The Target of His Heart (An Assassin's Creed Fanfic)

Ch. 31: Altaïr vs. Abel

It felt like hours had passed since the fight between Abel and I had begun. I was able to lead him away from the gates and onto the top of the roofs. I wanted to avoid attacking and hurting any civilians that might have gotten in the way during our fight, or bring upon other guards that may have arrived. The sound of clashing and scraping metal could be heard by passersby below, yet they were unsure as to what was going on. The skies had turned into a deep grey color, signalling that rain was going to arrive sooner than later. Yet, I never let up on my attacks and continued to fight Abel, who was holding his own with swift, yet blunt attacks. There were times when I thought I knew what he was going to do, but it soon turned into a wound inflicted on my body instead. He was difficult to read from time to time, but I never gave up. This fight was as good as mine.

Holding back Abel’s blade with all of the strength I could muster, I noticed a droplet of rain fall upon my blade, trailing all the way down to the hilt before falling onto the ground. It was soon followed by another, and then another, and then another, before it soon started to pour. However, it did not obscure Abel from my vision for even a second. Instead, it gave me the opportunity to quickly push him back with a swift kick to the chest, as he had become distracted for a brief second over the falling rain. He staggered back and I immediately charged in for an attack. It did not take him long to regain his balance and swiftly dodge the blow, stepping off to the side quickly before making the attempt to counter. Fortunately, my blade rose quicker than his and successfully, but narrowly, blocked the attack. He did not seem upset at all by the swift move. Instead, his expression was still filled with anger and rage over the words I spoke before.

“Blocking will only weaken you,” he told me, applying more pressure onto my blade. “Why don’t you act like a man and die already?”

I growled before pushing him back slowly.

“You are one to talk,” I retorted. “Dodging will tire you out much faster than blocking. I am using brute strength against you, not agility.”

“Yes, you are using just brute strength. And you know the old saying.” His eyes narrowed more. “Brain always triumphs over brawn.”

He swiftly kicked me in the gut, causing me to double over with pain. Without thinking, I quickly sidestepped out of the way of his sword, which collided with the floor instead and caused sparks to fly. Growling, he swung it toward me once again, but it was blocked by my blade again. More attacks soon followed one after another, and with every attack came an abrupt block and parry with my sword. Some of the attack were successful - only a few grazes along my face and robes - but it was nothing too serious. I was able to land a few attacks of my own, catching a few slices on his arms and chest, ruining his wedding attire. Unfortunately, as I went in for an attack, I did not see his fist coming toward me until it connected with my jaw. The blow knocked me back, but I was able to stagger a bit to balance myself. I looked back to find him climbing the closest building without a second glance back at me, attempting to escape me once again. It did not take me very long to quickly chase after him.

At that point, thunder cracked against the sky and echoed throughout the land, the rain falling heavier soon after and soaking me to the very bone. I did not worry so much about the rain, knowing that it was just going to get heavier as time went on. Instead, my mind focused and remained on Abel and seeking his demise. He was fairly fast on his feet, but he was not fast enough. Even if he was faster than myself, I had other means to slow him down. Clenching my teeth out of frustration, I quickly pulled out a small knife, gripping it tightly in my hand, and waited for the right moment. I watched as he leapt onto the building across from him, but he stumbled on the landing. Eyes narrowing, I took the opportunity and threw the knife in his direction. It immediately landed on his arm, just below the injury I had inflicted on him at the wedding. He cried out in pain and fell, landing on his knees and gripping his arm, yet held his blade tightly in hand. Quickly, I leapt onto the building that he was on, but landed a few feet away from him. As I landed, though, I noticed Abel getting to his feet. His teeth were clenched with pain, but he fought it and stood up. He turned to face me, his eyes hard glare, while I returned it.

“I almost forgot that you carried those knives,” he spoke.

“I always carry them around with. Every Assassin does,” I told him, gripping my blade a little tighter. “Once again, they came in handy.”

Abel growled at me.

“You have always been a damn idiot.” He muttered before charging at me again, ignoring the pain in his arm.

I quickly blocked his blade with ease, reading his moves as if they were an open book. However, just as I was about to land a blow, he quickly parried my blade, surprising me. Then, a sharp pain ran across my stomach, causing blood to begin pooling out at a slow rate. I winced slightly in pain, clenching my teeth to bite back the pain, before leaping out of the way of his blade once again. Once I was at a safe distance, my eyes hardened at him.

“What's wrong, Altaïr?” He teased. “Are you upset that I was actually able to land a clean blow on you? You are pathetic!”

I growled, upset that he was mocking me despite being a coward.

“At least I can take the pain,” I retorted. Then, I charged at him, blade in hand, and sliced across his chest just as cleanly and fluently as he had done. He gasped with shock and moved away from me, placing his hand against the fresh wound. “You, on the other hand, cannot.”

He glowered at me.

“You will pay for that, Assassin!” He hissed before running over and attacking me.

I quickly blocked the attack, but pain suddenly shot through my body, causing me to wince. He smirked as he attacked again, somehow regaining his power in a short amount of time. That, or the wound in my stomach was starting to take effect. It was slowly becoming harder for me to hold him back, the blood that was escaping my body making me become lightheaded as time went on. Beads of sweat began running down my face as Abel smirked at me, knowing that I was slowly, but surely, becoming weaker..

Maybe I should have let Alexandra help me, I thought. Just in case a situation like this arose.

Feeling a burst of strength, I quickly pushed him away before charging at him again, landing a small blow to his shoulder. Instead of becoming distracted with that, he simply laughed and swung his blade. He just barely missed my face, but continued to attacking without hesitation. Fortunately, the wound was not making me lightheaded as fast as I thought it would, giving me the opportunity to keep on fighting him. I was not going to give up because of a wound. I had to keep going if I wanted to finish off Abel once and for all. Unfortunately, I was unable to keep a close eye on him, as he was able to dodge my attack, land behind me, and slice open my back. I growled and attempted to slice him, but due to the new injury, my attack became slower. This, in turn, made him block the attack with ease and cut my chest. Unable to return the attack, he took the chance to kick me back against a wall. On impact, I began coughing up blood, watching as it fell to the floor. The rain continued to fall and soak everything in its wake, cleaning off most of the blood that stained my robes. Panting, I slowly looked up, only to find Abel slowly coming towards me.

“Do you see what happens, Altaïr?” He asked me. “Do you see the result of making false accusations about someone who has nothing to do with what has happened?”

I growled at him, spitting out some of the blood.

“You are getting upset over facts, Abel.” I hissed. “Facts that you refuse to admit are true. This Clarice is the reason behind why you became the man you are today.”

“No!” He shouted, pointing his blade at me. “Clarice has nothing to do with what is going on! Everything that has happened is because of you!”

“So you murdered Cynthia because of me,” I stated. “There has to be more to it. I know for a fact that you never loved her.”

His eyes narrowed.

“I may not have loved her as much as you did, but I did not have the motive to kill her.”

I sneered at his words.

“Then what do you call stabbing her in the chest?!” I snapped.

“A mistake! I was not thinking clearly!”

I slowly pushed myself off the wall, my hard gaze never leaving him.

“Then let me have the honor of clearing your mind with my blade.”

With that, I charged at him and swung my sword, ignoring the searing pain that erupted throughout my body. Unfortunately, he was able to knock my blade out of my hands and quickly drive his blade through my stomach,. I coughed up more blood as I quickly pulled out Abel’s blade and took a few steps back, gripping the wound as if letting go would kill me. I looked down at my bloody hand, watching as the blood flowed like a river out of the wound, before quickly covering it up again. I glared at Abel again, who had returned the gaze without much of a thought. I could see in his eyes that he was becoming more and more confident, feeling that he was going to win this fight. I glanced over at my blade, which lied on the edge of the building. I knew that I would not be able to get it back without receiving another, possibly fatal, blow from Abel. It was something that I could not risk, not when I was so desperate to finish him.

I was given no other choice…but to flee.

Without a word, I quickly ran toward the building closest to me with as much strength as I could muster, leaping across the gap and landing on it safely. A surge of pain shot through me upon the landing, yet I ignored it and continued to run. The sound of Abel's feet against the rooftop was soon heard, letting me know that he was chasing after me. However, I chose against trying to look back to see just how far he was. Looking around, I realized there was nowhere to run and there was nowhere to hide from him without leaping across another building and slowing me down even more. Sooner or later, Abel would be able to catch up to me and finish me off once and for all. I cursed under my breath as the wounds began opening up. I was not going to allow that to happen, not when I still needed to avenge Cynthia's death. Unfortunately, the wounds were starting to take a much higher effect on me, causing me to slow down a bit and become even more lightheaded than before.

Before I knew what was going on or had time to think, I suddenly found myself on a high building looking to have a thirty foot drop. There were no bails of hay at the bottom, preventing me from performing a Leap of Faith and escaping with what little life I had in me. I cursed under my breath, knowing I was trapped just like Abel was a while ago. There was no place to go to anymore. Glowering at the ground, I slowly turned around to see the devil himself, walking toward me at a sickeningly slow pace.

“So, this is the end in which you were speaking of, Altaïr?” He questioned in a teasing manner. I growled at him, but did not respond. “Are you upset that you’re going to die here?”

“I am not upset nor am I afraid to die,” I spoke.

He chuckled, his blade tapping lightly against the ground.

“You told me that I was going to die,” he spoke in an innocent tone of voice. “Was what you said a lie…?” Once again, silence was his answer, causing him to laugh again. “So it was indeed a lie! How lovely!”

“It was no lie,” I hissed. “I will kill you.”

“Ah… Now you decide to speak up.” He said. “But you won't kill me without a weapon of your own.”

Smirking, I slowly moved my hand up to my back, moving it toward my second blade. However, just as I went to grab it, my hand clasped around air, causing my smirk to disappear immediately. When I searched for the blade, I realized that both the blade and the sheath were no longer there! Abel must have cut them off when he sliced my back! Cursing under my breath, I allowed my arm to fall. I was, now, defenseless.

“I told you~” He teased, chuckling. “You are as defenseless as a lonely child in the street. And you will die like the weak little dog you are.”

“I already told you.” I retorted, spitting out more blood. “I am not afraid to die…”

“Very well,” he responded calmly. “I suppose sending you to Cynthia would be the best way to end your suffering.”

With that, he suddenly approached me quickly, landing a swift punch to my gut. I doubled over in pain before falling to the ground, landing on the ground on my hands and knees. I coughed up even more blood, slowly becoming more and more lightheaded to a point where things started to become blurry. Instead of returning to my feet, I simply remained rooted to my spot, letting my head hang in shame.

It had been a long time since I had failed anyone – the last time being the events of Solomon's Temple. Oddly enough, I felt just as much regret as that day, when I saw Malik with his missing arm and glaring at me over the fact that his brother was lost. The regret, though, was aimed toward the fact that I was unable to avenge Cynthia's death. She was going to die in vain all because Abel was able to outsmart me in this fight. Unable to fight back, I felt that everything was going to come to an end. I had failed to avenge Cynthia as I said I would. I failed to kill Abel, the man who had caused all of these problems. I failed Alexandra, whom I had promised to kill Abel and bring not just for myself but for her and Ada as well. I promised to protect Cynthia from any and all harm, but now she was dead all because I was unable to stop that man. I promised that I would kill Abel and avenge her death, but I could do it. I told myself to keep fighting, for her and to know that she would have been killed in vain, but I could no longer fight. What kind of Assassin fails a second time?

Forgive me, Cynthia… I thought to myself, shutting my eyes. I should have been a little stronger...

“Any last words…Assassin?” Abel asked me as he stood over me. I did not respond to him; I could not respond to him. There was no reason to do so. “Fine, then. Farewell, Altaïr.”

I noticed his shadow raise his blade, preparing to stab me and end my life. Unable to do anything else, I decided to wait for my life to end by his blade. The sound of thunder crashed against my ears for a moment, resonating throughout the land, watching as the blade swiftly came down. However, instead of feeling the pain that was meant to come, nothing happened. The blade, although it appeared that he had brought it down, did not end my life. I could not feel death’s embrace taking over me. Only the pain that was in my wounds. What happened? What was going on? Why was Abel not killing me as he said he would? Reopening my eyes, I noticed Abel's figure still looming over me, but was accompanied by another mysterious form as well. Blinking, I slowly turned my head to look up to see the dark haired Englishman. His blue eyes were wide with surprise, but also appeared hazy. It was as if something had appeared before him and frightened him. That...or...

Before I knew it, I watched as he dropped his blade and his arms fell to his sides. It was then that I saw a blade sticking out of his chest. I assumed it had pierced his heart, but I was unsure if that was truly the case. My eyes widened as he slowly looked up toward the sky, allowing the rain to fall onto his face. He was silent for a long moment. Then, I heard him mutter something. It was low, yet I could hear it clearly.

“I am coming for you...” He muttered. “...Clarice...”

With that, I watched the blade escape from his body, allowing him to fall to the ground lifelessly. I stared at his bloody body, shocked to find that he was now dead. However, before I had time to comprehend it all, my vision began fading and the dizziness overtook me. Unable to hold myself up any longer, my body collapsed to the ground, feeling the blood begin pooling around me. After a short moment, I noticed a hazy figure stand in front of me, but was unable to tell who exactly it was anymore. I could feel myself losing consciousness, and my vision was slowly becoming dark. Before I could pass out from loss of blood, only a few words escaped my lips before I was completely unconscious.

“Cynthia…forgive me...”