Took this over from Christian Knight hope I do it, and him, Justice...

Assassin's Creed: Defying the Beasts

"Monsters will always exist. There's one inside each of us. But an angel lives there, too. There is no more important agenda than figuring out how to slay one and nurture the other"-Jacqueline Novogratz

I

Prologue-England, 1188

The moon is to rise soon over the twilight horizon.

Rebecca watches with a mixture of dread, anticipation and excitement. She sits on a stone wall within the courtyard of the small castle as she waits for the evening to shift into night. She shivers in the agonizing slowness. She has waited years for this moment to arrive. Today is her sixteenth birthday, the day when all nobles inherit the power of the moon, when she takes her place among the strong.

She runs a hand through her hazel colored hair while her azure eyes searches for the sign of the mighty ball of light circling the Earth. For centuries, nobles, magicians and wise men of the world have placed a lot of time and resources into finding the secret of the wolf people. What is it that changes them into their shapes? Why does it only occur when the moon is full? Why is only a certain group of humans given this gift and most importantly, why?

These were questions that Rebecca's father has asked but went to the grave without finding an answer for any of them.

Rebecca suddenly bites down hard on her lips as she looks down, willing the tears to go away. Her father died not too long ago, he was killed when the northern part of England was attacked by sea raiders, a fight that called him to duty as the baron of their fief. Yet that does not comfort Rebecca one bit, she would much prefer to have her father back rather than the supposed honor and glory that he won for the Wynn family.

She thinks back to when he was home, when he was just a father and not a knight. He bounced her on his knee, gave her rides when he was in his second skin and was the one who told her not to fear the change, with the change comes power; with power she can help forge the realm into a better world.

Her fists tighten at this. Despite being a noble, a master swordsman, and a son of the moon, that did not prevent his downfall which left her with a grieving mother and a broken home. She remembers how she waited, for days, weeks, months and eventually years for her father to return. Instead, her father's friend from France, Robert de Sablé, was the one to walk through the main archway and told the Wynn family that Liam Wynn isn't coming home. He will never be coming home.

Rebecca hops from her perch and walks to the stables in an attempt to escape her misery. Within the small wooden building the smell of hay and horse feces is enough to draw her mind from that terrible memory. She walks up to one pen where her personal horse, Bell, is kept.

The horse is lying in the corner, but Rebecca clicks her tongue and the mare stands when she hears the familiar command. The horse turns to face Rebecca, but then her eyes bulge and she releases a mighty neigh as she backs into the corner of the stall.

Rebecca looks over her shoulder and searches for whatever it is that has frightened her steed. She doesn't know how long it took her to realize it is she who is scaring the animal. Rebecca frowns when she arrived at the conclusion, so she walks to the pen next to Bell's and gets the horse's attention. The same action occurred, the animal obeyed, but when it saw Rebecca, it releases a sound almost identical to that of a human scream before it too back itself into the corner farthest away from Rebecca.

The young noblewoman places her head against the wooden rail and sighs. It isn't obvious to her, but her body is starting to take on the change, she is still a human girl, but the animals are now seeing her as a predatory beast.

She looks back into the first pen and gazes at her frighten mare who releases another blood chilling whine. Seeing the faithful creature now cowering before her brings back the same old heartache. Shaking her head slightly, Rebecca turns and leaves the stables.

She passes the stable boy, Jonathan, who bows to her before rushing into the building, no doubt going to calm the startled beasts within.

Rebecca feels resentment rise within her at the thought of the boy taking care of her horse. But what can she do when she is the source of disturbance? She has to wait until morning before making amends to Bell.

She returns to the same stone wall, but instead of sitting on top of it, she places her back against it and slides down, giving no concern for her dress which will no doubt become dirty.

Doesn't matter, she thinks to herself, I'm going to have to take this off soon anyway.

At the thought she looks back into the sky and sees that the fading sun is almost gone and she is now able to see the first hints of the stars revealing themselves. She should head for the forest soon if she wishes to be out of the keep before she-

Her thoughts are interrupted when she hears one of the guards, Keith, shout, "Who goes there?"

Curious, Rebecca rises back to her feet and looks to see what Keith is shouting about. The young guard is standing at the large oaken door that blocks the outside from entering the courtyard. Keith is peering through a hatch as he talks to whoever it is that is on the other side.

She doesn't hear a response, but Keith turns around quickly and starts unlocking the gate. He removes the chain and the large bar keeping the massive door locked and signal for another sentry to come to his aid. Together, the two men grab the massive iron rings on each door and pulls. Slowly, the double doors are forced open and entering through the large entryway is a horse with a knight on its back.

The giant stallion is pure black while the knight is wearing a full set of shining armor. From head to toe the rider is covered in the cold steel cocoon and the limbs are wrapped within iron chain mail. The person wears a pure white cloth with a red cross covering the front while a similarly colored cape flutters from behind. A sword swings from the belt along with a small dagger and pouches attached. The rider's face is covered by a large helmet with small eye holes as the only thing allowing the person to see out into the world.

The knight rides into the yard but pulls the reigns, causing the horse to come to a halt as the rider turns to peer down at Rebecca.

The young noble woman immediately feels herself stiffens and she places malice into her eyes, warning the knight to watch where the eyes wander.

The knight chuckles before swinging off the steed and says with a French accent as he pulls his helmet off, "That's some way to greet an old friend."

Rebecca gasps as she identifies the voice but waits until the person removes the helmet so she is certain her suspicion is correct. The helmet is removed and standing before her is a bald man with hard set features with dark eyes and a hawk like nose, who is currently smiling at the girl.

Rebecca rushes forward and cries, "Uncle Robert!"

Robert de Sablé opens his arms and welcomes the hug from Rebecca and holds her close. Though he isn't related by blood, Rebecca has always seen the man as a part of the family, especially since he and her father were close friends.

The French knight squeezes Rebecca lightly before holding her back as he takes in her features with a caring smile, "my, my, young Rebecca, you look more beautiful than last I saw of you."

Rebecca blushes at the compliment and looks down as she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. True, many people have found her striking and a fair share of young boys have come asking for her hand in marriage, but her mother has yet to inform her if she approves of any of the lot.

Hoping to drive the conversation away from her, she asks, "What are you doing here uncle?"

Robert's features become grim as if he is attending a funeral. He wraps an arm around Rebecca's shoulders, turns her around to face the keep and pushes her towards the large building as he says, "lets discuss this with your mother, it is awfully big and tragic news that I must inform her of-"

"Inform me of what Sablé?"

Both Robert and Rebecca turn their heads to see Rebecca's mother approaching from the stables, ignoring the whines of the horses as she passes. She has forgone her usual elegant clothes and is now dressed in plain garments that give her the appearance of a commoner. Rebecca curses lightly; she should have worn similar clothing so it would be easier for her to change.

Robert does not notice the girl's distress as he bows his head, "Ah, lovely Diana, your beauty has yet to be swayed by the hourglass of time."

"Oh stop it you old snake charmer," the Baroness orders, but a light bit of color reaches her cheeks at the words before she continues, "what is this tragic news you bare? And be quick about it," she adds as she glances at Rebecca before looking up at the darkening sky. The same feeling of anxiety starts to circulate within the girl once more as she trembles a bit.

Sablé also notices as his arm detects the light tremors coming from Rebecca before saying, "Perhaps we can wait till morning, as I understand it, tonight is a special night for Rebecca and it should not be disturbed."

Rebecca is already shaking her head and saying, "No uncle Robert, please, tell us what news you bring, we all know I will be going mad if you don't tell me."

Robert smirks, "Maybe, but when you are in your second skin, your mind will become more relaxed and maybe a bit more careless like you're drunk-"

"She has never been drunk before Sablé," Lady Diana puts in before giving her daughter a questioning look, "or so I hope."

Rebecca responds with a mischievous smile to mess with her mother.

Diana ignores the look before glancing back at Sablé, "Well?" she demands.

Sablé looks between the two ladies before giving a sigh and says, "The Muslim armies in the east, under the command of Sultan Saladin, have captured Jerusalem."

Diana gasps and Rebecca visibly shake at the words. Jerusalem? In the hands of their enemy?

The Baroness stares at Sablé in mute shock before asking, "Does this mean…"

Sablé nods his head, "The kingdoms of Europe are calling for another crusade, the third great crusade in history I believe."

Diana seems unsteady on her feet, so Sablé goes to her and wraps his arms around her in a soothing manner. Rebecca feels a little defensive at this, Sablé may be viewed as an uncle, but he has no relation to the family by kin, and she doesn't feel comfortable with the idea of her mother being courted.

"It will be alright," Sablé said softly, "King Richard is a strong leader; this little scuffle will last for probably a month, a year at most."

Diana's lips trembles before asking, "But King Richard will demand that at least one wolf from each Keep must participate, that is the law when we march to war."

Rebecca heart stops at these words. At least one wolf? She and mother are the only nobles within the keep which means…Mother isn't fit for battle, both in her human and wolf skin. This leads only one other option…

Sablé cuddles her for a bit, "I know," he replies, "but she has her father's blood, I can see the fire in her eyes, I will-"

"No," Diana says stubbornly, "She will not go," she tries to make a strong stance, but her weak state won't allow it.

Sablé sighs before taking her back into his embrace, "You can defy the orders of the king-"

"Then take her with you," Diana starts to plead, "Take her to France and-"

"France too is marching to war," he tells her solemnly, "and we have the same laws as England do when it comes to battle."

Diana looks around desperately as if a solution will appear before her, but Rebecca knows there's only one way out of this.

"Mother," Rebecca says, feeling her throat going dry, "I…I will go-"

"No," her mother said, "I've already lost your father to savages; I won't lose you in the same manner."

Sablé tries to step in, "Diana, the Muslims aren't savages, they have a sense of honor and-"

"I'm not talking about them," Diana snaps in a wolfish manner, "I'm talking about the white demons that lives within the holy lands."

Sablé tries to keep a straight face, but Rebecca can see he is trying to prevent himself from smiling, "Oh Diana, that's just a myth-"

"It is not!" Diana roars and turns to face Sablé, "We've both lost families during that time Sablé, including your father, whose bodies were found with their very life blood sucked out of them."

Sablé eyes flash yellow in malice before he closes them and breaths calmly. Rebecca shivers and looks up at the sky; it's almost time.

"Diana," the knight tries once more, "This is a holy war, one that your grandchildren and great grandchildren will learn and grow off of. Imagine the pride when your daughter is hailed as one of its conquering heroes."

"Why her," Diana snarls, "Why are you against me and trying to convince me to release my daughter to attend a slaughter?"

Sablé is quite as he looks away. Rebecca feels a stunning blow hit her, her uncle is trying to get her to join for his own selfish reasons? Why?

Sablé must have seen the look on Rebecca's face for he says quickly, "No Rebecca, I merely wish to find a place for you among our order."

Rebecca's jaw drops upon hearing the words.

"Impossible," Diana hisses, "The order is made up of men and only men, she is a woman and is too young to even be considered joining."

Sablé bows his head towards her, "true for now Diana, but the whole world is about to change as I speak, and I wish Rebecca to be there with me when it does," he switches his gaze to Rebecca, "you have your father's strength, I can see it."

She is shock when he goes down on a knee and takes her hand as he asks, "Please join our cause Rebecca, join the Templars, help us to make a better world, help us to finish your father's work."

Rebecca already feels her eyes becoming misty at the mention of her father and she looks down in thoughtfulness. She loves her mother, but, in an odd sense, even though he is dead, it has always been her father she has been trying to make proud. Would he be happy if he was here? He would be sad that she had made her mother upset, but she remembers the pride she saw in his eyes when she first learned how to use a sword, so surely he would smile at her decision would he?

Rebecca takes a deep breath before saying, "Alright, if they will accept woman now…than I will join the Templars."

In the corner of her vision she sees her mother releasing a tired exhale before looking away from her daughter. She is so much like her father; Diana knew once her mind is made up, there will be nothing that can stop her.

Sablé however is smiling broadly as he stands and says, "Excellent, I shall inform the king that the house of Wynn now has a champion."

Rebecca smiles back, but gasp and double over. She feels suddenly sick as her gut twists into various and complex knots.

"Rebecca?" her mother questions as she lowers her head to be leveled with her hunched daughter, "what is the matter?"

"It's the moon," Sablé says as he takes Rebecca's shoulder and gives a reassuring squeeze, "don't worry Rebecca, it's perfectly natural," he then looks to Diana, "perhaps we should depart to the woods now."

Diana nods her head briskly as she leads the way, casting concern looks over her shoulder at her pained daughter.

Sablé bends and picks Rebecca up and carries her after her mother. They pass by the sentries who watches the girl as if she is throwing a fit, but they knew what was happening to her. They exit the keep and heads to the nearby woods...

Sablé bends and picks Rebecca up and carries her after her mother. They pass by the sentries who watches the girl as if she is throwing a fit, but they knew what was happening to her. They exit the keep and heads to the nearby woodland just a few yards away across a grassy expanse of land.

As they stroll, Rebecca continues to writher in pain, her insides feels like they are turning inside out, her bones suddenly feels like they're all breaking at once and her mouth starts to throb as if she has a tooth ache on every single one of her canines.

"What's wrong with me," she gasps in fear as she wraps her arms around Sablé's neck for support and reassurance.

"It's all normal," Sablé sooths, "the first change is always the hardest to bear, for tonight your body is rearranging itself in preparation for the coming of your second skin."

This doesn't exactly comfort Rebecca as she groans. She feels like she has a fever as sweat breaks upon her forehead before they finally reach the tree line.

Diana searches and sniffs the area before giving a nod that they are alone.

Sablé carefully places Rebecca on the grass floor as he says; "Now you need to remove your clothes, less you wish to destroy them when you change."

Rebecca flushes in humiliation as she looks at Sablé, "I think I'll just destroy my clothes."

Sablé chuckles as he stands, "Will it be more preferable if your mother and I give you some privacy?"

Rebecca is able to give a weak smile in return as she nods in confirmation, "that would be nice."

Sablé turns around and places an arm around her mother's shoulder, steering the woman to a cluster of trees that will block their view of Rebecca.

Rebecca lifts her head up and looks around before she quickly removes her garments. The wind nips and chills her bare skin as she lays on her dress and watches the skies. Sure enough, breaking from cloud cover rises the moon.

Her breath is caught as she stares at it. She doesn't know why, but the white orb suddenly looks closer, bigger and more beautiful then she has ever seen before. Her body breaks out in uncontrollable spasms, but she focus on the moon in an attempt to ward off the incoming pain.

Suddenly a searing pain lashes down her backside and she gives a yelp as she goes rigid in an attempt to ease the pain. However the agony remains, worse, it spreads throughout the rest of her body. Her fingers and toes clench and unclench as the spasms hit and her whole body starts to shake. She feels her nose break, her teeth popping out of her gums and something sharp takes their place. She feels her chest suddenly collapses and she gasps as the air is suddenly knocked out of her system. Her eyes burn as if they are wet with tears and her whole body suddenly becomes itchy as if she is being assaulted by millions of biting insects. She actually swaps at her skin, but instead of feeling bugs or her skin, she instead feels fur. Rebecca feels as if she is losing her sanity so she shuts her eyes tight and starts praying, begging for an end her suffering.

She prays until finally it stops. The torture is over, but her body feels strange, almost as if it's sore. She releases a small moan as she opens her eyes. The full moon looks down on her like a massive eye, she is suddenly able to make out better details and it appears so much closer than she could ever imagine. She reaches up, hoping to touch the surface when she froze.

Her hand is gone; in its place is a long hairy limb with fingers that has black claws attached.

I did it; she thinks to herself, I'm a wolf.

She jumps up but almost falls back down. She staggers until she grabs a nearby tree for support. She looks at the tree and is shock to discover that she has grown taller, perhaps another three or five inches, making her almost seven foot tall.

It is then that she looks down and observes herself. Her legs are long and are covered in bright brown fur. They look the same as human legs, however towards the bottom, her calves' bends strangely like the hind legs of a dog and the toes on her feet are long with talons cutting into the moist earth. Her slim, yet strong body too is covered in long luscious fur, her arms ripple with muscles that she could clearly see despite the newly acquired hair. She carefully raises her hands with the mystery filled eyes that young children possess. Her hands are fur covered and clawed, but her palms have pads, in the middle of the hands that run up to the tips of her fingers.

She then gently raises her hands further and touches her face. She feels something protruding from her mouth; she looks at it from an angle with her eyes and sees that its a snout. She then touches where her hair use to be, but only finds fur before touching two flimsy objects that feels like membranes. She touches it some more, feeling the strange things twitch on the top of her head until realizing it's her ears. She strokes her head until confirming that her entire body is covered in fur.

She smiles and feels something slightly yanking her rear end. She turns and is almost shock when she sees that there is a long tail that is attached at her tail bone. She opens her maw and reveals a toothy smile, perhaps that's why the bone there is called a tail bone.

She hears twigs snapping and turns to see two familiar figures approaching.

The two are wolves as well, but she recognizes them, this isn't the first time she has seen her mother and Sablé in their second skins.

Her mother is slightly shorter than Rebecca and is covered in dark brown fur that is slightly tinted with graying hairs alongside her lean body. Sablé however is all muscles as he stands tall with what appears to be enough strength to destroy a castle. He peers down at Rebecca and gives her a big grin as if he is proud of her accomplishment. Both of them have bright yellow eyes that Rebecca is sure is similar to her own newly acquired eyes.

Her mother walks forward, tail wagging faintly and she nuzzles her daughter. Something within Rebecca urges her to move as well and before she knows it, she is nuzzling her mother back in a similar like fashion as if she has done it before hundreds of times.

Sablé then pulls his head back and releases a long howl that seems to stretch forever in different directions. Diana backs away from her daughter and releases her own cry to the moon as well.

It's as if something has awoken within Rebecca, in almost as if its instinct, she tilts her chin back, closes her eyes and releases her fist howl. It erupts out of her throat with full vocal power as it shoots into the air. It's a beautiful note, one that she offers to the moon in appreciation for her new body. The trio of large shape shifters continues to howl until they finally grew bored.

Sablé then takes off into the forest, he leaps and when he comes back to the ground he is running on all four, his longer back legs seeming to give him no trouble as he goes. Diana gives her daughter a toothy grin before rushing forward and jumps into running form as well.

Rebecca has her tongue out in a way to ease her excitement as she moves forward too. She doesn't jump, instead, she slides into position carefully and then her body took over. Like a machine it begins to act on its own accord, pulling her back legs kicking off while her front steers them into the direction she wishes to go.

Filled with sudden happiness at her new skills and abilities, she takes a deep breath and howls again, this time thinking, I will howl for you father, I will make you proud. With that she quickens her pace as she chases after her mother and uncle...

Author's Note:

Next Chapter will be up soon... Sabere out...