The four walked rather casually and aimlessly for now, heading away from the prison and into the busier parts of Florence. The reason they were already on the move was the fact that time was of essence to them—especially to Luciano—, and the reason for their pace was the lack of actual goal to be sought after. Something that was to be rectified very shortly, the Templar was sure of it.

And he would be right to believe that, at least partially. The former Assassins—they could not be called Templars just yet as they were not inducted in the Order, but were simply collaborators and thus, allies—were once again quick to think of duty and suggested the initial objective to be seeking out further Brotherhood informants and acquiring everything they knew...however they could. Knowledge was more important than raw power in these times, and all four of them were well aware of that. The better-informed and better-prepared side stood the greatest chance to triumph in this tense struggle over the city of Florence.

“Good informants are the hardest to find,” Luciano noted. “But you are very correct. We will not settle for anything less. If we need to scour through every [i]braccio[/i] to find who we seek, then that is what we are going to do. We just need to need to know who we are going after. And I have just the idea for the first target. Tell me, have you heard about a certain [i]La Volpe?[/i]”

The de facto leader of the Florentine thieves did not strictly fit the bill of an Assassin informant—but he was much more than that. A rogue with legendary skills and a far-reaching reputation, La Volpe was as efficient as he was mysterious. His affiliation was, however, undoubtedly clear: even if he was not an Assassin himself, he was a close associate, one who has caused a fair bit of trouble for the Templar Order and its Grand Master. Overseeing a loose network of crafty and talented thieves with reach all over the city, he was surely in possession of a lot of valuable information. Not to mention his alleged ties to the infamous Auditore Assassin...

All in all, Luciano hoped to bring down several birds with one stone by finding La Volpe. However, he knew that it would be no easy feat and that they might need to overcome various obstacles before, if ever, coming close to success. He also had to hope that Elena and Alessandro could serve with enough information to start the search.

Although he was thinking for a while about the aforementioned two who walked close to him along with Emerico, Luciano only now took a good look at them. They did as he asked, changing their plain and dirty prison clothing to something more fitting for the streets: Alessandro wore a regular guard's outfit, while Elena also chose a fitting set of clothes.
“I assume everything went smoothly at the prison?” the Templar asked a question that once again could have come sooner if not for the immediate focus on the task at hand.
“I hope you won't miss it either...” Emerico added. “Let's just say none of us are quite welcome there anymore.”
“For now, at least.”

The group did not stick out from all the other people who were gathered around conversing with one another or just minding their own business. The bustle of the streets drowned out whatever the four said to each other, none of their words fell on unnecessary ears. They were there—but at the same time, it seemed like they were not. They were just part of the crowd.

It was like this that they eventually arrived to a large marketplace. The congregation here was bigger than ever before, with the place swarming with all kinds of people from the richest merchants to the poorest beggars. Much was exchanged here—not just goods, but services and information as well, available to anyone who could afford them. Because of such qualities, it was also a very favoured place for all kinds of scoundrels and thieves.
Luciano stopped for a moment before they went into the thickest of the crowd and looked over the area.
“All right. This is where we start.” He turned to his companions. “We are going to split up and walk in with senses heightened. Keep your eyes and ears out for everything. An interesting figure, a brief flash of a strange artefact, a few intriguing words... Anything that could bring our case forward. Follow up on it too, if you can.”
 
“Good luck everyone.”