Chu10: Hello to you random stranger, or good friend, or alien - and thank you for dropping by – and continuing into the second chapter of this story. Collectively you're all called readers, so hello there all of you!

What you can expect further from here is that we would be putting our focus on two areas in this 1860s – both the Wild West, where outlaws make the land theirs, and the Civil War, where all hell is ablaze.

By the way, if you're curious on how 'Zhu' is correctly pronounced, you can come ask me. I'm friendly – and a Chinese speaker myself. :)

JJZ-109: How's it goin' fellas. As you can see, this is the official start of the story, with the prologue just giving yas a sample taste. And yes Abstergo Entertainment make a return. What do they want in the 1860s? You'll have to find out. Also in this chapter you'll see our first major historical character make an appearance. There'll be a few more of these, Famous people from the West, and both Union AND Confederates. If you don't agree with one of those character's stances, well done. Good for you. You have an opinion. And this is fiction, so no getting butt rustled over history. We don't share these people's opinions. Anyway, get ready people, your Assassins are in town.

And lastly, to Emily (guest reviewer), Emerald dreamer96 and Haradion - a nice thank you and a tip of the hat from the both of us. :)

Cheers: Chu10, JJZ-109

CHAPTER 1: NOTHIN'S TRUE

Abstergo Entertainment Industries

Montreal, Canada. 2014.

"William Bronson. Wanted: Dead or Alive."

As the last pieces of raw footage flashed across the screen and it faded back into the Abstergo Entertainment Interface, a man and a womanstared at the screen for a while in silence – the man wondering what the other might say about the new footage, and the lady taking it all in.

"Well…" started the man, obviously hiding his excitement, "What do you think about all this?"

"Mon dieu," said the lady, rubbing her temple with a highly amused expression. "That was very intense!"

"Good, good!" The man stood up, typing an input into his laptop. They were both in a spacious office with a full height glass sliding door, which was now mainly shaded with blinds to block out the natural daylight that was abundant at the height the office was situated. "Now, we lighten up the shades…"

As he spoke, he reached for another button, letting just a little bit of sunlight which filtered through the blinds, enough to keep the room dim, but enough to shed light onto everything.

"And now.." He began, pausing dramatically. "- I present to you, the data. Mmhmm Miss Lemay, the good data – don't get bored just yet!"

The presentation came up on a sleek interface on the wall mounted screen, showing two prominent colours, gray on the left and red to the right, each representing one historical figure that was shown in the raw Animus footage.

"So Miss Lemay –"

"Oh, Melanie would do monsieur." She said with a smile.

"Aha, Miss Melanie, ladies first, non?" The man said, pointing his finger to the screen's left. Just as he did, the gray colour turned a bright white, and the red segment faded into the back. On the white there was the profile of a young woman, almost a girl:

Name: Zhu Ling Jiao
Date of Birth: 15/4/1835
Place of Birth: Shanghai, China
Date of Death: Unknown, 1865
Place of Death: Rural Texas
Height: 5'3

"As you can see," The man spoke, "We found somebody prominent in the era of the American Frontier. She may be born in China – but she was heavily involved in the events of the 1860s Civil War in America. You know, how the Chinese migrated to America to work on railroads? A small number yes, but they were still there. Not all of them stayed put as you can see…"

More screen caps of the footage popped up to accompany the text, and the man smiled. "A beauty isn't she? We would have to delve more into research for this one though. We know that she was involved a lot – but we don't know how she was involved yet."

Melanie looked slightly dubious. "She came to America as a slave…are you sure people would like that?"

"Take it out in the final cut of the game, maybe?" The man laughs. "I don't know, this one's your men's jobs!"

"Ha-ha Herbert, very funny now," Melanie jokes. "How about the other one? That rough looking man on the right?"

"Now, this one – his donor was almost as much of a pain in the ass as his ancestor is." Herbert pushed his black framed glasses up his nose.

"Firstly he was a nightmare to track down…We weren't even sure if that cowboy existed. He was the product of Old Wives' tales, really. We feared that he could be fiction all together. But eventually after following all these unreliable stories…We found an alleged descendant. A stubborn one too. He was fidgety, uncooperative – and he put up a lot of trouble." Herbert ran a hand over his head, remembering the stress.

"That and the memories we got were rare. Distorted, even – this man here, he must have been a drinker, or he may have memories that he himself was trying to suppress. You know how it is with memories – they are never always consistent. Either way, here we go…"

With the touch of another button, the white parts that showed the young woman faded, and the red segment lit up to the front:

Name: William Elliot Bronson
Date of Birth: 11/10/1837
Place of Birth: San Francisco, California
Date of Death: 21/1/1902
Place of Death: Dodge City, Kansas
Height: 6'0

"This man here – legendary…one of your typical gunslinging folk heroes…or villains, depending on how you look at it. You can see from his footage – he was an Outlaw in a Union Army uniform at one stage, hah! Not bad, I should say. We need more research into this as well, if you'd like to. Two donors, two lines of memories, and it is easier to cross reference, non?"

"Bien, it is good footage!" Just as she spoke, the phone on the desk started ringing, and both looked towards it for a second, before looking back to each other.

"Nice job Herbert. Pardon, I need to take this call…" She smiled, reaching for the phone and waving Herbert to the door. He shrugged and nodded, stepping out of the door and closing it lightly behind him.

"Yes…bonjour this is Melanie Lemay at Abstergo Entertainment – how may I help you?" The muffled sound of Melanie's voice could be heard through the door.

"Oh…oh! It's you. Yes…yes, so I've heard. Oh is that so?" Her voice lowered a little, and her eyebrow raised sharply.

"You mean…down in there? Signs of Those That Came Befo - I see, I see…ahh, merci, I understand…yes, good day to you too."

"Herbert? Please come in." She called, and he opened the door.

"Yes Miss Melanie?"

"We are given the green light to go." She said enthusiastically. "Bring on more of the footage!"

American Territories, 1853

Across the warm desert sunset two horses trod forward: black silhouettes moving insignificantly against a blood orange sky and falling sun. Bottles and equipment clanked against each other, as hooves gently plodded and tapped against the ground. The first horse carried that same unbothered figure, the wealthy looking suited man with the beaked bowler hat. The second horse hauled two women, a middle-aged, frail looking worker with wrinkles on her face and cheap tunics, and in front of her a much younger woman with sleek long black hair, and the same ragged old Chinese conical hat. For miles they had ridden, and for miles they would continue. For the two women on the trailing horse, the further they went into this hell the better. The further they were into this one, the further they were away from the worse one they'd left behind.

Zhu Ling Jiao was never sure about just what the hell she was doing. She was following a killer who she'd seen in action with her own eyes across miles and miles she didn't know. Anyone could have told her that was hilariously stupid. But every time that thought surfaced, that scene from the railroad kept replaying itself. The slave-master...The way she stood up...Defied. Then the shock of murder. There was no going back. Wherever this 'Tom Horn' was taking her and her mother, it was the safest bet. And there was something about her mother when she saw him...As soon as her mother had seen him extend his hand...Zhu saw a glint in her eyes that she'd never seen before. It looked like hope.

Horn's words from that fateful day kept echoing in Zhu's mind. 'Everything is permitted'. Growing up a Railroad slave she didn't feel like troubling her mind thinking what that meant. The people he worked for say that, apparently. Is that where she was going? To freedom? To something better?

The road ahead was long, and the trio pushed forward. California to Arizona. Arizona to New Mexico. New Mexico to Texas. From Texas to Tennessee. From Tennessee to Virginia. They'd crossed from the far West to the other side of the country.

With her mind in such a tired state it was almost delirious, Zhu watched the scenery around her change from dry prairies to deep green forest. There was a change in the air – it was much more cooling as half the sunlight was shielded out by the many trees that towered over them. She'd never seen it before, and it kept her awake.

Along with this new awe came an eerie feeling of insecurity. For some reason, she felt as if eyes were watching her from all around. She checked both her leader and her mother, both of whom seemed completely calm. She especially wondered about her mother, who seemed completely uninterested in the new stunning scenery. Was this what it was like back in China? She tiredly kept her eyes front, when suddenly something caught her eye. A normal person would never have seen it, but for some reason a sixth sense dragged her eyes towards a patch of bushes, to see a hooded head slyly staring them down. All of a sudden her feeling of awe vanished, to be replaced by fear.

She started to see them everywhere. Crouched up on a huge redwood branch in trees, upon cliffs overlooking them, from behind other various pieces of scenery they hid, just watching them trot along casually. Their eyes concealed by their hoods or headwear, but their heads followed. And Zhu could feel their gaze.

"Your instincts do you good, girl. Don't mind them. They're just cautious to outsiders." Horn broke the eerie silence and called back.

"You sure they never just seen a Chinese on a horse before?" Zhu replied.

"Don't be ridiculous...Our culture stretches across the globe. America...China...England. Everywhere. Difference of culture or status means nothing in the brotherhood." Horn explained, not looking back at her.

"What are you?" Zhu asked.

"Assassins." Horn broke it to her; refraining from the riddles and poetic answers he'd given them the whole way. Assassins? Zhu thought.

"You…are hit-men?" Accompanying her words was a look of shock. This wasn't what she expected the whole way, given that the man had spoken in such a way that made him trustworthy. He had even saved them – but what now? Were the people he killed only targets? They'd come so far…just to be hit-men? She felt the worry rise up to an uncomfortable level inside her.

"No girl, not like that," Horn explained, his voice serious, this time turning to look her in the eyes. For a moment, his casual mannerism turned into something more serious. "We come from an ancient line of order. We are Assassins – we work in the dark, to serve the light."

"But I don't understand…" She said worriedly. "You brought us here to do the works of hit-men?"

"No," Horn shook his head, "We never harm an innocent life, give or take. Hit-men kill for the sake of a reward – we take a life, not expecting anything in return, only for the better of other lives."

"I still don't understand…"

"You will soon girl, you will. Be patient."

Zhu looked to her mother – but she merely smiled at her.

"Ma…" she started. Her mother knew her best, and before Zhu even voiced her worries, she ran a hand through her daughter's hair.

"It is going to be alright, Jiao," she said in their native tongue, a weary smile on her face. "These are not bad people. Believe me, I know…"

"How are you not scared of these people?" Zhu replied in like. "They seem a little like huai ren – like bad people…"

"They are not, Jiao, they are not. Do not worry…"

Zhu sighed. If it did have to come down to anything bad, they would at least have each other. But Zhu thought about it – if Horn had wanted to kill or harm them, he would have done so many moons ago. There must be a reason why they were still alive – either it was all a very elaborate plan, which was ridiculous, considering the amount of effort – or Horn was in fact, a good guy like what her mother had said. But no matter what came their way, she'd be ready to protect herself and her mother. They had each other – and they've been through work on the railway tracks. No hell must be worse than that…

After what seemed like a short time – may have been short, but time was hard to keep track of while in the forest - they approached a grand wooden gate in the deep forest. It was comprised completely of stiff redwood logs, with that same symbol on Horn's hat symmetrically carved into the center. The gates groaned open, and revealed a whole community living in the cover of the vegetation. People walked along the buildings casually, as if it was another reasonably populated town or county, but it was different. They were dressed differently, most with hoods (either off or on) and uniforms with several prevailing colors. On the flag pole in the center flew the banner, but not as Zhu remembered it. In the ring of stars that symbol appeared again.

As they rode further into this 'community', more and more heads turned to stare at them. Zhu looked down, trying to avoid the glances and exposure. Horn simply greeted them with a warm smile and a tip of his white hat.

"HORN!" A loud, accented voice called out.

Horn held up a hand and motioned for Zhu to stop the horse. Both animals trotted to a stop with a snort.

"What the hell ye think ye doin' man?" The thick Irish-American voice scolded.

A well-built Assassin with hood lowered and small top hat strolled out into the dirt road before them.

"Bringing our new family members to a temporary place of residence, so that they may rest in preparation for an orientation." Horn said cleverly, not losing his smile.

The man seemed to be getting only angrier.

"Nay you fool, I mean why the hell you bringin' outsiders to the home? Have you lost your bloody mind? And especially...slaves." The man seemed to sneer a little at the last word, and with that, Horn's smile vanished.

Zhu felt her head drop. She knew it. Nobody cared for her kind here. He dismounted his horse, and casually paced over the Irish sounding Assassin.

"Well since you seem so thoroughly educated in our creed, let me just point out something you may be forgetting. Nowhere in our laws do we mention any form of discrimination according to nationality, wealth, or status..." Horn explained in a casual, almost insulting tone towards the man, who recoiled a little.

"Don't recite the laws back to me, Horn. You've broken a simple rule and – " Horn cut him off.

"Broken a rule? Tell me O'Reilly…Where is this rule written down or made official in any way? It more comes down to common sense about whom we let in here." Horn told him, a stern expression etched onto his face.

"Common sense ain't common…err…you're missing the point man. It's a threat to the order to let outsiders in here!" The man known as 'O'Reilly' snarled.

"Well...the only one here that is seemingly threatened is you." Horn chuckled, shrugging. O'Reilly's eye twitched in anger and he slowly began to step forward towards him.

"And considering our guests are both harmless women, one very young…I would suggest it being more to do with…xenophobia." Horn finished the sentence off rudely. "Unless you…A trained Assassin…are afraid of two girls?" Horn began laughing casually.

O'Reilly scowled and marched over Horn viciously. He grabbed his shirt and pulled him close, retracting a fist as he did so. Horn didn't even seem fazed, not flinching and retaining his usual smile.

"I'll give you somethin' to fookin' smile about Thomas you -" O'Reilly growled between clenched teeth, but suddenly trailed off.

He looked down to see Horn has extended a wrist-blade and was holding it threatendingly close to his stomach. And still smiling casually. "You weren't thinking of striking a fellow brother of the order were you?" Horn asked in a low monotone.

O'Reilly hissed back at him in response, not lowering his fist.

"What seems to be the problem gentlemen?"

A deep and familiar southern voice broke out behind the confrontation. Zhu suddenly snapped out of the depressed daze she'd been in since O'Reilly showed up and looked forward. At the sound of the voice both Horn and O'Reilly instantly released each other, with Horn's blade zipping back up his sleeve and O'Reilly quickly straightening the creases on his suit that he'd made, as well as his own hat.

Zhu scanned the shadows carefully for a moment, before out he came. A tall man stepped out into the limited sunlight provided by the trees, with a dark blue US Army uniform and expensive looking sword at his hip. Each step he took seemed to echo throughout the community. Zhu all of a sudden began to feel a little intimidated again.

The man's face, beard and grey hair told years of wisdom and experience, while his gentle but stern expression commanded respect. As did the way Horn and O'Reilly reacted to his sudden presence.

"Nothing…Master." Horn replied quickly. "Just a little misunderstanding." With this added on O'Reilly shot him a glare.

"Okay then…O'Reilly you're dismissed." The old man said, and with a nod, O'Reilly instantly complied, storming off in disappointment.

"Now…Thomas, since I'm assuming this was your doing bringing these ladies in here, and since I'm assuming it was for a reason, would you mind introducing me?" The old man said, studying Zhu and her mother up on the horse.

Zhu could feel his powerful gaze sweeping over her, and avoided eye contact.

"Yes…Of course. Ladies, this is the Grand Master of our people, my personal mentor, and Colonel of the United States Army, Robert E. Lee."

There you go people. Introduction to the American Brotherhood...With a famous Grand Master :D Don't forget to leave us a review.

This has been Chu10 and JJZ-109, and as always...Have a nice day.