Rescue

Imagen: Link
Autor: GatoCebolleto
Ambientación: Assassin's Creed

A new Piece of Eden was hidden inside that cave, or at least that’s what Altair presumed. The path was old and narrow, full of sharp rocks and rotten wood platforms. It seemed to be an old mine, maybe abandoned centuries ago. It was all immersed into a inscrutable darkness which didn’t let Altair to see beyond his own nose, not even with Malik lighting the way from behind with a lamp.

“I can’t see anything, Altair, and we’ve been walking in circles for hours”, Malik complained, raising the lamp over the shoulder. “We should go back, the light is about to expire”.

“It’s ok. We are getting closer”, Altair spoke without worry in his voice.

“How can you tell?”, Malik arched his eyebrow.

“My instinct tells me we are on the right way”.

“Well, thank Allah we have your instinct, Altair, to guide us into nowhere, instead of a map or a compass!“, he sarcastically said, and seethed right after. “I don’t know why I have to come with you, anyway…"

"You already know why, Malik. Stop moaning”, Altair stopped his steps and turn parcially back, facing Malik’s annoyed dark eyes.

“Indeed. The damned Pieces of Eden…"

"No”, Altair interrupted him with a funny expression on his face. “Because I needed someone to hold the lamp."

"Ha-ha.” Malik wasn’t loughing at all. Tricky joke for a one-handed man, wasn’t it? “Hilarius. Would you prefer me to go away with the light?”, he inquired.

“And how would you find the way out without my eagle vision?”, Altair asked, arching his eyebrows .

The one-armed assassin reddened and push his partner rabidly in the back. “Come on, you idiot! We’re running out of time, and I want to get out of here the sooner I can."

The path twisted several times, before the two assassin’s finally spotted the end of the labyrinth. They could see some light at the end, and their eyes could eventually get used to a soft illumination. Finally out of that oppressive darkness, they reached a stone projection, standing over an enormous space digged deep in the ground. On the stone vault over their heads, some holes spotted at random, between some impressive and giant stalactites and columns which reaches the ground form the top, sinking into the water. A huge underground lake stood still and silent, perfectly reflecting the roof as a mirror.

Both, Malik and Altair, held their breaths against such beautiful view.

"It may be an underground spring flooding the cavity”, Malik figured out, leaning out his head over the stone and holding the lamp high. “We cannot pass…"

"Wait…”. Altair closed his eyes for a while, and then opened his eyelids with a blue spark shining in his iris. His eagle vision scrutinized the dimly lit. “There’s a way, over there.” The assassin pointed at a rickety wooden bridge tied with ropes, full of spider webs and moss. It was hanging very high over the emptiness and it’s reflection on water’s surface.

“Humidity should have decomposed the ropes. It may not support your weight.” Malik resolved, shaking his head. Even so, Altair took a step forward. Malik grabbed his shoulder and insisted: “Don’t. It’s too dangerous. We’ll find another way."

"There may be not other way.”, Altair smiled trying to restore his friend. “It’ll be ok…"

"No, for the sake of Allah! It won’t be ok, Altair! Can’t you see the bridge is too high and you can’t swim?”, Malik’s voice broke out in the echo. “What if you fall into the water? I can’t jump and save you just with one arm!"

"I don’t need you to save me, Malik. I can do this.”, Altair frowned.

“Agh! Such arrogance!” he exclaimed.

“I know a new Piece of Eden is close. We cannot stop here, not now!” Altair persevered, completely convinced of his hunch. “You still doubt me?"

"Look, you know what? Do whatever you want! I’m tired of this shit!”, Malik turned his back on Altair, and walk again into the cave passage.

“Where the Hell are you going?"

"I’m leaving! I won’t sit here and watch how you stupidly risk your life!"

"Malik! Wait…!”, but Malik didn’t. The lamp’s shining got lost behind the first stone corner, and his steps silenced in the distance. “Damn it, Malik…”. Altair sighed and turned his own way, climbing the stone wall and jumping from one column to another, until he reached the beginning of the bridge. As Malik did say, the structure looked precarious, but Altair was reckless about it. Both hands gripped the ropes, and his feet prudently tested the boards before every step. One by one, the assassin seemed to held his own quite well.

For a while.

Suddenly one of the ropes splitted with a dry noise, and the bridge lower under him. Altair muffled a shout, and rapidly closed his fists around the other rope, trying to hold himself. The broken pieces of wood splashed the water while they fell down. Altair breathed deeply and tried to calm down. Slowly, he started moving sideway, using the remaining rope and the strength of his two arms. But his weight was, indeed, to much for the old piece of rope. And it broke as well, throwing the assassin against a stone wall. He finally fell into the water, breaking the mirror with a resounding spatter.

The water recieved him with a cold and dark embrace, and slided through his robes like an icy snake, pulling him down and down, and yet Altair couldn’t find the bottom under his feet. He moved his arms awkwardly and reached the surface for a moment. Tried to take a deep breath, but water flooded his throat instead. His hands slided uselessly the slippery rock surface, without finding where to grasp. Altair panicked. As Malik had said, he couldn’t swim. And the idea of his inminent death seemed too terrifying! Altair screamed and cried for help, sinking in dispair as he did in the water. He tried to use his blade to break the rock and hang on to something. But it was useless too. Eventually his lack of control and his anxiety buried him deeper beneath the surface, and the cold touch finally filled up his lungs.

“I’m dying… I’m dying here… Oh, if I would just have listened to you, Malik!”, Altair thought. His body kept slowly falling deep in the cold and liquid void. His sight blurred and turned darker and darker. And every sound got more and more silent…

Then, something bursted into that fleeting peace before total blackness. In fact, someone had just jump into the water, holding a rope between the teeth. Altair was barely conscious of what actually happened. But the mysterious figure reached him, swimming underwater with just one arm, and tied the piece of rope around his waist. Everything that was after that, was confusion and cold water drowning his last heart beats…

When Altair woke up, something warm and soft was pressing against his lips, and inflating his mouth with air, right before he could felt a rhythmic pression on his chest. The water made his way among his throat and made him cough. His body was entirely soaked, and it felt very heavy. Altair sluggishly opened his eyes, and looked at Malik’s wet and concerned face. “Altair… Altair, do you hear me?”, he was saying at the time.

“… lik… Mali…k?”, Altair coughed again. “Altair!”, Malik released his breath, and get immediatly angry. “You foolish imbecile! Why? Why did you have to do it? Why didn’t you listen to me? I told you… I did…”, he moved his tearful dark eyes away and ground his teeth. The hands on Altair’s chest shivered… “I thought I’ve lost you…"

Altair grieved his expression, and raised his hand until the fingers could touch Malik’s dripping black hair. He felt guilty, and deeply idiot for what he had done. But specially for causing Malik concern. "I’m sorry… I had to…"

“Oh, please, stop it…”, Malik muttered and shook his head. “You always have to…”, he cleaned his tears with his hand, and finally whispered: “Just don’t make this to me again…"

Altair gently smiled. "I’ll try…”