Chapter 2
Lone Wolf
February 3rd 2017
The bell for the end of class rang, a sign of freedom for the many students attending Melbourne Secondary School. The sound of both the bell woke Lynn from his sleep. He took a moment to escape from his drowsy state and regain composure. As he regained the ability to think, he felts an arm pat his shoulder.
"It's time to wake up Lynn. Class is over." said Alex.
"One sec…"
"What's with you today?
"I had a long night. Homework and stuff."
"You look like a stoner. Come on."
Lynn stood up and gathered the stuff on his table before leaving the room with Alex. As they left, the teacher shot Lynn a harsh glare that made a chill go down his spine. Lynn quickly picked up the pace and escaped the classroom with Alex. The two began a walk towards their lockers.
Lynn had changed since the fateful day almost three years ago. He was now seventeen. He had grown taller and he had allowed his hair to grow longer and slightly messier. He was now a student at Melbourne Secondary School, a school closer to the heart of Melbourne and a rather prestigious one. The uniform was a white shirt, black trousers and a black blazer, which he wore with pride. His hidden blade remained on his right arm. His friend Alex Graham was slightly shorter than himself and had gold hair. Lynn had met Alex about a month after his father's death and they had become close friends. What was ironic was that Alex's father was the head of Abstergo's Melbourne Branch.
The two reached their lockers and began to dump their books inside.
"Did you see the look on Haines' face?" questioned Lynn with a snigger.
"How could I not? I looked as if he was about to burst!"
"Nek minnit he yells Allahu Akbar and blows the classroom up."
"Haha! So what the hell were you doing last night?"
"Hot Asian girls."
"No seriously."
"Trying to solve the mystery of my dad's death."
"Still trying to decipher the stuff in that diary?"
"Yep. I think I've almost got it," say's Lynn as he shuts his locker.
"Nice!"
"What do you have after lunch?"
"Physics and English. What about you?"
"Bio and a spare for last."
"Going to see the Robinson High girls?"
"Nah… I've got somewhere else in mind this time."
Lynn and Alex left their lockers and began to weave through the crowds of rowdy students. After almost being knocked out by a ball and stealthily cutting a hole in an annoying asshole's uniform, Lynn an Alex took a seat on a secluded bench.
"So what happened to that guy who tried to assassinate your dad?"
"He was just another crazy bastard. He blew himself up after he was captured."
"Your dad's fine right?"
"He's fine! Just a scratch."
"He fights well. Where did he learn to do it?"
"The animus of course."
"Have you ever used the animus rich boy?"
"Yeah. I played some of the Abstergo Entertainment games."
"Lucky boy. I bet you enjoyed playing as Aveline."
"That was so fucking awkward! The animus really makes you feel like a woman."
"Hehe…"
The bell rang again, waking Lynn from his sleep once more. He raised his head and rubbed his eyes. It was the end of fifth period and the end of his last class for the day. He grabbed his stuff and dashed out of the door. After placing his books in his locker, he went to the library to continue analyzing his father's diary. It was stained by blood and weathered from that day but it was still readable. Lynn turned to a bookmarked page and began writing notes on a small notebook.
The diary itself was written almost completely in a complicated code, which Lynn had figured out a bit over a month ago. The diary had taught Lynn almost about the secret war between the Templars and the Assassins. It told him the stories of the ancient Assassins, the First Civilization and the pieces of Eden. He was fascinated by it. His father had raised him to become an Assassin and every page he read was further convincing him to continue his father's work.
After half an hour of hard work, Lynn managed to finish a very important page.
'5th April 2014'
'After a month of moving around and hiding from the Templars, we have finally established a new base and it's a lot better than the shitty old one. I'm kind of glad the old base got trashed. The new one's bigger, better and almost impossible to find. Nobody would have ever known there was something like this hidden under Robinson High School. The entrance looks like 1st Civilization Technology. How the fuck did Lance find this place anyway?
Lynn immediately became engulfed in curiosity. Thoughts of what was in that base shrouded his mind. His father's diary had mentioned thousands of pieces of Assassin technology, far more complex and powerful than his hidden blade. He also wanted to find the people his father had worked with. The diary had mentioned other assassins such as Lance, Robyn, Avery and Monty. Lynn lost control of his desire to find the base. He made a quick run to his locker to dump his belongings before leaving the school grounds.
Lynn made his way over to the location of the base at a brisk pace. A rather poorly drawn map of the area led Lynn to what seemed like an abandoned alleyway. It's positioning in the middle of the block separating the two schools made it impossible to see from the surrounding streets. A sheet metal cover also hid the area from the sky.
"They really took everything into account," commented Lynn as he searched for the entrance.
Lynn's search eventually led him to a small hole that dug into one of the walls. The hole in the stone was deep and a perfect cut. Remembering something his dad had mentioned in his diary, Lynn raised his right arm and extended his hidden blade. He slid it into the hole. The blade was a perfect fit. He rotated his wrist, turning his blade like a key. He felt something inside move before hearing a click. Nothing else happened. Lynn removed his blade and looked at the hole surprised. Confused, Lynn turned around and saw that the wall behind him on the other side of the alleyway had opened up without a sound. He stared at it with disbelief. He took slow steps towards the entrance.
"Let's hope the security system ain't too harsh." He joked as he walked inside.
About two meters in, the floor turned to spiral staircase downwards. The corridor was poorly lit, creating an eerie atmosphere similar to those of fantasy dungeons. Lynn estimated that he had gone down five flights of stairs before the staircase ended. He entered a room and saw what appeared to be some sort of test. Strange blue lines on the wall lighted up the room, definite signed of First Civilization Technology. There was some sort of parkour test involving platforms and bars over a pit. The opposite exit looked about two stories higher than his current position. Lynn stepped over to the edge and dropped a coin into the pit. The coin splashed in water after a three-meter fall.
"Last thing I want to do is fall in that water. At least they provided a ladder." Said Lynn, noting both the water and the ladder back up.
Lynn took a step back and began the test. The first part involved jumping along a number of small platforms that protruded from the water. The next part involved a number of poles and bars. The third was a climb up a strangely designed First Civilization Wall and the last was a run along a rope before a final jump onto the platform. Lynn made it look easy.
Without stopping to look back, Lynn continued walking down the following corridor. At the end of the corridor was another lock, similar to the one in the alleyway. Lynn estimated the end of the corridor to be exactly beneath Robinson High School. He shoved his hidden blade in and turned it. The moment he pulled it out, the door opened. A strong light blinded Lynn as it did.
It took a moment for Lynn to adjust to the new level of light. He stepped inside and looked at the Assassin base. One the left was an Animus and a large amount of computer equipment. On the right was an area similar to a living room. There were four other rooms connected to the main room. Lynn walked into the area slowly, his eyes taking note of just about everything. The four rooms led to a living area, an armory with training area, a storage room and to some sort of exit. As he to the central room, Lynn noticed a piece of paper on the tidy coffee table. He picked it up and began to read.
To any remaining Assassins,
If you are reading this, I am dead. Our forces here have been destroyed. One by one, the Templars found our brothers and sisters, killing them off one by one. We have fought long and hard but we cannot defeat the Templars. Tonight, I will make an attempt on Ryan Graham's life as one last-ditch effort. I have left behind an object that may come in handy: The Collar of Eden. Wear it and you may hide your face from whomever you wish.
-Lance
The result of the assassination was obviously a failure. Lynn looked over at the table and saw a golden collar. Lynn reached for it but stopped before he touched it. He hesitated for a moment, knowing that it was a piece of Eden, which contained powers far beyond the capabilities of the human race. Lynn picked it up and examined it. He opened it, placed it around his neck and closed it. At first he felt nothing but from the corner of his sight, he saw the Collar of Eden become invisible. He took out his phone and opened the camera app. He turned it the selfie mode and saw the effect the collar had on him. His face had become blurred.
Lynn's time discovering the power of the Collar of Eden was cut short when he heard the door open. Two girls, dressed in the black and red uniform of Robinson High School ran in. One was a thin and short girl with neck length black hair. The other was taller and well endowed girl with much longer brown hair.
"Come out with your hands up!" yelled the shorter girl in a high pitch voice.
"There he is!" yelled the other in a more regular pitched voice.
"I'll get him!" yelled the first as she ran towards Lynn.
Lynn could sense their movement, using vibrations and sound to guide his timing. At the perfect time, he turned around and extended his hidden blade. He saw that his opponent was also wielding a hidden blade. He parried her first attack and grabbed her attacking arm while she was performing her follow-up attack. Lynn pulled his arm back and thrust it forwards but before the attack could connect, Lynn realized who his opponent was. He retracted the blade and diverted his hand away from the girl's face. He spun around and retreated back.
"Remove the collar!" yelled the taller girl
Lynn looked at the taller girl. She had her Phantom Blade pointed at him. He knew that he stood no chance against the ranged weapon. He raised his blade arm and used his left to remove the collar.
"Huh? Lynn?" said the shorter girl.
"You know me?"
"Yeah. You're Nathan's son right? How'd you find out about this place?"
"My dad's diary led me here. Who are you two?
"I'm Gemma and that's Lisa. It's nice to meet you."
"Yeah. Nice to meet you two."
The two girls approached Lynn and shook his hand. He felt his adrenaline die down.
"Funny how we're shaking hands mere seconds before trying to kill each other," Said Lisa as took a seat on the couch.
"It's good to finally see another Assassin," said Gemma
"What about Lance?"
"We don't usually come here. Lance told us to give up and live our normal lives." Explained Gemma.
"He didn't want to put you in danger."
"Yeah. We were quite sad when Lance got himself captured. He was the last of us. Both Lisa and I aren't fully qualified Assassins yet. We came here because you activated a trip wire at the entrance."
"So you just gave up like that?"
"Well… we didn't know what to do. Robyn, Avery and your dad are dead. Monty's been missing for half a year and I'm sure Lance is probably going to blow himself up very soon."
"I'm not giving up." Interrupted Lynn.
"What?" the two girls said in unison.
"I'm not giving up. I'm taking down the Templars. For my father and his fallen comrades."
"Good luck! You're just one person! You're going against a whole army!" argued Lisa.
"I make me own luck... sorry… I couldn't help it. It is true that I may be outgunned, outmanned and out of our minds on a suicide mission but all it takes is the will of a single…"
"Just stop!" yelled Gemma.
Lynn couldn't help but quote from some of his favorite games. He put himself in a state of deep through for a few seconds, allowing him to think up a speech.
"Okay… I'll stop. My idea of fighting the Templars may seem crazy but hear me out. We're assassins and we're involved in this whether we want it or not. You two practically own the base now and I killed my first Templar when I was fourteen. The truth is that the Templars will eventually find us. The fact that we actually know about the Templars is enough of a reason for them to kill us. If they're going to find and kill us, I think I'd prefer to go down fighting. That way, we at least have something to show for. I don't want to go down without a fight. I want to leave a mark for the future. A mark saying that we fought for what was right."
"You're quite a crappy speech maker… but I guess we may as well. To be honest, we never actually quit. We were waiting for help from Canberra." Said Lisa.
"If you're returning to the fight. I am too!" said Gemma proudly.
"Wonderful. So where do we start?"
The three Assassins looked at each other in confusion. There was an awkward silence that felt like an eternity.
