Assassin's Creed:
Blood Oath
Prologue
Berlin, Germany, 1938
The wind carefully made passage through the darkened skies over Berlin, where the clouds obscured what light the glowing crescent shape above could offer. Lamps had been lit hours ago, and it was nearing the midnight hour, signalling the beginning of the assault.
On a rooftop near the Reichstag building, seven figures dressed in ordinary-looking coats sat idle while they glanced at the hands of their pocket watches. They were dressed in various colours not common amongst the fashion of their countries: two in dark green with gold trim, one in crimson with black trim, three in dark blue with only one amongst them adding red trim, and a figure in traditional white with crimson trim. Of the three in blue, two were men, the other a woman, and she was the one who'd added red to her outfit. The two in dark green were both male, though one was older than the other and sported a pointed beard, and the lady in crimson was still quite young, and had only just passed into adulthood.
The figure in white was a woman, and with her cowl lowered one could see the liquid-gold eyes she sported staring patiently at the ticking clock. And then the hands touched the twelve unanimously, and she snapped the silver metal covering over it and tucked the bauble into her coat.
Each of these people had their coats reaching longer than a typical citizen would wear them, and each ended in coattails. They all had hoods on them, as well, considered menacing if worn in the correct light. That night was considered a perfect night for the cowls that the gathered men and women were pulling over their faces.
The woman in white stood and absently straightened her coat and vest. Her trousers, covered up to the knee by her long leather boots, were a light grey, and could easily conceal the dirt that covered it. Still, out of habit she wiped at them and then rubbed her hands together. She grinned mischievously at the group, who either smirked or merely stared back at her like steadfast gargoyles.
"So, the meeting's begun," she said playfully, with a hint of a British accent. "Shall we cut in?"
The older man in green nodded curtly. "We follow your lead," he affirmed.
"That's what I like to hear." The woman gestured for them to follow, and like birds in flight they raced across the rooftops, slowing only to gauge the next leap or aid their comrade in scaling a smooth wall.
It took the group less than ten minutes to arrive at the Reichstag building, where the meeting was taking place. Guards with the now-familiar red armbands sporting the swastika that Hitler chose personally. Even from her perch, the woman in white could see the familiar glint of a small yet noticeable red cross on the caps of some of the officers patrolling with the common soldiers. She tutted her tongue, then began to scan for an entrance. She considered the troops, tired-looking and bored, and wondered if they couldn't manage a frontal assault.
Hm... She bit her lip. No. We need the element of surprise. It's our only chance right now. If we fail...
She cleared her mind and continued to survey the area. Finally, she spotted a particularly high-ranking officer opening a window so he could walk onto a balcony. That was their entrance. She quietly gestured the hole in the building's defences to her team, and they immediately set off for it. They found their way to the ground, crossed the plaza's side like shadows, and scaled the walls into the building. The officer was enjoying a nice nap outside courtesy of one of the men in blue.
They stealthily made their way through the halls, keeping to the shadows and trying to keep their blades in check. The less blood spilled that night the better, but their target was exempt of that thought. Deeper and deeper they trod into the bowels of the Reichstag building, until they discovered the entrance to the secret meeting-place; an old wall with the red-crossed markings of Templar conspiracies in the sub-basement. The elder Assassin in green pressed the cross, and its mechanism soundlessly allowed the door to slide open. The Assassin in white mused that the hinges had been recently oiled, revealing that it was a frequented hotspot by Templars.
As soon as they entered the dimly-lit antechamber, the Assassins split up to find different vantage points for the coming assassination. The Assassin in white remained on the ground floor while others took to the beams above, and still others began scouting the balconies. Already they could hear mumbling at the far end of the tunnels beneath the Reichstag, so they followed it without delay.
They slowed their pace once the noise had increased from a dull murmur to the volume of a normal conversation, albeit the conversation seemed a bit strained. The Assassin in white signalled for the others to take positions, and soon the Assassins had the room, in which their target was, surrounded. He was joined by a man who was not immediately familiar to the Assassin in white, but she saw the crest on his chest and recognized him as an enemy.
Their target, a middle-aged man with both dark hair and eyes was biting his lip as he supported himself against a table in the centre of the room. His moustache was cut short, the same colour as his hair, and his suit was crisp and clean, as if he were ready to address his "adoring" public. On the table lay the Assassins' true objective: a ruddy piece of silver with strange markings carved deep into its metal flesh. From experience, the Assassin in white knew it not to be a mere piece of silver, but something far more terrible and dangerous to all. She gulped at the sight of it.
The man with the Templar cross on his chest gestured to it. "Ford thought it best to be sent to you, Führer," said the man, his gaze focused solely on the man before him. "They were getting too close in America. Besides, in your capable hands, you should do wonders."
"Wonders?" scoffed the target. "Your Order promised me a weapon. I see a piece of silver. This cannot make the war you wish."
"Contrary, Führer. This 'piece of silver' has been on this earth since time immemorial—."
"As are rocks."
"—and harnesses the power to control another's mind. And not just one, Führer; thousands. Millions."
The target picked up the silver and weighed it. He appeared to be assessing it. The Assassin in white, from her position on the ground, noticed how it pulsed with power and began to glow softly in gold, masking its silver appearance into something far more impressive. Just the sight of it made her stomach churn with unease.
"And when may I use it?"
She signalled for the Assassins, just as the Templar replied:
"Immediately."
The Assassins leapt from the darkness and converged on the Templar and their target with blinding speed. But the moment she had crossed the room, the Assassin in white realized that the Templar had been anticipating—rather, expecting their meddling in the meeting. So he grabbed the Apple of Eden and lifted it above his head.
She heard the screams of her comrades above her own. The agony covered the room like a blanket, leaving only the Templar and their target exposed. Over the intense ringing in her head she managed to look and see three Assassins already dead on the floor, their ears, mouths and noses trickling blood from the overwhelming power created by Those Who Came Before. Another two were dead before she'd even began mourning the three before them.
The last to die was the elder Assassin, who managed to knock the Apple out of the hands of the Templar with a gunshot. But he was dead when the artefact began its flight through the air.
Overcoming her pain, the final Assassin leapt for the Piece of Eden and drew her rapier to defend herself from the Templar's incoming blows. She parried and blocked, and tried to make her way over to the Apple, but the Templar was skilled and battled her intentions with ferocity.
And just as she thought she'd gained the upper-hand in the battle, a gunshot sounded. But the Assassin felt more than heard the bullet that ripped through her back. She hollered and fell, blood pooling around her in droves, but managed to keep on her knees. Gritting her teeth, she slowly rose to stand just as the Templar grabbed her by the neck. There was a second gunshot, that time much closer. Then she understood what had happened: in the chaos, her target had leapt for his gun and shot her, then gave the weapon to the Templar.
Blood pooled from her mouth, staining her teeth crimson, which were grit to suffer through the pain. The Templar shot twice more, once in the stomach and once in the kidney, then paused and dropped her. She was still breathing, but each breath was laboured and strained. The Templar took a moment to himself to right his vest and coat, now stained with her blood, and then fired the last three shots in the revolver, two striking her in the brain.
But what he found most interesting was how she was still breathing.
She was unmoving, certainly, but the Templar assumed not for long. He crouched over her, and was soon joined at the shoulder by Adolf Hitler, who had by then recomposed himself and now stared at the prone Assassin in disbelief. In his hands laid the Apple, pulsating with power.
The Templar handed the empty gun to Adolf and took the device into his hands. He weighed it meticulously, and noted how it glowed more brightly when near the Assassin. The Templar smirked and tapped his fingers against the Apple as he thought, putting the puzzle pieces together in his head.
Finally, Adolf managed to stammer, "W-... What in God's name...?"
"I told you about the Assassins, haven't I?" the Templar asked, barely sparing a glance over his shoulder. "See, not many Templars believe, but years ago there was an Assassin desperate to save his adopted child, who had just drowned by the hand of a jealous ally. That's the part they believe, anyhow."
Hitler gulped. "And the part they don't?"
"The Assassin saved the child, but at a cost which we cannot yet comprehend. Those who do not have the requirements to properly harness the power of the Pieces of Eden are lost to this endeavour."
"... I don't understand."
The Assassin on the ground groaned. The Templar pressed his knee against one of her stomach wounds, which had her hiss and fall back into temporary unconsciousness.
"What do you think it means, Führer?" prompted the Templar. "The Assassin tapped into powers beyond our own. In saving his child... he doomed her. And now..." He put more weight on his knee, ensuring time to complete his statement while the gears worked in his mind. "She lives, and she always will. Now she is tied to the Piece of Eden used to keep her alive. This Apple is not the one, but we can use it."
"Use it how? You just told me we don't have the requirements—."
"I stated that there are those who have no ability to control the Apple, but I did not include myself amongst their ranks, Führer. I have the Sight. I can use the Apple to its greatest extent." He lifted the Apple, and it glowed brighter in his palm, illuminating the darkest corners of the secret chamber. The luminescence extended to the Assassin bodies laying on the ground, no more than lifeless husks. "And I think it's about time the Assassins lost their trump card." He gazed down at the Assassin, who was now fighting to reopen her eyes. "Is that not correct, miss? You tried to exterminate our Order once; we will have the same done to your precious Brotherhood."