Assassin's Creed: Brothers Unite (#Wattys2016) |Assassin's Creed Fanfiction|

Chapter 35 Arno

   Altaïr wouldn't stop watching me. I found it strange how he had a sudden interest in everyone around him. His brown eyes seemed to stare into my inner thoughts. After he had come out of Edward's room earlier that evening, he seemed more confident, and more understanding. He had watched everyone for a while before disappearing out the door.

   Archer started polishing the blade of his new axe. He had found it in the basement of Homestead after he had lost his other one. "Is it just me," Archer said after everyone else had gone back to bed for the night. "Or is Altaïr paying closer attention to his surroundings?"

   "To be honest I thought I was the only one who noticed that change," I said leaning against the back of the chair. "It's an interesting change though. He seems to know what everyone is thinking."

   Archer nodded. "It was right after he went into Edward's room. He doesn't seem to be as talkative either."

   "He wasn't that talkative to begin with," I pointed out. "It's hard to say if he's changed that much there."

   Archer shook his head. "That's... not exactly what I meant."

   "Then what did you mean?"

   "He used to use his anchor quite a bit, but he hasn't been using it as much as usual." Archer rubbed at an especially stubborn spot of rust. He was quiet for a moment. "By the way, do you know where he disappeared to?"

   I frowned. "How would I know where he went?"

   Archer shrugged and threw the cloth he was holding onto a table. "He seems to tell somebody where he's going before he goes someplace." He slid the handle of his axe into the leather straps on his back. "Much better. Ready?"

   I looked at him suspiciously. "Ready for what?"

   "Finding Altaïr. We should get Ezio too, just for kicks."

   We didn't actually get going until we heard a sort of thumping, clacking sound, from the porch. Archer opened the door and looked out. He said something quietly before turning back to us. "Come on," he said urgently opening the door wider. "We need to go now." Archer slipped out the door and down the porch steps with Ezio and I close behind him.

   The black horse that Edward had ridden from Boston was prancing nervously next to Archer. There were two other horses behind the black one, one was white, the other was brown. Ezio walked up to the black horse and put a hand on it's shoulder. It flinched away, more from surprise then fear. Ezio stared at the horse in amusement. "Hello Blade," he said, grinning.

   Blade. Why does that sound familiar? I asked myself. Altaïr said something about Blade... His horse!

   "Blade?" Archer asked. "Altaïr's horse? The talking one? The really, really fast one?"

   The black horse snorted. Faster than the speed of sound, it sounded smug. The fastest horse in the world.

   "What about the other two?" Ezio asked. "You said they were special as well."

   We need speed, Blade said quietly. More speed than should be possible. These two agreed to help me. Blade nodded toward the two horses behind her. The white one is Spirit, and the brown one is Arrow.

   Archer stopped and smiled in amusement. "Arrow huh?" The brown horse trotted forward and nudged Archer's hand. Archer laughed and patted the Arrow's shoulder. "No saddle." He looked happier than I had ever seen him before. "This is going to be great!" He swung himself onto Arrow's back and whooped as Arrow reared back.

   I wondered if we would wake anyone up. Spirit came over to me. He had a saddle made of soft black leather, and a bridle with a metal plate. I looked at the plate closer. There were two words etched into the metal. Arno and Spirit. I looked into Spirit's eyes and smiled. Get on, an impatient voice said in my mind. Blade is worried about time. I swung myself into the saddle and looked down at Ezio. "Go on Etz," I said. "We need to go as fast as possible."

   Ezio's eyes glinted with a touch of amusement. "I was getting to that."

   Blade snorted and shoved Ezio with her head. Get on young one.

   Ezio laughed and leaped into the saddle. The instant he was settled Blade shot down the road. Within seconds, I couldn't see her anymore. Spirit looked at Arrow and they both started running at the same time. Archer leaned forward against Arrow's neck and I did the same on Spirit. It didn't take long before we could see Blade and Ezio again.

   I glanced back once to see a cloud of dust and smoke shooting from the hooves of the three horses. I felt like Spirit was an extension of myself. I thought about how strange it was that the bridle had my name on it, but before I could puzzle about it too much we skidded to a stop. Archer lurched forward and almost flew over Arrow's head. Arrow took a couple of steps forward to prevent that from happening. Archer dismounted and grinned. "I need to get used to that."

   Blade stomped the ground and looked around. He was here a moment ago, she said as Ezio swung onto the ground. I vaulted off of Spirit and studied the ground. I didn't know what Blade was talking about, but I wanted to see if I could figure it out.

   The ground was churned up pretty well, like there had been a fight. There was a very clear imprint of a person, and a set of footprints leading away, but no sign that the person on the ground had ever stood up. There was also a set of hoof prints going up to the person and then away. The hoofprints vanished not far away, in a clump of burnt grass.

   "Who was here?" Ezio asked inspecting a trail of cracked branches and bent bushes.

   Blade paced the clearing, carefully not stepping on the spots that we were looking at. Altaïr, Blade reared up and slammed her hooves into the ground, making a rather large hole. He was laying right there! Blade flicked her tail toward the person shaped imprint on the ground.

   "Altaïr?" Ezio asked. "What did he get himself into now?"

   I think you need to wonder more about where he is, Spirit advised. His voice was deeper than I had expected, he sounded like me. Odd, Archer gets a horse named Arrow, and I get a horse from France. If this was that Templars doing, you might want to find your friend faster.

   "Shay? AGAIN?!" Archer glowered. "Why does he keep appearing everywhere? And how on earth was he able to move around with a stab wound in his CHEST?! Much less pick up Altaïr and move him somewhere else!"

   "I don't know," I said. "However he does it, I think it might be what the anchor does to him."

   Ezio froze. "Did you hear that?"

   "No," Archer said. "What-"

   A  thundering sound came from the road. Like a galloping horse, but faster paced. Like a horse as fast as Blade. It sounded like it was getting closer. "Why do I get the feeling that we're in trouble with someone?" I asked.

   Archer smiled wryly and pulled his axe off of his back and held it ready. "Because we always are."