Assassin's Creed: Initiates
- "On September 1st, 2012, a man is kidnapped in New York. Brought to a secret Abstergo facility in Italy, he is placed in the Animus and forced to relive the memories of his Assassin ancestor. This man is Desmond Miles. This is his story."
- ―The Desmond Files.[src]
Assassin's Creed: Initiates was a community-oriented project founded by Ubisoft on 1 September 2012 envisioned as "the place for all things Assassin's Creed." It is currently in an open beta stage.
The Initiates website included a news section, forums for discussion, and a link to Ubiworkshop's store. Most notably, it featured an explorable map that tracked places, events, people, objects and messages from the series' storyline.
The Desmond Files
The Desmond Files referred to a collection of images, video clips, transcripts and documents that tracked the events following Desmond Miles' capture by Abstergo Industries. Each file was keyed to a location on the explorable world map and tagged with date and time information. Updates were made in real-time.
1 September 2012
Kidnapped
The following data was recorded from a cell phone tower in New York City at 4:02am (UTC).[1]
DATA TRANSCRIPT LEVEL 3 ......................... Cell Tower Grid 40SP73ZN ......................... UTC 20120901T040224Z ......................... [outgoing transmission] [caller id = private] [-] [interference] [+] ...Yes, sir. [pause] [+] We have him. [-] [reply scrambled] [+] Yes. Shoving him in the van as we speak, sir. [+] Target will be delivered on schedule. [transmission ends]
Transfer
Security camera footage from Floyd Bennett Field, Brooklyn at 4:37am (UTC) showed that Abstergo agents had captured an unidentified Caucasian male, in his mid-twenties; approximately 6' tall, and weighing 190lbs. Their destination was unknown.[1]
Unmarked Hangar
The Abstergo agents landed in Ciampino, Italy, at 6:44pm (UTC). They were seen moving the captive, who was identified as Desmond Miles, into a car.[1]
Abstergo Campus
Desmond was brought to the Abstergo campus in Rome, Italy, at 7:37pm (UTC). Scramblers from the Akashic Satellite Plexus prevented satellite imagery from pinpointing the campus' various facilities, and the extraction of geographical co-ordinates.[1]
2 September 2012
Animus Explained
At about 10:17am (UTC), Dr. Warren Vidic explained the various functions of the Animus to Desmond, leaving out the mention of any potential side effects that may occur as a result of its use.[1]
The Farm
At 5:53pm (UTC), Desmond revealed to Lucy Stillman that he was raised on "the Farm," a secret community of Assassins comprising approximately of 30 people located in the Black Hills of South Dakota, outside of Rapid City.[2] It was used as a safe haven and training facility for the Assassins, and based on the information Abstergo had collected, not everyone at the Farm was an active member of the Brotherhood.[1]
3 September 2012
Preliminary Analysis
At 11:24am (UTC), the results of Desmond's medical examination came up, with the medical examiner stating that there were no problems found, subsequently permitting Warren Vidic to continue his work on Desmond.[1]
4 September 2012
Access Codes
Desmond found access codes which allowed him to leave his cell. This led him to discover Lucy's pen, which he later used to access her e-mail.[1]
5 September 2012
Case File #1394
On the 4th and 5th of September 2012, Lucy Stillman sent a number of e-mails to various Abstergo employees, regarding the alleged suicide of Leila Marino in 2007.[1]
The Mole
The following data was recorded from a cell phone tower in Florence, Italy at 10:15 pm (UTC).[1]
DATA TRANSCRIPT LEVEL 3 ......................... Cell Tower Grid 43TP11FP ......................... UTC 20120905T221514Z ......................... [outgoing transmission] [caller id = maestranzi, adriano] [-] William speaking. [+] Desmond is in Rome. [-] Yes, I know. My mole confirmed it. [+] What should we do? [-] Everything is under control. My agent will ensure his protection. [+] I have a team ready, I’ll-- [-] Negative. Do not intervene. I repeat: Do not intervene. [transmission ends]
6 September 2012
Coded Message
Lucy managed to find a way to bypass Abstergo's security system and message the Assassins, asking for help. Moments later, at 8:25am (UTC), she received a coded reply from an unknown Assassin contact which read "We will be there soon" when deciphered.[1]
7 September 2012
Rescue Attempt
At about 6:49pm (UTC), a team of Assassins attempted to rescue Desmond, but were neutralized after a firefight with Abstergo security personnel. Vidic questioned Desmond about their presence, to which Desmond denied any involvement. After the team had been neutralized, Desmond mocked Vidic's temporary anxiety, stating that the facility may not have been as secure as they anticipated. However, Vidic revealed that over the course of the past year, the Templars had been busy hunting down the remnants of the Assassin Order, revealing that most of them had been wiped out, and that Desmond was on his own.[1]
8 September 2012
Eagle Vision
After Desmond was done reliving the memories of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad at about 5:18pm (UTC), he exited the Animus, and soon afterwards, discovered he had unlocked a unique trait his ancestor had once possessed.[1]
Escape from Abstergo
At 6:21pm (UTC), Desmond, with the aid of Lucy, escaped the Abstergo research facility. As they made their way out, Desmond noticed Lucy taking out several guards with ease - a consequence of her training as an Assassin. Along the way, they reached a door which required a code to allow them to proceed. Using his newfound gift, Desmond found the code, and the two were successful in their escape.[1]
9 September 2012
Assassin's Hideout
Following their escape from Abstergo, at 12:38pm (UTC), Lucy and Desmond arrived at a secret location in Rome, Italy within Zona Industriale Tor Tre Teste. Much like other secret organizations of the world, the Assassins used such safe houses as meeting places, refuges or temporary bases. It could be assumed that the Brotherhood had many such safe houses scattered across the globe.[1]
10 September 2012
Failure to Report
The following data was recorded from a cell phone tower in Brisbane, Australia, at 10:14pm (UTC).[1]
DATA TRANSCRIPT LEVEL 3 ......................... Cell Tower Grid 27LN153AP ......................... UTC 20120912T092116Z ......................... [outgoing transmission] [caller id = public phone] [-] What the hell do you mean? [+] You heard me, Gavin. The team failed to report. Again. This is-- [-] When did you last heard from them? [+] Didn’t you get my last em-- [-] When? [+] Three days. [pause] Over three days ago. Gavin I-- [-] Listen, and listen carefully. We have to move fast. First, keep only the most vital data. Destroy the rest. Leave no trace. You know the drill. Second, secure transport. Third, get to the-- [signal interrupted]
Trivia
- In the security camera footage, Desmond was shown with a courier bag and his outfit from Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, despite the events taking place around the time of Assassin's Creed.
- According to the reports, Desmond did not argue with Warren Vidic after regaining consciousness, as he did in Assassin's Creed.
- On 7 September, for unknown reasons, the map showed 6 events somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean. Zooming in on the area resulted in the message "Map data not yet available."
Gallery
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Security camera footage of New York.
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Security footage of the hangar.
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The interior of the Abstergo Industries facility.
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The Farm, as depicted in the Black Room. -
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The coded message. -
The interior of the hideout, showing the Animus 2.0.
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Close-up of the Animus 2.0.
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The interior of the hideout, showing Shaun's desk.
