Bayan

Bayan was a warrior of the Buryat tribe who served as a commander for the Mongol Empire and its Great Khan, Möngke during the 13th century. Bayan was recruited as a Kheshig, part of the Imperial Guard, and later joined the local branch of Templars at the invitation of Möngke's son Asutai. He was an ancestor of the 21st century teenager Natalya Aliyev.

Biography

In the summer of 1259, as Möngke Khan was on campaign to conquer the Song Empire in China, Bayan was part of the army which besieged the Song forces entrenched in Diaoyu Castle. However, plagued by diseases and faced with the Songs' strong resistance, the Mongols were unsuccessful in their attempts to break the fortress defenses.

When General Köke asked for volunteers for a new assault, Bayan offered himself and his men to join the attack. Led by Möngke's commander-in-chief Wang Dechen, the Mongols attacked the wall using the cover of the night but somehow warned of their arrival the Chinese ambushed them with archers and cannons. During the battle, Bayan killed a deadly Chinese veteran, who unknown to the Mongol warrior was in fact a Assassin. After their retreat, Bayan brought back the seriously injured Wang Dechen to the Mongol camp, but the shaman's ritual failed to save him despite Möngke's command.

Several days later, as the Mongols' morale had fallen after Wang's death, Bayan had come to believe in a secret entrance to the fortress, which could explain how the Chinese were able to set an ambush outside of their walls without being seen. After requesting permission, Bayan left the camp to scout around the walls, looking for a hidden cave. During his nocturnal exploration, Bayan spotted what he believed to be a Song scout but failed to capture her, loosing her tracks. Unable to find the entrance, the Mongol warrior decided to hide and to wait for the return of the scout, planning to capture her and to extort from her the location of the hidden passage.

When the scout returned, Bayan loosed an arrow in her leg from his hiding spot, hitting her knee as she was freerunning. Facing the crippled woman, who was in fact Zhang Zhi, an Assassin apprentice and the daughter of the veteran he killed several days before, Bayan had to retreat after Zhang shot him with a poisoned bolt and stabbed him with her Hidden Blade. Through sheer will and despite the poison taking his toll on him, the half-dead warrior dragged himself to the Mongol camp before falling unconscious.

When Bayan woke up, he learned from Prince Asutai that the Assassin girl had murdered Möngke before Bayan crippled her. Impressed by his skills, Asutai also revealed to Bayan that he planned to conceal his father's murder and would tell the army that the Khan had abruptly died from the same illnesses plaguing them. Asutai then promoted Bayan to the Keshigs, the Imperial Guards, and informed him that he would accompany him to Mongolia, where Möngke was to be buried alongside the other Great Khans. One month later, on their way to Mongolia, Asutai informed Bayan of the Templars' existence and disclosed that his late father, himself, and most of the Keshigs were Templars. He then offered Bayan to join them and the Mongol accepted.

Gallery

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  Concept art by Studio Lounak

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants – Tomb of the Khan