A S S A S S I N' S
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L E G A C Y
O F
B L O O D L I N E S
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THEY CALL US MONSTERS, YET WE DEVOTE OUR LIVES TO TRUTH. YET LAST NIGHT, ONE OF THEIR OWN WAS CAPTURED. I COME TO CYPRUS FROM THE HOLY LAND AFTER MURDERING THE TEMPLARS THERE.
I FOLLOWED THE REST TO CYPRUS, EAGER TO DIP MY BLADE IN THE BLOOD OF THE LAST SURVIVING TEMPLARS. WORD OF MY DEEDS SPREAD BEFORE ME. THEIR FOLLOWERS SET A TRAP. THEY DID NOT SET IT TIGHTLY ENOUGH.
MY NAME IS ALTAIR IBN-LA'AHAD.
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DNA SEQUENCE ONE - MEMORY STRAND FOUR
Masyaf was a city located out deep in the mountains of Syria. The city and the fortress, served as the base of operations for the Syrian wing of the Assassins' Order, led by Altaïr and his right hand man Malik. They had other Assassins in places like Alamut in distant Persia though relations between the two groups had since withered due to their discovery of him murdering the Grand Master, Al Mualim. It was one of the smaller cities in the Holy Land, tiny in comparison to the likes of grand metropolitan centers of trade and culture like Jerusalem, now held by the Saracens, or Acre, controlled by the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was there that all Assassins of the Syrian wing undergo educational and physical training for the trials they were expected to endure in the outside land later on in their lives.
It was built on a mountain nestled in the fertile and agriculturally Orontes Valley, their fortress being at the peak. The city offered sanctuary to the citizens loyal to the noble cause of the Assassins who for some reason or another were unable to live without harassment by the Templars and their allies in the other cities in the Holy Land and thus came here with their friends and families seeking a new life under their protection. A bustling market lied at the lower end of the city. At the peak of the mountain, one could find the Assassin's Fortress and within its large sandstone walls, the personal library and sanctuary of the Grand Master. Also held inside is its library where observers could witness the Assassin scholars holed themselves up, reading. The instructors constantly maneuvered around seeking books to further their education on worldly politics as well as the Creed they abided by. Altaïr and Malik would spend hours on end delving into those books on a daily basis, constantly seeking more knowledge and wisdom in order to properly guide and educate the Order with Al Mualim's betrayal and death.
The Assassins, he made sure, would protect their city very fiercely against any future transgressors determined to wipe the Brotherhood from existence. After all, Altaïr considered this place his home and he was honestly content with returning here. He lived here since his parents had passed away when he was just five years old. The people who he had to know, work and train with over the years he considered his true family. In the other cities he had visited, he felt like a foreigner, an unknown stranger to its inhabitants save for the dai and the rafiqs of the local Assassin's Bureau and even then, he barely spoke with them unless he desired information on a potential target. But here in Masyaf, in the Assassin's Fortress he was not alone; he was joined by hundreds of men willing to fight and die under the banner of the Brotherhood.
Yet not everything was well in Masyaf. Though the mountain city and its inhabitants were spared much of the violence, by no means did it ensure them with complete protection. After all, Templar Grand Master Robert de Sable and his army of Crusaders managed to storm through the seemingly impregnable defenses of Masyaf and bring hell onto the Assassins and to the innocent civilian inhabitants of the mountain city. Granted, they eventually managed to expel the invaders from their stronghold but at the cost of hundreds of Assassins dead and thousands more of innocent civilians slaughtered in the fighting and many more wounded. This put on a tremendous strain on the Assassins who had neither the extra men and women to take care of these people nor the funds to construct bimaristans to care for the sick and injured. If that was not enough, the foundation of the Assassin's Fortress was torn up, cracks raced across the building and the structure itself was faulty, being situated on top of a mountain. The air was heavy and hot, making fighting here quite difficult, even for a trained Assassin. He was content to know that he had arrived here, signaled by the increased amount of kicking and screaming done by his prisoner Maria.
It was at this moment that he stopped at the stables and got off his horse. He immediately whistled at a couple of Assassin novices, all of them no younger than nineteen, to come over. He was instantly welcomed in by the fellow Assassins and he in turn welcomed them, speaking in the local Arabic dialect. He pointed at the woman and directed them, again speaking in Arabic, to grab Maria by the arms and take her to the dungeon for the torturers to deal with. Altaïr knew that his friend Rauf would be content with having a Templar prisoner for him today; he contributed to the Order by instructing novice Assassins on how to fight as well as in the ways of torturing a prisoner, especially a Templar prisoner, into giving information. It would certainly be an interesting lesson for his students but unfortunately he would not be there to watch her scream in pain as they administer the torture devices on her body; he had to report on his success to.....
"Impressive, I suppose." His voice had neither a sarcastic, or even an applauding tone, he said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, redundancy is key in a sense. He stood more or less at the same height as Altaïr. His hair was jet black; months spent sweating under the antagonizingly warm rays of the Sun had made his hair messy and wet. His hood obscured the top of his head while he wore a large black article of clothing over his Assassin robes that dignified a rank higher than the other Assassins in Masyaf.
"That would depend what you consider impressive," Altaïr said as he turned himself around and faced the individual in question, "for me the assignment was nothing beyond what you usually ask of me. Anyways as-salāmu `alaykum, Malik." Altaïr and Malik reached out their right hands to one another and the two shook them gently. The two Assassin brothers then exchanged a light hug and a tap on each other's cheek. "It's good to be home again."
Malik nodded his head in agreement, "As-salāmu `alaykum to you too, my friend." He placed his hand on the Grand Master's shoulders, "I am glad you're back again in one piece. Things here in Masyaf and in the cities beyond us, however, have not been the same since you've left for Acre a couple weeks ago. We've been having a bit of trouble in your absence." Altaïr raised his eyebrow curiously at Malik.
"Well, I'm listening," Altaïr said as he whistled at a couple of servants close by to remove the metal vambrace from his arm as the two of them walked slowly towards the Assassins' library. "How much trouble are you having?" He stopped in his tracks, his arms were crossed. "What do you consider to be a bit of trouble? I do hope that it's something that can be managed." Malik stopped in turn and looked back at his superior.
"It's not a lot, Altaïr, but it is just enough to be noticeable or at least it has become so over the past week or two prior to your return from Acre," Malik answered. "It does require your attention."
"What kind of trouble is it? Is it regarding the Templars?"Altaïr asked, before stopping to interject an afterthought. "It's regarding the Templars, isn't it?"
"Did you expect any less from those jackals?" Malik retorted, "they still desire the Apple of Eden even after hundreds of them lay dead, your blade drenched in the blood of Al Mualim and Robert. Surely you understand that they would not quit until they succeed. Remember?"
Altaïr and Malik stood in a large hall, Assassin guards standing tall with their garments and their hidden blades and swords. They perfectly aligned and standing, highly aware of everything that was going on around them. Up above in the balconies on the second floor, there were archers and spotters, taking care to catch sight of any intruders (or traitors) planning on making their presence known to them. The Assassin's Fortress was thought to be impenetrable, even after the bloody siege unleashed by the late Robert de Sable months ago, but they knew that even with the added security put in by Altaïr and Malik, there was always a chance of a Templar or a traitor walking amongst them, plotting to betray his brothers to the enemies. Even the most respected elders amongst the scholars and instructors of the Brotherhood were held in equal suspect by the guards.
I did not expect there would be more trouble from the Templars, at least from the ones still here. There is the matter of those Templars I hear in Cyprus as well.....I do hope Rauf would be able to extract enough information from Maria regarding their intentions there. I suspect that there is more than what she has told me, Altaïr shook his head. He was disappointed with Malik; he had expected that there would be no problems here regarding the Templars with both Al Mualim and Robert dead. He promised him before heading out to Acre to retrieve Maria that there would be no problems under his absence but with this happening, it now appeared to be obvious that the Templars were still a threat to the Brotherhood.
Hidding his disappointment in his friend, Altaïr grunted, "tell me what happened and please tell me everything."
"Two of our own has been captured by the Templars during a simple espionage assignment to Aleppo and yet they involved themselves by joining the local defenders of Aleppo against the Crusader army of Prince Bohemond III of Antioch. They lost and ended being captured by the Antiochians. Bohemond then traded them over to the local Templars in exchange for money."
So it appears my work here is far from over. Altaïr asked Malik, "do you know where the Templars have taken them?"
"I imagine that they, along with the other Saracen prisoners captured at Aleppo have been taken to Antioch. I'm not exactly sure," responded Malik. "It's best that you contact the rafiq in charge of the local Assassin's Bureau. He's a personal acquaintance of mine. His name is Asad ibn Marwan; you can find the Bureau near the ramparts. You'll know where you'll find him."
"As-salāmu `alaykum, Malik," Altaïr said to his friend.
Malik smiled faintly, "peace be onto you. Best of luck in Antioch."
Altaïr turned his back and headed out the library's exit. He immediately whistled at the servant boys running around to grab his vambrace and hidden blades and put it back on his arm. They complied and as soon as they were done, he scurried them off. He grabbed a stallion in the horse stables and then headed northwest towards Antioch.
.....fast-forwarding data sequence memory to a more recent one.....
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