| Preservers of Humanity | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Organizational information | |
| Founder | |
| Leader's title |
Lord |
| Headquarters |
Global |
| Locations |
Global |
| Religion |
Atheism |
| Historical information | |
| Date formed |
c.1580 |
| Additional information | |
The Preservers of Humanity is a secret transnational organisation dedicated to opposing both the Assassin Brotherhood and Templar Order in their secret war. The Preservers hold the belief that humanity needs to remain free of the influence from the Assassins and Templars, and should be allowed to progress without the the two groups pulling the strings. As well as this, they dedicate themselves to keeping Pieces of Eden out of the hands of both groups, deeming them two dangerous in either organisation's hands.
Founded by the Templar Kieran O'Connor around c.1580, he aimed to keep the existence of the organisation a secret from both the Assassins and Templars, manipulating events from behind the scenes that directly interfered with either the Assassins or Templars. If anyone would get too close to discovering the existence of the organisation, the Preservers would focus their efforts on eliminating anyone that threatened to uncover their existence. Examples of this are when they killed the Templar Edmund Campion, the Scottish Assassin James Crichton and repeatedly attempted to kill the Irish Assassin Arthur Kavanagh - who eventually uncovered them.
At an unknown point, the Preservers collapsed and their existence became forgotten by history. However, they resurfaced again in 2021, harassing and attacking members of the Assassins and Templars in the modern day. In 2022, after discovering Kavanagh's last living descendant, Jin Chen, the group focused their efforts on finding and eliminating him in order to prevent either the Assassins or Templars from rediscovering their existence as well as learning the origins of their organisation.
History[]
Tudor period[]
Beginnings[]
Following the death of his Templar father at the hands of an Assassin, and wracked with the looming grief of the death of his older brother in his childhood, the then-Templar Kieran O'Connor developed a hatred for the Assassin Brotherhood. Over time, Kieran would also grow disillusioned with Templar ideals, disagreeing with their methods of achieving world peace through domination. Kieran held firm the idea that humanity should simply be left alone.
This would lead to Kieran formulating the idea of opposing and interfering with both Assassin and Templar matters. He decided to remain a Templar so he could maintain his connections as well as remain up to date on their plans and goals. Kieran would eventually meet the ex-Assassin Ewan who would go on to become his first recruit and later right hand man. Over time, Kieran would also recruit likeminded individuals who were against the Assassins and Templars. Before he knew it, he had an entirely new organisation to lead - the Preservers of Humanity.
Acquiring the Shield of Eden[]
Prior to 1581, the Preservers learned of the existence of a Piece of Eden dubbed the Armor of Ares which was said to be able to manipulate the memories of others on a global scale. Learning that the Templars had planned on using it to assert Templars as global rulers, the Preservers devised a plan of his own - to locate this armor and use it to purge the Assassins and Templars.
Expanding influence[]
When the Templars had located an armor piece, the Shield, in Hampshire, Ewan led a team to retrieve it. After successfully doing so, he kept the Shield locked away in one of his homes and decided it would be safer elsewhere. This led to the idea of expanding the Preservers influence in different countries. But before doing this, the Preservers had the Templar Edmund Campion framed for treason as he was investigating the Preservers and had grown too close to figuring them out.
O'Connor travelled to Italy to expand the Preservers influence. Kieran spent several months there and recruited many members there, including the Prince Vincenzo Gonzaga. During this time he learned of two Assassins that were also investigating the Preservers and had already found out too much about their organisation.
Conflict with the Assassins[]
The Preservers learned that one of these Assassins was none other than Arthur Kavanagh, the man he blamed for his brother's death in 1570. Seeing this as an opportunity to enact vengeance he had Gonzago, Ewan and other Preservers kill the Scottish Assassin James Crichton and pin the murder on Kavanagh. As well as this, he also pinned a "plot to assassinate Vincenzo Gonzaga" on him too.
Kavanagh was defeated and captured by Ewan before being transported to a dungeon in Italy. It was there when Kieran made his existence known to Kavanagh, revealing what the Preservers were and why he formed the group. Kavanagh was freed by his fellow Assassins before he could reach trial in 1583.
In 1585, Kieran and other high ranking Preservers formulated a plan to assassinate Queen Elizabeth I of England who had become an ally of the Assassins. Kieran deemed it too dangerous for the Assassins to have someone with such power in their corner. Despite this though, his plot was foiled by Arthur Kavanagh and Aleria Sinclair in 1586. At some point prior to 1587, Kieran had the Shield of Eden sent to Japan for safekeeping, having recruited some followers there as well.
By 1587, Kieran had planted seeds across Europe and even parts of Asia for the Preservers' expansion. Kieran set his sights for the New World and prepared to sail there alongside Ewan in April of that year, however he was tracked down by Kavanagh. After a lengthy chase which culminated inside of an abandoned warehouse, Kieran was assassinated by Kavanagh.
However, the Preservers expanded to such a point where it was able to grow beyond Kieran. Even in death, his work would be continued by thousands of likeminded souls.
Edo period[]
Infiltrating the Assassins[]
By 1615, the Preservers of Humanity had infiltrated the ranks of both the Assassins and Templars, to serve as informants to the Preservers as well as to keep track of the Assassins and Templars' search for the Armor of Ares. Ito Ichiro, a Preserver hidden within the ranks of the Japanese Assassin Brotherhood, played a significant part in furthering the Preservers goals.
In 1614, the Templars managed to retrieve the Shield from the Preservers in 1614, Ichiro was subsequently tasked with taking it back. Arthur Kavanagh, who travelled to Japan with his son Lonan in search for the Shield, had learned more information on its location. In November of that year, the Tokugawa clan would begin their siege on Osaka to eliminate the Toyotomi clan. Ichiro aided the Assassins, who supported the Tokugawa in this conflict.
On 2 June 1615, Lonan Kavanagh assassinated the Templar Kimura Shigenari and learned that the Shield was being held in Osaka Castle. That next day, the Tokugawa would launch their last assault at Osaka Castle - allowing Ichiro to retrieve the Shield for the Preservers. During the battle, Ichiro followed Mashashi, Arthur and Lonan as they infiltrated the castle to find the Shield.
Once they had found it, Ichiro made his presence known and killed Mashashi which revealed his alliegence to the Kavanaghs. Ichiro then subsequently injured Lonan and killed Arthur when they attacked him. Upon the arrival of more Assassins, Ichiro quickly turned the situation toward his father and framed Lonan as the killer. Despite this, Lonan survived the attack and managed to escape with the Shield.
Taking control of the Assassins[]
Ichiro was subsequently made Mentor of the Brotherhood and made locating the Shield and the other pieces of the Armor of Ares, as well as locating Lonan Kavanagh a top priority. Over the next three years, the Assassins led an intense search locating Ares' sword following finding a lead that it was in East Asia.
Searching for the Sword[]
In 1617, the Assassins were able to decipher an Isu map which led to the Sword thanks to Rose Kavanagh, who gifted the Assassins her father's research during her trip to Japan. Upon learning that it was located in an Isu vault located beneath the Baegyangsa temple in South Korea, Ichiro took a small group of Assassins with him to personally retrieve the Sword.
Arriving in South Korea in 1618, reaching the vault inside the temple Ichiro successfully retrieved the Sword but not before being confronted by Lonan, who had followed him to South Korea. The two engaged in a short battle which resulted in Lonan's defeat due to the power Ichiro held carrying the sword. Before departing however, Ichiro used his Hidden Blade and impaled Lonan in his side, wanting him to die a slow and painful death.
Ichiro returned to Japan with the Sword, beginning a new search for the Armor.
Losing the Sword and Shield[]
Lonan ended up surviving his wounds and spent the next year, continuing to weaken the Assassins' strength in Japan to the point that they were all now relegated to Kakureta in Honshu. In August 1619, the Templars launched an all scale assault on the Brotherhood to finally exterminate their presence in Japan. Lonan once more confronted Ichiro, now with the Shield of Eden in his possession.
The two engage in a destructive duel, utilising both their skills and the powers of the Pieces of Eden they carry. Ichiro reminds Lonan that he nearly killed him 4 years prior, but Lonan confidently states that he has doubled in skill since their last encounter. Proving his words true, Lonan is able to defeat and disarm Ichiro through severing his weapon arm. Falling to his knees, Ichiro reminds him that killing him does nothing and the other Preservers out there will keep on hunting the Armor. Lonan acknowledges, stating that the Templars will find them and destroy them. As well as this, he expresses joy in finally being able to avenge his father and sister.
Lonan then proceeds to activate his Hidden Blade and slowly dig it into Ichiro's throat, killing him slowly and avenging Arthur Kavanagh.
The Shun rebellion[]
The Preservers continued their search for the Chestplate for the next sixteen years and by 1635, they learned that Lonan had retrieved the Chestplate. Upon his return to Japan, members attacked him and seized it. It remained in the Preservers' Japanese branch for the next six years until it was shipped to China as a gift of good faith to the Ming general Sun Chuanting in the hopes of recruiting him to their organisation. Accepting the gift, Sun swore his alleigence to the Preservers and used the Chestplate during the Ming empire's war against Li Zicheng's Shun rebels.
At some point, the Preservers managed to recruit the Ming emperor Zhu Youjan to their cause and the Chestplate was left in his care by Sun, shortly before his death at the hands of the Assassin Takao Hayato and his father, Lonan. Shortly after this, the Ming empire would fall and the Preservers' influence in China weakened significantly.
Contemporary era[]
Hunting the Kavanaghs' descendants[]
In 2007, the modern Preservers learned of the existence of the Kavanagh family and their repeated interactions with the Preservers, as well as their encounter with the Armor of Ares. Desiring to locate these Pieces of Eden to achieve their goals, the Preservers assigned Maria and Frederic to track down any of the Kavanagh family's descendants and retrieving them in order to track the Armor through genetic memories. They successfully located the Chinese immigrant Chen Xiu in Philadelphia and attempted to capture her and place her in an Animus which they had stolen from Abstergo at an unknown point.
However, Xiu put up a fight against her attempted kindappers resulting in her accidental death at the hands of Frederic. Following this, they made her death look like a suicide before escaping the area. Maria and Frederic would continue their search for several more years.
In the 2010s, the Abstergo Industries employee and Templar member Huang Min was recruited by the Preservers. Min chose to ally with their cause, angered at the Templars for forcing her into their organisation as well as believing the Assassins' cause was too dangerous to allow to come to pass. Following her recruitment, she was assigned to remain within Abstergo as a mole in order to relay any intel she would learn of during her time there. It was this that allowed Min to discover the existence of Jin Chen in 2022, the Kavanaghs' last living descendant and the son of Chen Xiu, and relay this information to the Preservers - aiding Maria and Frederic's hunt.
In June, Maria and Frederic attempted to retrieve Chen from a police precinct in Philadelphia but came into conflict with Abstergo. During the chaos, the Assassins successfully acquired Jin and prevented the two Preservers from capturing Chen. However, before his escape, Maria placed a tracker on Chen which allowed her and Frederic to track him down in Jersey City. The pair would later come into conflict with the Assassins Gina Garcia and her twin brother, Robbie, who were responsibile for interfering with their capture.
Maria successfully injured Robbie but Gina managed to lead him to safety and flee with Jin and another Assassin Samantha Maguire. Maria and Frederic initiated a high speed vehicular chase but lost the Assassins when the female Garcia managed to shoot their tires and stop them.
Manipulating Jin Chen[]
When the Abstergo Foundation's head of the Beijing branch, Zhao Baozhai - Jin's older half-sister, located Robbie Garcia and had him captured. Jin offered himself up to Abstergo in exchange for his ally's safety. Following this, Baozhai had Jin relive the memories of his Assassin ancestor and member of the Kavanagh family, Takao Hayato, in order to locate the Armor of Ares. Baozhai assigned Min, who was working under her, to oversee and monitor his Animus sessions in order to make sure no harm would come to him.
Min seized the opportunity to aid the Preservers in locating the Armor, and gradually gained Jin's trust to the point he would eventually request her assistance. Jin desired to send Hayato's encryped memories to the Assassins so they can keep up to date with the search for the Armor. Realising Jin's proposal would also aid her, she agreed to assist him and provided him with the resources to hack and download Hayato's memories from the Abstergo Cloud. Following Jin's retrieval of the memories, Min assured him she would send these memories to the Assassins when in reality she had uploaded them to the Preservers' cloud.
Confrontation in Japan[]
Once Jin had fully synchronized with Hayato's memories and learned the location of the three Armor pieces, he once again hacked into the Abstergo Cloud and handed the downloaded memories over to Min. Min would send this information to the Preservers who would then send Maria and Frederic to retrieve her the following day. The next day, the Chinese branch of the Assassins would attack the Beijing facility in order to free Jin. Still unaware of Min's true alleigence, Jin brought Min with him during his escape.
Upon reaching the facility's outside grounds, Jin discovers that the Assassins had received no information on Hayato's memories and quickly learns Min's alleigence belongs to someone else. This is when Maria and Frederic attack Jin, Gina and the Assassins. Jin inquired to know as to why she manipulated him to which Min confessed to lying about Baozhai's involvement in his mother's death, admitting she only said this to gain his trust and revealed that the Preservers were actually involved in her death. With that, Maria orders Frederic to remain behind and eliminate Chen and Garcia while she escorts Min away. Following their departure, with the aid of Robbie, Jin manages to kill Frederic.
The following day, the Preservers enter a three way war with the Assassins and Templars for access to the Armor of Ares in Japan. Maria, Min and another Preserver arrive at where the Hashimoto estate used to be some time later in order to retrieve the pieces. There they find Garcia's Assassin cell and an Abstergo recovery team led by Baozhai. Maria successfully shoots and kills Baozhai following the Abstergo recovery team's elimination at the hands of the Assassins. Jin and Gina engage Maria and the third Preserver, during this Robbie manages to detain Min and knock her unconscious while the Preserver field agents are distracted.
Gina and Robbie manage to kill the third Preserver whereas Jin successfully eliminates Maria, leaving Min the last one standing. Following the Assassins' retrieval of all three Armor pieces, Jin and the others decide to bring Min with them in order to interrogate her and learn more about the Preservers.