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Description
January 18, 1589; Roanoke Island

The man stumbled through the snowy woods. He was breathing heavily, trying desperately to escape the hooded woman chasing him in the treetops. Kahente's golden eyes stayed fixed on her target. His fear made him sloppy, and an easy target. The man turned to look back at her, but unfortunately for him, this caused him to trip on a sheet of ice. He fell face-first into the snow. He tried to get up, but Kahente landed on his back and pinned him before he could.

She pulled out a wheellock pistol that she had stolen earlier and held it at point-blank range to the back of the man's head. The man squirmed, but Kahente held him down.

"Where is it?" she demanded to know.

"I don't know what you mean!" said the man, the fear unhidden from his voice. Kahente tapped his head with the barrel of her gun.

"You can either tell me where your brothers are excavating or I can open your skull so that the wolves may feast on your brain," she said. "So which is it?"

"Alright! Alright! The temple is located about a mile south of the colony!"

"How do I know it is the truth you speak?"

"It's the truth, I swear! Just let me go!"

Satisfied, Kahente withdrew her pistol and stood. "Thank you," she said.

She turned to leave. The man clumsily got up. He stared and Kahente, and then noticed a pointed rock in the snow. He snatched it up and charged at Kahente with a yell. Kahente rolled her eyes, raised her gun and turned to shoot the man between the eyes.

"You Templars never learn, do you?" she said as the man fell into a bloody heap on the ground. Kahente turned to return to the colony.

------------

"What do you mean you'll be leaving soon?" Eleanor asked Kahente. Kahente looked at her friend.

"If all goes well, my mission will be completed by tonight, and I will have to leave once it is done," she said.

"But dear, you've done so much for the colony in the past five months! You rid us of those mad lunatics that made us miserable. You helped us find food and water. You can't leave so soon!" The two looked sadly at each other.

"You must believe me when I tell you that I wish I could stay," said Kahente. "But I must return to my Brotherhood on the mainland. And once I get there, I will arrange for a rescue crew to come and get you all."

"You promise?'

"I promise."

The two stared at each other for a moment. Eventually, Eleanor nodded. "Alright," she said. "We will all be sad to see you go, Kahente, but we won't keep you from doing what you must." The two smiled at each other and hugged.

"Now," said Kahente once they broke apart. "I must set out. I must finish my mission here, and once I do, you'll all finally be free of those monsters' tyranny." Eleanor nodded. The two said their goodbyes, and then Kahente left the colony.

------------

After a short hike through the woods, and after passing by a few local Natives for directions, Kahente finally managed to locate the Templar excavation site. About a dozen guards were patrolling around the outside of a large cave. Kahente noticed how unfocused they all seemed, and she used that to her advantage. She had the whole area cleared in a matter of minutes. After wiping the blood off of her blades, she cautiously entered the cave.

It was still freezing cold in the cave, but at least there was no snow to hinder Kahente's progress. She slowly made her way through the caverns, ducking for cover whenever she heard the slightest sound. As she continued, she noticed the cave getting wider and smoother. Within the rock walls were bizarre structures that looked like they may have once been a supportive beam. Strange, bright blue light shined from within the bizarre patterns that were carved into the structures. Kahente raised her hand up to one. The glow intensified the closer it got. She waved her hand side to side, and the glow followed its motion.

Kahente pulled her hand away. She figured that these must be Precursor relics. She'd heard plenty of stories about these temples, but this was the first time she'd ever laid her eyes on one. If it was this bizarre already, she couldn't imagine what awaited in the depths of the caverns. She carried on.

Soon, Kahente began to hear voices, and they were coming from close by. She slowed her pace. Eventually, she saw them. Five Templars were standing in front of a large wall that gave off the same blue glow as the other structures. The one in the middle was trying to fiddle with a pedestal that stood in front of the wall.

"Why won't you open?" he yelled, as if expecting an answer. Kahente ducked behind a rock formation and got a better look at the man.

He was old, probably in his late 40's or early 50's. His hair was graying and tied with a ribbon at the back. He wore a long, dark coat. And on his cloak, a Templar cross was embroidered. He was clearly frustrated with whatever mechanism he was trying to activate.

"Master Bailie," said one of the guards. "Perhaps we were wrong. Perhaps this one is just a dud."

Kahente's eyes widened. This must've been Roger Bailie. She'd heard much about him from her other targets. He was the governor's second in command. After the governor had been gone for so long, Bailie was dubbed the unofficial leader of their operation. If Kahente could take him out, the others should be easy prey. Bailie turned to the guard that spoke.

"I'm not going to give up!" he said. “After all of our hard work, after everything we've done to make this operation possible, I'm determined to see this through! Is that clear?" The guard nervously nodded.

"Good," said Bailie. He started to turn back to the pedestal, but suddenly he stopped. Kahente felt her heart skip a beat as she realized that he was staring right at her hiding spot. She pressed herself against the rock, hoping he didn't actually see her. However, that hope was dashed when she heard a gunshot and saw a bullet whiz past.

"Come on out, Assassin!" said Bailie.

Kahente cursed under her breath and cautiously stepped into view. Two guards raised their bayonets while the other two drew their swords. Bailie holstered his smoking pistol and grabbed a nearby musket.

"You've been a real pain in my side," he said to Kahente, who just stared at her opponent.

"Would you prefer if I drove my blade into your other side, then?" she asked with a slight smirk.

Bailie just frowned. "Kill her!" he yelled at his men. Kahente grabbed her tomahawk just in time to counter the first attack. She split the man's head open with her blade and turned to face the others. The other swordsman rushed at her. Her managed to nick her shoulder, but she kept fighting.

Kahente saw the two marksmen aiming their guns. She quickly threw the swordsman off balance, grabbed him, and used him as a shield right as the shots were fired. Kahente dropped the corpse and charged at the gunmen. She had a bit more difficulty with fighting them, as she wasn't used to fighting off bayonets. The guards managed to inflict some minor damage on her, though she hurt them more. Kahente broke away from her opponents and was about to charge again, when suddenly she felt something hit her hard in the back of the head.

Her vision spun and blurred as she dizzily fell to the ground. The lights from the structures lit up as her flesh got closer to it. She managed to make out the form of Bailie standing over her with his rifle. She could tell by the way he was holding it that he had hit her with the end of the gun. Suddenly, he pulled out a dagger and slowly pushed it into Kahente's side. Kahente winced in pain.

"Just for good measure," said Bailie.

He looked at the blue glow beneath her. He seemed to ponder something, and then he smiled. He lifted her up and dragged her over to the pedestal. Kahente wanted to struggle, but she'd already lost a lot of blood. She was too weak to fight back. Bailie grabbed her arm and started pulling it towards the top of the pedestal. The square structure on its top started glowing intensely. And then, her hand touched its surface. Kahente felt a weird tingling in her arm as the pedestal shined bright. There was a sort of humming sound coming from within the wall, which also started glowing. Suddenly, with a loud creak, the wall began to lift up, revealing the room beyond. Bailie smiled.

"Finally," he said. He motioned for the two guards to follow. They all entered the temple, dragging Kahente along with them.

The entire room was lined with the same bizarre patterns, which were glowing brightly. The room was relatively large and on the other side sat a large, rectangular structure. Bailie dropped Kahente, who fell to the ground with a painful thud, and walked over to it. He stared at the glowing structure. Long tubes jutted out from its sides. Their light pulsed like blood through veins. On top of the structure, a golden cloth was laid out. Stone slabs held it in place. Bailie tried to remove it, but to no avail. Frustrated, he tried to grab the cloth itself.

The cloth shined bright. The tubes pulsed faster. And then suddenly, a light shined from behind the structure. The light pulsed and thrashed for a moment, until it eventually settled into a visible shape. Everyone, even Kahente, stared in awe at it. The light formed the shape of a man. He wore long flowing robes and strange armor. Though his shape was human, he appeared to be formed out of light. His image stuttered and glitched in a few areas.

"Who... Who are you?" asked Bailie. The man looked at him. There was a beeping noise coming from within the walls. Eventually, the figure spoke.

"I am a digital construct of Hah-gweh-di-yu," he said. "If you are viewing this, it means that my organic counterpart is not currently available to assist you. However, I am capable of aiding you if you so need."

The Templars and Kahente stared. What was it talking about? What did it mean?

"I... I wish to gain access to the Shroud," said Bailie. The beeping sounded again.

"I am sorry," said Hah-gweh-di-yu. "Access to the Shroud's interface is only permitted to authorized personnel. It is off limits to any unrecognized individuals."

"What? No! You must give it to me! I've sacrificed so much to get here! You can't just keep the Shroud's power from me!"

"Access to the Shroud's power cores are off limits to unauthorized personnel."

"What? Do you hear what I'm saying? The Shroud is mine!"

"You are not listed under any of my records of authorized personnel."

Bailie was beginning to get mad. "Listen here!" he said. "You are going to give me the Shroud so that I may use its power to lord over every pathetic, inferior being on this land! Is that clear?"

The beeping started again. "Are you wishing to perform an emergency procedure to eliminate the area's genetic inferiorities?" asked Hah-gweh-di-yu.

Bailie balled his hands into fists. "I don't care what you do! If I can access the Shroud, than do it!" he yelled. Suddenly, the cloth began to shine.

"Very well," said Hah-gweh-di-yu. "Please identify the genetic structure that you would like to be located and eradicated within the island's range."

Bailie slammed his fist onto the Shroud. "For God's sake, just give me the Shroud!" he yelled. Suddenly, the Shroud's glow intensified. Bailie felt a tingling in his arm. He tried to pull away, but he found that he was no longer able to move his body.

"Genetic structure cataloged," said Hah-gweh-di-yu. "Any organism on the island with similar genetic makeup will be incinerated."

Suddenly, a slit opened up in the structure. A blinding light shined from within. Then, a ray of light shot out from within it. It aimed itself straight at Bailie. His skin seemed to crack as the light shined through him. His eyes lost all color and his mouth glowed from within. Then, in a flash, his entire body disintegrated. Not a single trace was left of him. The others stared in terrified awe. Then, more rays of light shot out, hitting all three of them. The guards met the same fate as their master.

Kahente expected the end to come, but nothing happened. She suddenly felt all of her energy flowing back into her. She sat up and looked at the wound in her side. The same light shined from within her flesh. But instead of burning it, it seemed to mend it. Kahente watched in awe as all of her wounds were healed in a matter of seconds. She stood up, confused as to why this was occurring. The structure began to hum loudly. More slits opened in the stone. The sound of thunder roared from within it as an enormous ball of crackling light formed around the structure.

It grew larger and larger, faster and faster. Kahente turned on her heels and started sprinting towards the exit. She glanced behind her and noticed the light expanding towards her. Just as she reached the exit, the wall of light passed over her and speedily grew across the forest. Kahente watched as the dome covered the land and engulfed the sky. Suddenly, she saw a flash of light shine over the horizon, about a mile north of where she was. Kahente's heart sank as she realized that the flash came directly from where the colony was. Without as second thought, Kahente began her sprint through the forest.

------------

Kahente stared at the horrifying sight. The entire colony had been leveled. Some of the houses were still in the process of burning away. The dome of light had already disappeared by then, but its destruction still showed. Kahente looked around whatever rubble remained, but she found no trace of anybody. She didn't want to believe it. These people that had been her friends, these people that she swore to protect, they were all gone. They met the same fate as Bailie and his Templars. Kahente felt tears swell in her eyes.

She promised. She promised that she'd bring them safety, and she failed to keep her promise. She stood in the middle of what remained of the colony, numb to everything but her own sadness, and she watched as the last traces of the colony disappeared. Everyone was gone, dead. Ananias, Eleanor, even little Virginia. All these people that cared for her had just died in the worst imaginable way. And she couldn't stop it. Kahente fell to her knees as the pain of her loss hit her. Tears fell down her face.

She tried to rationalize why something like this would happen. She thought back to her encounter in the temple. The figure that called himself Hah-gweh-di-yu spoke strange words, but Kahente picked up a few things he said. It seemed like he intended to destroy anyone on the island that was the same as Bailie. Could that have meant the English people? After all, it didn't kill Kahente, in fact it healed her, and all the Natives she passed on her way back seemed unharmed as well.

That must've been it. She couldn't think of any other explanation. She balled her fists, now getting angry. They didn't deserve to go like that. No one does. Kahente then decided that she wasn't going to let anyone else die like that. She needed to warn any other people who came to this land. She needed to let them know that this land was only welcome to Croatoan people. She quickly stood and looked around. She saw a structure that was still standing somehow. It was a small post of a fence. Kahente jogged over to it.

She flicked out her right hidden blade and started carving into the post. Once she finished, the carvings formed a single word: “Croatoan”.

Kahente tried doing the same to a nearby tree, but she only managed to carve the first three letters of the same word before the sadness overtook her again. She decided that what she carved was enough and started to walk back to the shoreline with tears in her eyes.

Once there, she pulled her canoe from its hiding place, dragged it to the water, and hopped in. With one last look at the island, Kahente started rowing. As the island shrank in the distance, Kahente rowed alone with her thoughts. She looked up at the sky. The dark clouds filled the blue void. Kahente sat in silence as they rolled across the sky. She saw double helixes beginning to form and swirl. A sea of 1's and 0's flowed through the void. She felt unbelievably sick as the visor lifted off of her head. Ava looked around the room. Her head felt like it was going to explode. Her vision was blurry.

She expected to hear the voice on the speaker behind her, but oddly enough, it didn't come. What she heard instead was the sound of guns firing and people shouting at each other. She wanted to look around, but she felt too weak. Her head was spinning. Suddenly, Ava heard someone outside the room say, "In here!" She heard the door locks being fiddled with, and within moments, the door flung open.

Someone rushed up behind her and cut the ropes off of her wrists. Ava started falling forward, unable to keep herself upright. The person who untied her quickly caught her and carefully removed the Animus from her head and placed it on the ground. The person moved in front of her. Through her blurring vision, Ava made out the shape of her friend, Ben. He had on a jacket and a white hood. A gun was holstered on his belt. "Ava!" he said. "Are you okay?" Ava wanted to respond, but all she could let out was a moan. She felt like she was going to vomit.

"Oh God," said Ben as he started cutting through the ropes on her ankles.

"Don't worry. We're gonna get you out of here,” was the last thing Ava heard Ben say before she blacked out entirely.

Description
January 18, 1589; Roanoke Island

The man stumbled through the snowy woods. He was breathing heavily, trying desperately to escape the hooded woman chasing him in the treetops. Kahente's golden eyes stayed fixed on her target. His fear made him sloppy, and an easy target. The man turned to look back at her, but unfortunately for him, this caused him to trip on a sheet of ice. He fell face-first into the snow. He tried to get up, but Kahente landed on his back and pinned him before he could.

She pulled out a wheellock pistol that she had stolen earlier and held it at point-blank range to the back of the man's head. The man squirmed, but Kahente held him down.

"Where is it?" she demanded to know.

"I don't know what you mean!" said the man, the fear unhidden from his voice. Kahente tapped his head with the barrel of her gun.

"You can either tell me where your brothers are excavating or I can open your skull so that the wolves may feast on your brain," she said. "So which is it?"

"Alright! Alright! The temple is located about a mile south of the colony!"

"How do I know it is the truth you speak?"

"It's the truth, I swear! Just let me go!"

Satisfied, Kahente withdrew her pistol and stood. "Thank you," she said.

She turned to leave. The man clumsily got up. He stared and Kahente, and then noticed a pointed rock in the snow. He snatched it up and charged at Kahente with a yell. Kahente rolled her eyes, raised her gun and turned to shoot the man between the eyes.

"You Templars never learn, do you?" she said as the man fell into a bloody heap on the ground. Kahente turned to return to the colony.

------------

"What do you mean you'll be leaving soon?" Eleanor asked Kahente. Kahente looked at her friend.

"If all goes well, my mission will be completed by tonight, and I will have to leave once it is done," she said.

"But dear, you've done so much for the colony in the past five months! You rid us of those mad lunatics that made us miserable. You helped us find food and water. You can't leave so soon!" The two looked sadly at each other.

"You must believe me when I tell you that I wish I could stay," said Kahente. "But I must return to my Brotherhood on the mainland. And once I get there, I will arrange for a rescue crew to come and get you all."

"You promise?'

"I promise."

The two stared at each other for a moment. Eventually, Eleanor nodded. "Alright," she said. "We will all be sad to see you go, Kahente, but we won't keep you from doing what you must." The two smiled at each other and hugged.

"Now," said Kahente once they broke apart. "I must set out. I must finish my mission here, and once I do, you'll all finally be free of those monsters' tyranny." Eleanor nodded. The two said their goodbyes, and then Kahente left the colony.

------------

After a short hike through the woods, and after passing by a few local Natives for directions, Kahente finally managed to locate the Templar excavation site. About a dozen guards were patrolling around the outside of a large cave. Kahente noticed how unfocused they all seemed, and she used that to her advantage. She had the whole area cleared in a matter of minutes. After wiping the blood off of her blades, she cautiously entered the cave.

It was still freezing cold in the cave, but at least there was no snow to hinder Kahente's progress. She slowly made her way through the caverns, ducking for cover whenever she heard the slightest sound. As she continued, she noticed the cave getting wider and smoother. Within the rock walls were bizarre structures that looked like they may have once been a supportive beam. Strange, bright blue light shined from within the bizarre patterns that were carved into the structures. Kahente raised her hand up to one. The glow intensified the closer it got. She waved her hand side to side, and the glow followed its motion.

Kahente pulled her hand away. She figured that these must be Precursor relics. She'd heard plenty of stories about these temples, but this was the first time she'd ever laid her eyes on one. If it was this bizarre already, she couldn't imagine what awaited in the depths of the caverns. She carried on.

Soon, Kahente began to hear voices, and they were coming from close by. She slowed her pace. Eventually, she saw them. Five Templars were standing in front of a large wall that gave off the same blue glow as the other structures. The one in the middle was trying to fiddle with a pedestal that stood in front of the wall.

"Why won't you open?" he yelled, as if expecting an answer. Kahente ducked behind a rock formation and got a better look at the man.

He was old, probably in his late 40's or early 50's. His hair was graying and tied with a ribbon at the back. He wore a long, dark coat. And on his cloak, a Templar cross was embroidered. He was clearly frustrated with whatever mechanism he was trying to activate.

"Master Bailie," said one of the guards. "Perhaps we were wrong. Perhaps this one is just a dud."

Kahente's eyes widened. This must've been Roger Bailie. She'd heard much about him from her other targets. He was the governor's second in command. After the governor had been gone for so long, Bailie was dubbed the unofficial leader of their operation. If Kahente could take him out, the others should be easy prey. Bailie turned to the guard that spoke.

"I'm not going to give up!" he said. “After all of our hard work, after everything we've done to make this operation possible, I'm determined to see this through! Is that clear?" The guard nervously nodded.

"Good," said Bailie. He started to turn back to the pedestal, but suddenly he stopped. Kahente felt her heart skip a beat as she realized that he was staring right at her hiding spot. She pressed herself against the rock, hoping he didn't actually see her. However, that hope was dashed when she heard a gunshot and saw a bullet whiz past.

"Come on out, Assassin!" said Bailie.

Kahente cursed under her breath and cautiously stepped into view. Two guards raised their bayonets while the other two drew their swords. Bailie holstered his smoking pistol and grabbed a nearby musket.

"You've been a real pain in my side," he said to Kahente, who just stared at her opponent.

"Would you prefer if I drove my blade into your other side, then?" she asked with a slight smirk.

Bailie just frowned. "Kill her!" he yelled at his men. Kahente grabbed her tomahawk just in time to counter the first attack. She split the man's head open with her blade and turned to face the others. The other swordsman rushed at her. Her managed to nick her shoulder, but she kept fighting.

Kahente saw the two marksmen aiming their guns. She quickly threw the swordsman off balance, grabbed him, and used him as a shield right as the shots were fired. Kahente dropped the corpse and charged at the gunmen. She had a bit more difficulty with fighting them, as she wasn't used to fighting off bayonets. The guards managed to inflict some minor damage on her, though she hurt them more. Kahente broke away from her opponents and was about to charge again, when suddenly she felt something hit her hard in the back of the head.

Her vision spun and blurred as she dizzily fell to the ground. The lights from the structures lit up as her flesh got closer to it. She managed to make out the form of Bailie standing over her with his rifle. She could tell by the way he was holding it that he had hit her with the end of the gun. Suddenly, he pulled out a dagger and slowly pushed it into Kahente's side. Kahente winced in pain.

"Just for good measure," said Bailie.

He looked at the blue glow beneath her. He seemed to ponder something, and then he smiled. He lifted her up and dragged her over to the pedestal. Kahente wanted to struggle, but she'd already lost a lot of blood. She was too weak to fight back. Bailie grabbed her arm and started pulling it towards the top of the pedestal. The square structure on its top started glowing intensely. And then, her hand touched its surface. Kahente felt a weird tingling in her arm as the pedestal shined bright. There was a sort of humming sound coming from within the wall, which also started glowing. Suddenly, with a loud creak, the wall began to lift up, revealing the room beyond. Bailie smiled.

"Finally," he said. He motioned for the two guards to follow. They all entered the temple, dragging Kahente along with them.

The entire room was lined with the same bizarre patterns, which were glowing brightly. The room was relatively large and on the other side sat a large, rectangular structure. Bailie dropped Kahente, who fell to the ground with a painful thud, and walked over to it. He stared at the glowing structure. Long tubes jutted out from its sides. Their light pulsed like blood through veins. On top of the structure, a golden cloth was laid out. Stone slabs held it in place. Bailie tried to remove it, but to no avail. Frustrated, he tried to grab the cloth itself.

The cloth shined bright. The tubes pulsed faster. And then suddenly, a light shined from behind the structure. The light pulsed and thrashed for a moment, until it eventually settled into a visible shape. Everyone, even Kahente, stared in awe at it. The light formed the shape of a man. He wore long flowing robes and strange armor. Though his shape was human, he appeared to be formed out of light. His image stuttered and glitched in a few areas.

"Who... Who are you?" asked Bailie. The man looked at him. There was a beeping noise coming from within the walls. Eventually, the figure spoke.

"I am a digital construct of Hah-gweh-di-yu," he said. "If you are viewing this, it means that my organic counterpart is not currently available to assist you. However, I am capable of aiding you if you so need."

The Templars and Kahente stared. What was it talking about? What did it mean?

"I... I wish to gain access to the Shroud," said Bailie. The beeping sounded again.

"I am sorry," said Hah-gweh-di-yu. "Access to the Shroud's interface is only permitted to authorized personnel. It is off limits to any unrecognized individuals."

"What? No! You must give it to me! I've sacrificed so much to get here! You can't just keep the Shroud's power from me!"

"Access to the Shroud's power cores are off limits to unauthorized personnel."

"What? Do you hear what I'm saying? The Shroud is mine!"

"You are not listed under any of my records of authorized personnel."

Bailie was beginning to get mad. "Listen here!" he said. "You are going to give me the Shroud so that I may use its power to lord over every pathetic, inferior being on this land! Is that clear?"

The beeping started again. "Are you wishing to perform an emergency procedure to eliminate the area's genetic inferiorities?" asked Hah-gweh-di-yu.

Bailie balled his hands into fists. "I don't care what you do! If I can access the Shroud, than do it!" he yelled. Suddenly, the cloth began to shine.

"Very well," said Hah-gweh-di-yu. "Please identify the genetic structure that you would like to be located and eradicated within the island's range."

Bailie slammed his fist onto the Shroud. "For God's sake, just give me the Shroud!" he yelled. Suddenly, the Shroud's glow intensified. Bailie felt a tingling in his arm. He tried to pull away, but he found that he was no longer able to move his body.

"Genetic structure cataloged," said Hah-gweh-di-yu. "Any organism on the island with similar genetic makeup will be incinerated."

Suddenly, a slit opened up in the structure. A blinding light shined from within. Then, a ray of light shot out from within it. It aimed itself straight at Bailie. His skin seemed to crack as the light shined through him. His eyes lost all color and his mouth glowed from within. Then, in a flash, his entire body disintegrated. Not a single trace was left of him. The others stared in terrified awe. Then, more rays of light shot out, hitting all three of them. The guards met the same fate as their master.

Kahente expected the end to come, but nothing happened. She suddenly felt all of her energy flowing back into her. She sat up and looked at the wound in her side. The same light shined from within her flesh. But instead of burning it, it seemed to mend it. Kahente watched in awe as all of her wounds were healed in a matter of seconds. She stood up, confused as to why this was occurring. The structure began to hum loudly. More slits opened in the stone. The sound of thunder roared from within it as an enormous ball of crackling light formed around the structure.

It grew larger and larger, faster and faster. Kahente turned on her heels and started sprinting towards the exit. She glanced behind her and noticed the light expanding towards her. Just as she reached the exit, the wall of light passed over her and speedily grew across the forest. Kahente watched as the dome covered the land and engulfed the sky. Suddenly, she saw a flash of light shine over the horizon, about a mile north of where she was. Kahente's heart sank as she realized that the flash came directly from where the colony was. Without as second thought, Kahente began her sprint through the forest.

------------

Kahente stared at the horrifying sight. The entire colony had been leveled. Some of the houses were still in the process of burning away. The dome of light had already disappeared by then, but its destruction still showed. Kahente looked around whatever rubble remained, but she found no trace of anybody. She didn't want to believe it. These people that had been her friends, these people that she swore to protect, they were all gone. They met the same fate as Bailie and his Templars. Kahente felt tears swell in her eyes.

She promised. She promised that she'd bring them safety, and she failed to keep her promise. She stood in the middle of what remained of the colony, numb to everything but her own sadness, and she watched as the last traces of the colony disappeared. Everyone was gone, dead. Ananias, Eleanor, even little Virginia. All these people that cared for her had just died in the worst imaginable way. And she couldn't stop it. Kahente fell to her knees as the pain of her loss hit her. Tears fell down her face.

She tried to rationalize why something like this would happen. She thought back to her encounter in the temple. The figure that called himself Hah-gweh-di-yu spoke strange words, but Kahente picked up a few things he said. It seemed like he intended to destroy anyone on the island that was the same as Bailie. Could that have meant the English people? After all, it didn't kill Kahente, in fact it healed her, and all the Natives she passed on her way back seemed unharmed as well.

That must've been it. She couldn't think of any other explanation. She balled her fists, now getting angry. They didn't deserve to go like that. No one does. Kahente then decided that she wasn't going to let anyone else die like that. She needed to warn any other people who came to this land. She needed to let them know that this land was only welcome to Croatoan people. She quickly stood and looked around. She saw a structure that was still standing somehow. It was a small post of a fence. Kahente jogged over to it.

She flicked out her right hidden blade and started carving into the post. Once she finished, the carvings formed a single word: “Croatoan”.

Kahente tried doing the same to a nearby tree, but she only managed to carve the first three letters of the same word before the sadness overtook her again. She decided that what she carved was enough and started to walk back to the shoreline with tears in her eyes.

Once there, she pulled her canoe from its hiding place, dragged it to the water, and hopped in. With one last look at the island, Kahente started rowing. As the island shrank in the distance, Kahente rowed alone with her thoughts. She looked up at the sky. The dark clouds filled the blue void. Kahente sat in silence as they rolled across the sky. She saw double helixes beginning to form and swirl. A sea of 1's and 0's flowed through the void. She felt unbelievably sick as the visor lifted off of her head. Ava looked around the room. Her head felt like it was going to explode. Her vision was blurry.

She expected to hear the voice on the speaker behind her, but oddly enough, it didn't come. What she heard instead was the sound of guns firing and people shouting at each other. She wanted to look around, but she felt too weak. Her head was spinning. Suddenly, Ava heard someone outside the room say, "In here!" She heard the door locks being fiddled with, and within moments, the door flung open.

Someone rushed up behind her and cut the ropes off of her wrists. Ava started falling forward, unable to keep herself upright. The person who untied her quickly caught her and carefully removed the Animus from her head and placed it on the ground. The person moved in front of her. Through her blurring vision, Ava made out the shape of her friend, Ben. He had on a jacket and a white hood. A gun was holstered on his belt. "Ava!" he said. "Are you okay?" Ava wanted to respond, but all she could let out was a moan. She felt like she was going to vomit.

"Oh God," said Ben as he started cutting through the ropes on her ankles.

"Don't worry. We're gonna get you out of here,” was the last thing Ava heard Ben say before she blacked out entirely.