Aboard the Jackdaw: Under Edward Kenway And The Black Flag

25: Stormy Reminiscing

Anna soared into a bale of hay from the top of the ancient temple. She hastily got up and stroked the staw from her clothing. She looked back up against the deep grey sky to the sillouette of the Assassin Lord. It looked as if Ah-Tabi had no intention of jumping down soon. Anna sighed,

I hope I haven't offended him..

Kidd's voice distracted her thoughts,

"What did you say, lass?"
She asked nervously.

Anna sighed sadly at her friend,
"I can't.."

Kidd's sharp jaw dropped in shock,
"What the bloody hell do ya mean? You've wanted to be an Assassin since you've known about em!"
She exclaimed.

"I can't leave Edward." Anna stated firmly,
"He saved my life."

Kidd's expression changed from bewildered to sudden understanding. She stared at Anna for a few seconds and smiled,
"Ya love him, don't ya?"

A shock went up Anna's spine,

"What?" She said in a high pitched voice.

Kidd laughed and grabbed Anna's shoulder,
"Of course ya do. He's -"

BOOOOM

Lightning struck so close that Anna could feel her heart shiver between her lungs. Before the flash of light left the sky, rain harshly began pouring down. As the lightning rattled their bones, Kidd and Anna instincivly ducked and Kidd put a hand on Anna's back,

"Come on! Lets get outta the storm!"
She shouted over the rain as they scurried for cover along with the rest of the Assassins.

Kidd led Anna into her stone longhouse to find that the crew of the Jackdaw were already settled on blankets on the floor. The hut was leaking and cold, and she could already feel the pirate's discomfort, but she felt glad to be there.
Anna quickly found Edward in the darkness as Kidd anxiously closed the doorway curtain and tied it in place.

Edward asked Anna suspiciously,

"What did Ah-tabee what to talk to you about?"

Anna sighed,
"It's Ah-Tabi. He asked me to-"

They were interrupted when they heard an Assassin screaming over the storm from outside. Kidd anxiously pulled the door cloth aside and squinted as sideways rain came into the house. The Assassin outside ran by screaming,

"EVERYONE! TO THE SAGE'S TEMPLE FOR THE NIGHT! AH-TABI'S ORDERS! TO THE SAGE'S TEMPLE! NOW!"

The groaning pirates immediately packed up the bedding that they could carry and ran into the blinding storm as they followed the other Assassins.

It didn't take Anna long to see why Ah-Tabi called the order for his village to move further inland.
Lightning had struck one of the wooden structures and it had been set aflame despite the pouring rain.

They trudged through the forest for what seemed like an eternity. Once, a panther ran between the men with such haste, it didn't even give them a second glance or a predatory growl.

Suddenly, a large tree to the right of the path snapped and came crashing down on the path. Russell quickly pushed Anna forward so that she flew forward onto her knees. Immediately, the ground behind her shook as the tree collapsed just behind her feet.

Adawalé helped Anna up as Joel screamed in agony from behind them.
He had been unable to get out of the way fast enough, and his foot was pinned under the tree.
The pirates quickly helped lift the tree and hoist Joel to his feet. He had to be carried the rest of the way.