Independent Research

Sergeant Ferdinand Durr preferred to approach problems in a methodical, linear manner, taking the time to come to ordered, logical conclusions. Staring at the papers in front of him, he was confronted with a riddle that demanded a little more creativity. Leaning back back in his chair, he closed his eyes, trying to lay out all the pieces in his mind.

Templars and Assassins. Rivals of some kind, but over what? He could find mentions of them scattered throughout his paperwork and in the hushed conversations amongst some of his superiors. Templars, it seemed, were a prominent force in Germany, among other axis power nations. And yet his most recent discovery suggested they were amongst the allies as well. But if that was the case, why would members of the same side attack one another? It wouldn't be the first war to turn brother against brother, but one way or another pieces were still did not add up. 'Something is rotten in the state of Denmark,' Ferdinand quoted to himself, before moving on to the other half of the puzzle.

If the nature of the so called "Templars" were hard to determine, Assassins were even more so. In essence, they were the one group with the awareness of the Templars' existence to resist them. Although it would appear, or so the reports indicate, they were vastly smaller and had less resources in comparison, if there was anything that would send a Templar on edge, it was these shadow-cloaked rivals.

No, linear thinking would not take him very far for this particular task. Of course, if he was to be purely logical, he would admit his peers were right, and that all of this was a result of creative interpretation induced by too many cigars, not enough sleep, and perhaps one too many servings of beer. But somehow, the sergeant was not ready to yield just yet.

In an uncharacteristically arrogant jester, he slipped some documents into his front coat pocket instead of tucking them securely in his brief case as he normally would. The papers weren't terribly important, he had at least 2 copies of the same report some where amongst his files. None the less, it was a sample of the documents he had hypothesized to be "Templar" related, and they did contain a few details unavailable to the general public.

Despite the fact his plan had enough holes in it to rival Swiss cheese, Ferdinand pushed them aside, taking a leap of faith in an effort to find some sliver of proof that his sanity was still in tact. He stepped outside, smelling the crisp early autumn air, and merged with the city's pedestrians.

I sat at his desk with my reading glasses and stared at the file in my hands. A gigantic red stamp [CLASSIFIED] lay on top of the file.

When the CIA agent came by our base in London, he dropped this file.

I should've given it back, but lately, I been feeling so great about my country. Whispers of mutiny and insubordination and spies have been going around a lot lately. I even heard that the government let those damn Japanese bomb Pearl Harbour as an excuse for the war!

I couldn't resist, and when I opened it, I discovered something far greater than the war itself...

Rebecca strode down the streets of London. Ever since the day her government came for her, Rebecca had been sleeping with one eye open and her old heirloom and papers hidden in her briefcase. She checked the gun holstered on her hip and hidden beneath her jacket. It had become a kind of obsessive compulsion to her. Some kind of conspiracy. She needed to know more. She needed to know who these Assassins and Templars may be. She needed to know what was so important about this golden ball. If her information was correct, then she needed to find Chris. That symbol he carried looked so much like the symbol on the papers. She needed to know more. He had answers.

Henry opened the folder, found yet another [CLASSIFIED] stamp, but he ignored it and moved on.

The title page of the document said "Top Secret" and the page was watermarked with the CIA crest on it. Henry took a deep breath and flipped open the page.

"Telegram from Chancellor Adolf Hitler to President Franklin D. Roosevelt : August 20th 1939"

Franklin,

The preparations are complete. My army is fully ready to mobilize and ready to begin this war. I have already contacted Stalin and Churchill to make sure that the Allied forces are locked in alliances and forced to fight, and I am sure that Mussolini's forces are ready for battle as well. We will invade Poland on the First of September, where my agents will also eradicate any Assassin influence there.

May the Father of Understanding be with us,

Adolf.

Henry sat stunned at what he just read, could the President really be allied with Hitler?