𝐅𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐝𝐞𝐧 | 𝘈𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯'𝘴 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥 |

98 | 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐮𝐩...

"I lived, I died, and now I sleep. And in my sleep, I dream. And in my dreams, I see an end to the doom that will grip the earth once again. Find the Wolf-Kissed, Find the Mad One, find me. And save us all, from another death."

The message ends on its own, the familiar voice gripping my ears after so many centuries. Why must this happen? How did it happen?. I bring a hand to my forehead, wondering just how I'm going to explain the things they'll see to the group.. to Shaun who might question why I keep this from everyone.

"Unsettling, that is." Shaun places his hands behind his back, looking at the computer screen intendedly.

"That pulse in the message, are you sure it's just coordinates? Nothing else?." Layla asks, hopeful to finding a quick answer to everything.

"Well, if I do say so myself, the pulse is significantly similar albeit much stronger than the one Deimos used for us to find her eight years ago. And it came from an Apple.. but this one didn't come from the Staff so.. it's pretty hard to put this puzzle together." Shaun analyzes as he looks at me, my thoughts lost in the voice of the recording.

"Well then, time to find out what this puzzle is. Pull me in, Rebecca." Becs tinkers with the Animus as Layla lays in it, relieving more memories of this new Viking warrior called Eivor.. and if it's the one I'm thinking of.. oh boy.

The cabin lays quiet, with only the sound of the memories playing softly from Rebecca's monitor. A set of footsteps come to me, the figure crouching and setting its hands on my knees, making me take my hand off my forehead.

Shaun looks at me expectantly, a calm look in his eyes.

"Penny for your thoughts, my lady?." I chuckle and shake my head, taking his cheek in hand and stroking it.

"Just.. all of this.. something's wrong.. it feels like we shouldn't tamper with any of this." He cocks his head to the side, brows furrowing in question.

"You.. know something, don't you?." Fright comes to me and I slightly let go of his cheek.

"N—no, I just.. this feels wrong. All of it. It feels like we shouldn't be here, that shouldn't be here, we should just leave well enough alone." Rebecca breathes as I point over to the standing Staff, the menacing familiar yet foreign material racking my nerves.

"Dee, were you involved with the Vikings? Be honest girl.. because I'm seeing some things that are giving me the creeps." She takes another sip of her tea, a questioning look on her eyes as she looks at the screen in front of her.

Shaun furrows his brows as he looks between Rebecca and I, standing without a word and going to her side, looking over at the monitor, the female raising the volume of the session as I stand and join them.

"Randvi, my wife. Your husband returns, bringing gifts and riches to share." I hear a lot of chatter as the memory of those events come back full force to me.

"And new friends, I see." The man hisses with excitement.

"Yes! Basim.. Hytham and Deimos. We met in Miklagard and they showed me her buried secrets." I shut my eyes as I feel tears prickle them, one of the most turbulent times of my life being in the company of those Vikings.

I open my eyes and see how my old friends and I walk forth, both males standing idle behind my armored frame.

"We are grateful to Sigurd for his invitation, and eager to pay tribute to your king." The old me smiles kindly, hands clasped at the hilt of the now destroyed sword of Ares.

Basim takes his hood down and stands at my right, with Hytham maintaining his character and staying close to us both, baby blue eyes scanning his new surroundings.

How that boy always made me proud.

Both Sigurd and his adopted sister, Eivor—better known as the Wolf-Kissed—walk away from us, the frame staying on our figures as we lag behind to let the family catch up.

Rebecca and Shaun whip their heads at me, my sight focused on those who were accompanied me for years.

"Wolf-Kissed? You? I.. you knew these people, and you didn't say anything?." Shaun asks, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"It's Layla's job to uncover the truth. It's not my place to interfere with.. whatever's happening." Becs cuts us short, not wanting us to possibly fight.

"Can you at least tell us who those two with you were? What were you to them? They seem so.. uptight." I look over and watch their picture.

"Hidden Ones, Master Assassin Basim Ibn-Ishaq and his Acolyte, Hytham. And for them, I was their Master." Rebecca blinks, not believing what comes done my lips as I recount a part of the past.

"Why.. didn't you ever told us anything. Like, we know you were with the Hidden Ones, we saw a recording of Bayek's memories. But why not share a bit of the story?." Shaun remains quiet, surely trying to put all the pieces together.

"This is one of those memories that are too painful to relive. I told you.. you should leave well enough alone." I walk outside, wanting some fresh air to not make my mind think back to the things that happened during all those years with the Raven Clan.

Why is his voice the one that contacted Layla? Isn't he supposed to be.. no, this can't happen.

This is just a nightmare, a terrible nightmare about to turn into a curse.