eyes which were now staring towards the strange apparition in front of him stopped this sudden rise of thoughts which seemed to have no end what-soever. 'Hey, so... Who the hell are you? And could you actually tell me what's going on over here...' 'Huh?! T-this is not possible...' As Edward kept staring towards the strange apparition in front of him, the kid seemed to enter a loop of brain damage control recheck every few seconds as he himself could not comprehend what was happening at this respective moment. It was as if he has just been thrown in a bad movie with an outerbody type of experience and as that occurred his own limbs were moving on their own as if being able to see oneself sleep-walking, however at that one moment when you see your own body turning towards yourself or rather your own ghost and starts questioning you...well that would pretty much be one of those moments when you got nothing else left to do but freak out, well, of course, unless you got pretty damn good self-control, which of course our little ghost did not have obtained such a quality during his life, apparently. 'Hey, kid...you okay?' Upon realizing the question at hand, our ghost calmed down a bit and tried to keep in such a state, for a while at least...unless this so-called 'dream' would hide even more mysteries, unbearable secrets that is. 'Y-yeah, I'm okay... But who are you and what you doing in my body?!' 'Well I'm Edward Kenway and...Wait WHAT?!?' As there were little clues to why everything turned out this way, who could actually understand how it all lead to this, there was no possible way that a soul as old as Edwards could walk the plains of this world in such a distant period of time, none of those small and unimportant things couldn't have been the sole catalyst to what just happened. Without any leads to better see through what just been developed at this respective moment in this little corner of the world, Kelco started explaining to Kenway the little details which he thought were important, starting from the fact about his involvement with an entertainment company and continuing with the little facts that made his stay there important, including the fact that he was forced to infiltrate the company to find out dirty secrets about it. Every little thing that Kenway found out left him speechless to how much the world has changed, the fact of being at that respective moment in this place was just impossible to explain, however to all the things he was told, from the entertainment company to the fact that everything evolved up to the point that now technology has begun to take an really important step towards being crucial to life on earth, well that was truly a different story, one which they did not have the time for nor was it the place for such. 'Well I suppose that sums it all up, pretty much.'

'It sure does lad, however I'm more confused than ever and as you can't teach a cat to bark, as well you won't see me fitting too well in such a world.' 'And getting back to us, I guess I haven't told you who I am yet. Well Mr. Kenway, my name is Kelco and it's a pleasure to meet you.' 'Right now I have no reason to doubt you; nor would it be needed for you to lie, so it's a pleasure to meet ya. Plus if you'd do so and trick me you'd be dead by now.' said Kenway to his companion as he smiled. 'Well what you know Mr. Kenway...I guess I am already dead...I think.' said Kelco ironically. 'Guessing there is only one thing left to do...get out of here and find out what truly happened.' As nothing more needed to be shared between each other, the two agreed and followed the path which was now open before them, lit only by the few smaller light sources every here and there, small light bulbs which barely covered every few feet a small portion of the tunnel ahead. With the little sight Kenway had over the path which lay in front, he advanced at a rather fast pace as if he had no worries of what could be found further away from this point, however he was as diligent as ever watching every little thing around him and stepping carefully, yet with haste. The path kept leading them to an endless life of walking through this dark realm, it seemed as it would never end, through after a while they bumped into a dead end, now the darkness was overwhelming and it seemed there was no way out of this void, sitting in this silence for so long would make anyone lose their minds, however a small ray of fading light made its way towards the silent assassin, upon this curious fact there seemed to be a grid somewhere a bit up through which the cold whispers of the wind could be felt a tad, the ice queen of the sky seemed to be on a constant argument with the fluffiness of the clouds, every now and then losing its place in the kingdom from up-above as its light faded every once in a while. 'Hehe, seems we got no other way out, but to force our way out of here through that grid up there or...go back the way we came.' 'Sigh, guess we got no choice, not like I can do anything about it.' admitted Kelco. 'Than hang tigh...ehe, sorry about that.' 'You sure you're up to it old man?! I think we might've passed a door 'cause of the little light we got in here' said Kelco with a little bit of intended sarcasm. Though hearing the kid, Kenway decided to ignore him and after a thorough investigation of his surroundings he found the best way to act in order to reach the grid. In order for such a stunt to be done successfully it would require quite a bit of strength, a rather larger area, but as a true assassin would say...never ask for better conditions, accept those you have and deal with it...or just 'deal with it'. Without waiting for another second to see things through clearly, he used some nearby pipes in order to propel himself towards the ceiling and as it seemed that he would not reach his objective, without one

second to lose he turned around and while managing, barely, to catch onto a small crack in the wall and in a split second position himself than jump again and getting hold of what was left of an over-used metal ladder. The dim light from the moon made the atmosphere a bit tense as it all happened before my eyes; I've never seen anyone with such agility, who could think that it could be possible with such a tiny body. But even though succeeding the first part of it, could he really lift the grid from that position, even though he seemed fairly capable it still was made of metal and rather heavy, plus this situation doesn't really seem as it would favor him. Though the factors were all against him, a clear mind always knows that giving up ain't a solution to no problem, therefor with a simple move and a tight grip on that left-over from the ladder, he managed to turn the body at a 180 degree and he was now facing the ground, the legs were pressed against the grid and with a swift push it jumped several feet in the air and it landed heavily on the ground. 'Well that wasn't as difficult as I thought it'd be, so, uhm, need a lift?' 'I don't have a body, remember?' 'True to that, well then I'll see ya up in a bit.' After the small dialogue, Kenway used his legs to kick the wall in order to push himself up, managing to get out of the tunnel now Kenway found himself in an odd world, though it was dark outside, the specifics of the modern world could still be noticed, the sky high buildings as many of the past would say if they'd be here at this moment, the strange vehicles that pass by every now and then, the strange objects some passerby hold onto that seem to be illuminating at a rather small area surrounding them. Everything seemed different, even the people around, their clothes, the way they talk, even their attitude, how can a world change so much in this little time must've been the question that was on Edwards mind at this moment or at least one of the many. 'I know that you must have quite a questionnaire on your mind right now, but let us leave it for later' said Kelco firmly. 'What?' 'Ugh, never mind, let's just leave this place.' Is there something wrong? Something I should know about! N-not quite, I mean its nothing that serious Sigh, if we want this to work, Id better known beforehand what it is, just to avoid getting into unnecessary trouble tried Edward to pursue his friend to tell him what he was hiding. As though the answer couldnt come out of his mouth, Kelco was a bit afraid of admitting what was the one thing which he couldnt say, however as it couldve been read from his face, nothing needed to be

said as a pair of lights were now set towards the two, without even one chance to react two guys were standing on top of Edward, as though it wasnt hard enough to understand what actually happened up to a while ago, now things had to turn out this way, not knowing what was going on Edward decided its time to escape, though he had no idea what-so-ever what he was up against. Without a second to think about it, Kenway set himself in position and with a heavy push, he used his legs again to jump over the two capturers and escape their tight grip, after which by using his shoulder he knocked one of the thugs and with a small move, he left himself down and with a leg behind his second capturer, he did a 90 degree rotation and took him off his feet, with the two now a bit shaken by the sudden reaction, Kenway had finally a way to escape, there was no time to think about it at this moment, so he jumped to his feet and started running as fast as it was possible, without looking back he used the nearby assembly to lose his trail, while reaching a farther enough distance from his pursuers, Edward jumped to the side and hid himself in a small crowd of people, in a nearby store. I am guessing they were after you. Well now you really have a lot of answers to give me, you better be ready. Yes, they were after me and no I am not ready, I barely know anything myself admitted Kelco in the end I have no idea what they want from me, as Ive told you I worked for an Entertainment company, I was supposed to infiltrate it in order to find out what dirty secrets it hides, things like if they actually use the company as a cover up for different illegal things, however lets just say that I got a bit too much into it and now it all turned out like this, after I managed to enter their premises and find a rather curious document I was caught as I was about to escape, then it all turned around, I was interrogated and they used some sort of drug on me, thats when after a few hours of being left alone I found the best opportunity to escape and apparently, their base is situated so deep under the ground that it has connections to the subwayugh, the tunnel we met, I was still under the effects of the drug so I lost consciousness upon arriving in that tunnel, after that you know the rest. Im still confused about this whole business said Edward. Putting it short, went in to investigate shady business, got caught, drugged, escaped, passed out and then we met. Youre not really the only one to be conf Oh no, thats childs play, what I was more confused about was how I ended up in your body and you a ghost. Childplay Dont tell me that he just made me dumber than a childugh, it had to happen once, didnt itmy last girlfriend almost told it to my face, why not letting it happen again, I am so gonna kill someone. You okay?! asked Kenway. Ughsigh; lets get a move on, before they manage to find us.

Though speaking of such, after leaving the shop a bit behind them was no more no less than their two pursuers, as there was no need for more words to be said between the two, Kenway nodded and slowly turned around in order to walk away slowly from that place without being noticed by the thugs, however upon doing so he bumped into a huge so-called ape of a man, the big guy caught Edwards arm and pulled him closer, a bit too much one would say, his bad breath could be felt from a few miles away, but from that distance it was a bit overwhelming. Then again, he found himself caught in another kind of weird situation, as the humongous ape in front of him did not seem to want to let go anytime soon, nor did it look as though he would be working alongside the monkeys which did not seem to notice the scene not that far front, still being careful to search thoroughly through the crowd that seemed to never end. Hey, big guymind if you let me go, Im in a hurry. Hmph Though he seemed strong enough to break Edwards arm in two, at the same time he didnt look like a bad guy at all, after staring for a while he finally let go of our heroes arm and walked slowly past him, while looking towards his pursuers, the way the big guy went, Kelco suddenly called out to Edward and told him that this is not really the time nor the place to sit in one place and think of it, with haste he turned around and as soon as he took the first step, he suddenly stopped as it seemed that not far from his position there were a few more people looking for him, it was a bit too obvious. Now he was cornered, there was not much he could do but confront them there and then, however that would be a bit troublesome, considering the fact that it took them not even a mere 5 minutes to get this many people together and track him down this easily, there must be a way to avoid them and get out of that area, but how and by what means. So many variables to take into account, the different possibilities to evade them, everything would just lead to a later confrontation, if there would be a chance to escape maybe he should do so and just forget this ever happened, but he had no knowledge about this world and his only hopes remained in this tainted soul that was now his partner in crime, as they say. What was truly left to be done can only be decided by one mortal decision, it cant be set to fate, destiny, it is true that at times the one solution can hit us and when it is said hit us, thenohhh boy, expect to actually be hit by something, because what follows is no more no less than just a random clown running around offering balloons to little children here and there, well when they say random, more like a sadly chosen, yet convenient moment for Kenway, for the poor little bastard to appear in front of him wearing what else but a huge costume of a clown. Without time in their hands, Edward pulls the guy quickly in an area hidden from sight and without even asking once, he takes the costume bylets just say unconventional methods, than after putting the costume on, he slowly gets back to the street and without even thinking a bit about it, he moves towards the two thugs and tries to pass by them, only to be stopped by a little girl that jumped happily at the sight of a clown with big and cute animal balloons. Without knowing how to react, Edward stares awkwardly towards the little girl and her mother, while noticing that the tugs have stopped, not knowing where to look apparently and were now staring at the scene in front of them, still trying to process what was going on, Kenway sat there blocked by the continuous thoughts which kept

piling up in his mind, wondering if he should run and give away his disguise or make a fool out of himselfnot like it would not happen either way. While still trying to think what he should do, his hands started moving a bit on his own and without thinking, he then asked her what she would like to receive, yet telling in advance that he is still new to this new task given by hiswhat would probably come in mind now, probably could be bossbut saying that to a little girl would probably make it a bit more dangerous, like a one hundred percent danger of having an angry child, things which at times can be proven fatal, so without knowing what else to sayfuck life, why notthe leader of the clown empire, theas he stopped to think what to say next, not knowing if it would ease his task at handthe little girl completed his phrase with one simple wordthe unicorn Without even knowing what to do to escape, Edward decided to go along with one idea in order to not blow his cover. Than how about I give you a bit of magic, one that will show only when you truly need it, this is the one thing a unicorn leaves behind, his horn. Take good care of it said Kenway, hoping that it will be enough for the little girl to stop pestering him and leave. Wahhhunicorn magic, does it really work? I want to test itmagic of the unicorn, transform this ugly clown into a beautiful prince for my mom, so she wont feel lonely anymore And just like that with a bit of bad luck, the little girl shoved the balloon in Edwards face and with no time to react, the huge clown head which was hiding his face from sight fell to the ground. Hahah, it worksthank you mister clown, now make mommy happy!!! As his plan was ruined by the small wish of a little girl, our hero was now sitting there without saying any word, frozen in placeas the two thugs were now with their mouths wide open covering their whole face, from one cheek to the other, laughing as hard as their lungs permitted them to. In the meantime as his pursuers were still at it, not even looking around them, Kenway had one small chance and he turned slowly around as the two were distracted, with haste he moved away from them trying not to draw any more attention, not as if everyone around was looking towards them. With the little time at hand Edward quickly made himself unseen in the crowd, taking the costume off as he hid, as though something unbelievable happened the tugs have just noticed the most obvious fact of all, their target was out of sight, as if it was not hard enough to find him in the first place, they now were faced with the fact of spying this endless crowd, in hope of noticing something, even just a small hint. However it was by now far too late as Kenway made his way to the top of a nearby building, though night has fallen over this sad world, though the lights were still strong enough to keep the streets of this sleepless city well light, but with the risks which were now upon being caught was not an option, therefor the rooftops were the only way possible left to move throughout the limits of this endless overlay of buildings. As the night was still young, time was upon them and with haste Kenway made his move and followed the nearby rooftops, the grace of an assassin can truly amaze one which has never seen the true works

of a silent killer, while the city would look as no more no less than pair of buildings laid around the ground, for Edward it was like his personal playground, like a room made especially for this sole assassin to explore to the end, to reach his limits and surpass them, to improve his skills. Passing from one spot to the other, moving around the top sites of the city, though this was not his time nor his place to be, in the meantime his mind was following the trail in time which he left empty, all the things he left behind having no regrets of the past, however there was still what was left of the future, what was to follow after they do manage to escape the fate which might be brought upon them by the hands of those thugs, destiny can be changed, but even such things have a limit to how much it can be modified, without knowing anything of what happened up to then, even with the little known facts there were still too many improbable variables that could afflict the result. The little things which can be done to make sure your future aint as dark as this fine night, are really not some you can do as easily as that, no matter what you do there are still those which you just cant predict. These were thoughts passing through the assassins mind, who really knew what he should expect, who really changed his fate without losing one small hint in life, though his mind was somewhere else, his ability to travel around the city by such means did not fail to surprise those who would actually get a small glimpse of a shadow lurking around the tops of the city, passing by their windows, over the heads of random people roaming the streets. There was still one question left though, something that could come to even a childs mind. That one question which would be answered only by time and could hardly be predicted at such a momentWhere was he going? . Though it seemed at times that he was heading in a straight direction, the very next second he would quickly jump from a building located to the left as though he would change direction, only to retrieve to his original path not long after, than when it would seem that he wont do anything to change his destination, hed than do moves which would seem impossible to most of the people of our era. Though it did not seem as though he would have a destination in mind, Kenway knew what he wanted to find and he was running around searching for it, not most would understand what exactly he needed to find, however while on the move he sometimes surrounded one area for a bit, it actually looked as if he was looking for one specific person, did not seem as though he was looking for the thugs, taking in consideration the fact that he, not too long ago, ran away from them. Though being disappointed by the fact that his search turned out not as expected, he stopped for a while, looking towards the sky wondering what he should do next as it could be understood, just by watching him, practically his expression. The night was still young, there were so many places he could be, so many new things to learn, as he was in a new place, different times. Yet without knowing what was to follow, there was one thing left to do at that moment, find out what exactly happened to them and try to reach the one person that mightMIGHT have a bit of knowledge about this situation, the one which was behind the two thugs at the moment they jumped Kenway, though it would seem that he was nowhere to be found, who knows where he was at this respective moment, he had enough time to be hours away by this time, as Edward was on his own two feet and the leader of those two might as well use who knows what kind of

transportation. There was no way to know for sure, fact which made Kenway a bit reluctant as he did not knew about this world as much as hed like to, there were still a lot of things to be questioned, as what he would do if hed manage to find the person in charge, what could come in his way, who knew what was to follow. As much as they both wanted their lives back to normal, there was not much they could do but cooperate and stay alive, avoid the fate of loss and keep fighting till the end. As they reached, as it would seem, one ends of the city, Kelco suggested to give up, there was not much to be done at that moment and told Edward to stop putting himself in danger, though he wanted his life, his body, back, there was still one thing that came up front, he was still a human being, one which knew that there was more to every life in this world than most people might think, if hed put his new found friend in danger than what would that make him, as to make things rather simple for our hero, Kelco told him that its best he teaches Edward as much as he can about this world so he can live in his place, but that would mean a new start for him in a new country, as this is not the place where one that is looked upon by the Templars as the boy referred to them. Making sure to explain that this is not the old Templar order, the one which ruled over the small countries with tyrannythats why Kelco told him how and what to do in order to escape this nightmare world. Even though Edward did not want to steal away the kids future, there was not much left to do, he realized that what they faced was more than they could take on, though he accepted the idea of leaving the countrywithout much of a protestthat way, with the help of a good friend of the boy, they hid for a while and prepared everything needed to escape, Edward assured them that he can find a way to sneak upon a boat, however the girl ( the one Kelco loved, but was too afraid to admit it) helped them board the Crooks Claws, with one conditionto take her with themeven though they both said no, she still convinced them that she would not be safe there as the connection between the boy and her was as obvious as the moon on the sky. The story might end as it is nowor it might not, there was nothing left but the decision of an assassinof what to do, how to let it end, therefore they left the city and sailed to sea with the crew and passengers of their new home, for the duration of the trip at least. As the sun was now rising from the depths in which it hid, dawn was now upon us and Edward watching this marvelous scene, looked as though he was still thinking of the events which occurred a while back What would be to happen, that was for our hero to decideamong the many questions which have risen with the sun, there was one which couldnt be answered but by only oneshould this be the end?