Desmond Miles

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He who increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. This article contains spoilers, meaning it has information and facts concerning recent or upcoming releases from the Assassin's Creed series. If you do not want to know about these events, it is recommended to read on with caution, or not at all. This template should be removed from the article three months after release.

"In a few short months my life changed forever. I know my easiest days are behind me, but I don't want them back – not now. My name is Desmond Miles, and I am an Assassin. I am an Assassin."

―Desmond reflecting on his past, in the Black Room.

Desmond Miles
Biographical information
Born	13 March 1987 "The Farm," Black Hills, South Dakota, United States
Died	21 December 2012 Grand Temple, New York, United States

Desmond Miles (1987 - 2012) was a member of the Assassin Order and a descendant of numerous familial lines that had sworn an allegiance to the Assassins; including individuals such as Aquilus, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, Ezio Auditore da Firenze and Ratonhnhaké:ton.

By age 16, Desmond became tired of living in hiding and aspired to pursue his own dreams. Using the minimal training of Assassin skills he had obtained, Desmond fled from the Assassin compound he had grown up in and managed to travel from South Dakota to New York City, where he found employment as a bartender in the Bad Weather nightclub.

In September 2012, Desmond was kidnapped and incarcerated at Abstergo Industries, a Templar organization, and forced into a machine called the Animus to relive the memories of his ancestor, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. It was their aim to acquire a map that detailed many "Pieces of Eden" spread across the Earth, which Desmond was reluctantly successful in doing. Following this, he managed to escape Abstergo with the help of Lucy Stillman, an undercover Assassin, and joined an Assassin cell in Italy which consisted of herself, Shaun Hastings and Rebecca Crane. Once again utilizing an Animus, Desmond relived the memories of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, in order to improve upon his newly obtained skills.

Eventually, with the knowledge gained from Ezio's memories, Desmond and his Assassin teammates obtained the location of Ezio's Apple of Eden, which was located underneath the Colosseum. Though successful in obtaining the artifact, Desmond's body was taken over by Juno, a member of the First Civilization, and he was unwillingly forced to stab Lucy. As a result of the shock, Desmond fell into a coma, and was placed in the Black Room, the safe mode of the Animus, in an attempt to stabilize his condition. With help from the virtual construct of Clay Kaczmarek, "Subject 16" of Abstergo Animus Project, Desmond was able to regain consciousness, and found himself located in New York state once more.

Biography

Early life

"You have any idea what it's like to be trapped in a place, knowing there was a whole world out there I'd never get to see?"

―Desmond to Lucy about his childhood.

Desmond was born in an Assassin hideout near the Black Hills, west of Rapid City, in the United States. Known as "the Farm", the hideout was an off-the-grid compound with a population of around thirty people, all leading a nomadic lifestyle.

Desmond trained along with the other children of the Farm under the supervision of William Miles, his father, which proved to be extremely intense, often scaring him. He was also instructed to always be wary of their enemies, though as he grew older, Desmond became bored by the war stories of the Assassins and Templars, and underestimated Abstergo's influence over the world as a result. Finally concluding his parents to be little more than conspiracy freaks, he decided to leave the compound.

On his sixteenth birthday, Desmond ran away from the Farm. His training proved to be useful, as he was able to outrun and avoid the Assassins who had pursued after him. Following this, Desmond traveled through "the badlands" and hitch-hiked for some time, until he eventually came across a person who advised him to go to New York City, prompting him to leave for the metropolis and blend into the crowds.

Desmond eventually gained employment as a bartender at Bad Weather, most likely due to his looks. While he worked there, his specialty drink was the "Shirley Templar," a Shirley Temple cocktail with gin. Wanting to avoid the Assassins, Desmond never used his real name, and made sure to only use cash to purchase items. Over time, he tried to start a new life, but would sometimes begin to miss his family and old friends.

Unfortunately for him, Desmond was eventually found by Abstergo, after being traced through a fingerprint which was needed for his motorcycle license. Subsequently, he was kidnapped by the Templars, who brought him to an Abstergo laboratory in Italy.

Kidnapped by Abstergo

"I'm not an Assassin... not any more."

―Desmond to Warren Vidic.

On September 1, 2012, Desmond was captured by Abstergo agents. The next day, after awakening at an Abstergo facility in Italy, he was held captive for use as a test subject in the Animus, a device that could read the memories of people's ancestors through the "genetic memory" passed down through their descendants' DNA.

At first, Dr. Warren Vidic attempted to pry the information he wanted from Desmond's mind, who was out cold, but he was met with failure. When Desmond came to, he angrily claimed to be nothing more than a bartender, but Warren revealed that Abstergo knew of his history as an Assassin, forcing Desmond to finally admit his past life.

Warren and his assistant, Lucy Stillman, told Desmond that they were trying to access a certain memory of his ancestor, but Desmond's subconscious was resisting their efforts. Warren warned Desmond that if he refused to co-operate with their efforts, they would induce him into a coma, continue their work, and leave him to die when they had finished. Without much of a choice, Desmond agreed to help them.

Desmond plugged into the Animus.

From that point on, Desmond was made to explore through the genetic memories of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad – a man who was a member of the Assassin Order during the High Middle Ages. For several days, Desmond did so under the Templar's watchful eye, but during the nights, he was anonymously given a code that allowed him to open the door to the bedroom provided for him, which granted him the ability to explore the laboratory that he was being held in. As he was presented with the opportunity, Desmond used it to access the Animus' computer, and, after he had stolen Warren's access pen, gain access to Warren's personal computer as well.

Through reading private e-mails, Desmond learned much about Abstergo, as well as the Animus subject that had preceded him, Subject 16, who was noted to have suffered from the "Bleeding effect", a drastic symptom induced due to prolonged exposure to the Animus. Eventually, with the aid of Lucy, the Assassins learned of Desmond's capture and attempted to liberate him, with the gunfire of their assault being heard through an intercom device.

After the rescue attempt failed, Warren boasted that those Assassins were, in fact, the last of the group Desmond had escaped from, and that their desert hideout had been previously destroyed. When Warren left, however, Lucy reassured Desmond that that compound had been found deserted and that his parents had "probably escaped." During this discussion, Lucy revealed herself to be an undercover member of the Assassins.

Desmond using his "Eagle Vision" for the first time.

Subsequently, Desmond eventually achieved Warren's goal and discovered the locations of numerous Pieces of Eden. Following this, three executives of Abstergo Industries ordered for Desmond's execution, but his life was saved by Lucy's intervention, as she asked them to keep Desmond alive in order to re-access his memories if necessary.

After the executives left, Desmond realized that he was able to use "Eagle Vision", an ability that he shared with Altaïr, which he had picked up through the Bleeding effect. Using it for the first time, he perceived Warren's and Lucy's true allegiances, as well as countless scrawled messages and puzzles on the walls and floor of the main laboratory and his own quarters.

Escape to the Hideout

After Desmond spent some time alone in the laboratory, Lucy suddenly returned, covered in blood and demanding that Desmond was to get into the Animus before Abstergo discovered what she had done. Desmond, rather confused, agreed to her request and managed to synchronize himself with the closest genetic match between him and Subject 16, which was recorded on the Animus' memory core. Inside the Animus, Desmond experienced the birth of another of his ancestors, Ezio Auditore da Firenze, before he was pulled out abruptly, so that the two could both make their escape.

Desmond and Lucy making their way through Abstergo.

The pair were quickly spotted by Abstergo's security, though Lucy was able to react fast enough to lock a door and keep the guards from reaching them. Unfortunately, they were forced into an engagement with two more security personnel, who Lucy promptly dealt with, astonishing Desmond and allowing them to continue undetected. The two soon entered an elevator, which led down to a large open room filled with office blocks, that housed a large number of Animi.

As Desmond followed Lucy through the maze-like walkways between the blocks, in order to avoid the guard patrols, they eventually reached the back of the room. Lucy attempted to enter a code into the locked door of another elevator, but it was rejected, prompting Desmond to instinctively call upon his recently acquired Eagle Vision. Seeing the buttons necessary for the code, Desmond successfully unlocked the door on his third try. However, once they had both reached the car park underneath the building, the two were halted by more of Abstergo's guards, but were able to defeat them and escape.

Rebecca explains the new Animus.

Arriving at one of the Assassins' hideouts, Desmond was introduced to two more Assassins – Shaun Hastings and Rebecca Crane – who had previously worked with Lucy. Lucy told Desmond that they wanted him to be trained as an Assassin, which could be achieved in a matter of days, thanks to the Bleeding effect. Doing so required him to learn through the ancestor that he had matched up with through Subject 16, being Ezio Auditore, and Desmond agreed to help almost immediately, which surprised Lucy. After this, he was quickly plugged into the Animus 2.0, where he began to relive Ezio's memories.

After learning the skills of an Assassin through Ezio's lifetime and the Animus, Desmond was retracted from the machine, partly to test his retention of the techniques he had learned, but also to prevent the mental degradation that Subject 16 had suffered from being placed in the Animus for an extended period of time.

Desmond experiencing the Bleeding effect.

Tasking him with initiating security protocols around the hideout, Lucy left it to Desmond to figure out how to reach them through the use of his Eagle Vision and newfound free-running skills. Just as he began, however, he started suffering vivid hallucinations of the Third Crusade era. At first, the visions were short, and were nothing to worry about, but after completing the task, Desmond was incapacitated as the visions became more real.

Taken back to medieval Acre by the Bleeding effect, Desmond once again followed the memories of Altaïr, though this time, without using the Animus. Through the vision, he discovered that Altaïr and Maria Thorpe had conceived a child, who was to be Desmond's direct ancestor after Altaïr.

The next day, Desmond had recovered from the experiences and returned to the Animus, though he neglected to tell his Assassin teammates about what had happened. From there, he continued to watch the genetic memories of Ezio Auditore, despite at one time being thrown out by "corrupted memory sequences."

Eventually, the team learned that Ezio's nemesis, Rodrigo Borgia, had become Pope Alexander VI in 1492, so as to gain access to both another Piece of Eden, the Papal Staff, and the Vault underneath the Vatican. As Ezio entered this Vault, he was confronted by the hologram of a "goddess," who called herself Minerva.

Minerva warned the Assassins of the end of the world, recounting the story of the war between "The Ones Who Came Before" and their human subjects. The Assassins were shocked when Minerva addressed Desmond by name, confusing even Ezio, and revealed that she was in fact talking to Desmond through Ezio. Mere moments after, Desmond was quickly pulled out of the Animus, and upon seeing the three rushing to collect their belongings, he realized that the Templars had found their location.

Desmond confronted by Warren and Abstergo guards.

As he climbed out of the Animus, Lucy tossed Desmond a Hidden Blade with the Assassin insignia on the bracer, and asked for his assistance in covering their escape. Making their way into the warehouse, they were confronted by Vidic and several Abstergo security guards, all of whom were intent on reclaiming Desmond.

Together, the two eliminated all of the Templars that assaulted them, with Desmond – now fully synchronized with Ezio and possessing all of his abilities – masterfully using his Hidden Blade to kill many of the guards himself. With his entourage defeated, Warren was left to confront Desmond on his own, though he opted instead to retreat, before promising that their victory was only temporary.

The four Assassins then fled north, with Desmond being hooked up to the Animus inside the van so that he could continue to search through his memories for anything useful. Meanwhile, the other Assassins began to discuss the nature of Minerva and her speech.

Hiding in Monteriggioni

"What if I can't stop the visions? How long before I start painting symbols on the walls?"

―Desmond to Lucy about the Bleeding effect.

After the Abstergo attack on their warehouse base, the Assassins traveled to Monteriggioni, one of the last Assassin safehouses in Italy. As the Templars were actively searching for them, and were analyzing the surrounding environment via the use of cell phone towers, the Assassin group were forced to set up their equipment underground, in the Sanctuary located underneath the Villa Auditore.

Desmond performing his first Leap of Faith.

Whilst searching the grounds of the Villa Auditore for a way into the Sanctuary, Desmond – through the Bleeding effect – saw a vision of Ezio in the past, who led him to a high, narrow ledge, which he promptly leapt off. Desmond immediately followed suit, resulting in him performing his first ever Leap of Faith into a pile of hay. Desmond and Lucy then made their way to the Sanctuary, through the tunnel that was used by Ezio and the villagers of Monteriggioni during their escape after the Borgia attack on the town in January 1500.

As the two of them passed through the tunnels, Desmond saw more visions, which troubled him, and made him wonder if he would eventually "start painting symbols on the walls." Lucy then scolded him, telling him not to joke about his condition, and reminded him that Subject 16 was dead and that he needed to focus.

Rebecca strapping Desmond into the Animus 2.0 within the Sanctuary.

When the two reached the Sanctuary, Desmond saw another vision of Ezio, who seemed to have visited it in his old age. Before he opened the door to Mario Auditore's office, Desmond noticed the numbers 1419, 1420, and 1421 written on the walls, which he pointed out to the other Assassins. Shaun theorized that the numbers referred to dates; however, he admitted that he needed to do further research on the matter.

After the team fully set everything up, Desmond was given the resposibility of bringing electricity into the Sanctuary, by inserting devices of Rebecca's construction into four electrical power boxes located around Monteriggioni, which would allow them to accumulate small amounts of power from each source. After that problem was sorted, Desmond continued with his regular Animus sessions.

Obtaining the Apple

Harlan: "Shit! He's gone into shock!"

William: "Put him back in the machine, it's the only way to fix this"

Harlan: "But the Animus did this to him!"

William: "Am I the expert or not? Do it!"

—William Miles and Harlan, regarding Desmond's health, October 2012.

After finishing in the Animus, Desmond and the others learned that the Apple of Eden which Ezio possessed was hidden under the Colosseum. Upon traveling to Rome, the group separated, with Desmond climbing through the ruins of the Colosseum as the others tracked his route above ground. While he headed deeper, Desmond saw several visions of Juno along the way, until he eventually arrived at the Santa Maria Aracoeli, where he unbarred the door cover for the other Assassins to enter the building.

A hologram of Juno speaking to Desmond.

Upon synchronizing his DNA with a strange pedestal, several levers and structures lowered from the church's ceiling, to which a brief vision of Ezio showed Desmond the way to climb up. Along the way, more visions of Juno appeared, and she explained that the Vaults were made as the only proper places to hide away knowledge. Eventually, Desmond reached a structure with a lever, where he saw a vision of Ezio lowering it. Copying the phantom, Desmond also lowered the lever, which caused another pedestal to rise from the ground, along with a set of poles that Desmond used to make his way down.

Once again synchronizing his DNA with the pedestal, Desmond activated an elevator that took all of the Assassins down to the chamber below, which held the Apple in its center. As it was noted that a free-running course was the key to bridging the gap, Desmond maneuvered his way around the chamber and lowered several levers, all the while seeing visions of Juno scattered throughout. Finally, the stairway leading up to the Apple was raised, and the Assassins noticed several symbols being projected around the room as they walked up towards the Piece of Eden.

Desmond, being forced by Juno to stab Lucy.

However, as Desmond took the Apple of Eden from its pedestal, Juno's voice was heard, saying that Desmond's DNA had activated the Apple. Juno then took control of Desmond's body through the Apple, and forced him to stab Lucy in the abdomen with his Hidden Blade.

After collapsing in the Colosseum Vault, Desmond was taken away by the Assassins. Having slipped into shock at the ordeal, his unconscious body was recovered and transported to an unknown location.

During this time, Desmond was placed back into an Animus by William Miles and Harlan T. Cunningham. During this session, Ezio and Leonardo da Vinci were shown to have discovered a smaller Vault in Rome, and as Ezio's DNA had activated the Vault, a set of coordinates that was intended for Desmond were projected, showing: 43 39 19 N 75 27 42 W. Finally, after reliving more memories, Desmond's condition worsened to the point that he entered into a comatose state.

Exploring the Black Room

"Right now you should be sitting in a hospital ward, drooling, and chewing on your tongue. For now the Animus is keeping you intact. Keeping all your ancestors from collapsing into one big mess. But if you can't find a synch-nexus, all those personalities will smash together. That won't be pretty."

―Clay informing Desmond about his mental state.

Desmond finds himself in the Black Room.

Due to the intense mental strain that Desmond had bore, as a result of the exposure with the Apple and the incident with Lucy, William Miles, Desmond's father and the de facto leader of the Assassin Order, ordered Rebecca to place him into an Animus and shut down all of its non-vital functions. As such, this led to Desmond entering the Black Room, a safe mode built into the Animus' core programming.

Upon first waking on Animus Island, Desmond quickly ran into Subject 16's own consciousness, which had also been absorbed into the inner working of the virtual machine. Sixteen explained that Desmond needed to continue living his ancestor's memories until they had nothing left to show them — eventually reaching what Sixteen called a "synch nexus". Once Desmond had located it, the Animus would be able to separate his consciousness from Altaïr and Ezio, and he would be able to wake up. Sixteen then coldly remarked that if he hurried, Desmond could go to Lucy's funeral, which bombarded Desmond with flashbacks of stabbing Lucy, allowing him to realize the consequences of what had happened to in him the Colosseum Vault. On reflection, Desmond felt deeply hurt by his actions, but he proceeded into the memories of Ezio so that he could return to a conscious state.

After finishing the first sequence of Ezio's adventures in Masyaf, Desmond began eavesdropping on a conversation between his father and Rebecca. During it, William was examining the Apple, which made Rebecca nervous, though William reassured her that he didn't believe himself to have the proper genes to use the Apple's effects, with Rebecca following the conversation by guessing that Desmond did. Desmond was then pulled out of the memory corridor and back to Animus Island, where Sixteen explained that the Animus had detected him leaving the safe mode and had pulled him back to the island, acting as a failsafe program to try to keep his mind intact. He also told Desmond that he would keep the Animus distracted, in order to stop the machine from thinking that Desmond was a virus and deleting him.

Clay helping Desmond on the Animus Island.

Whenever he collected enough data fragments as Ezio, Desmond could enter the core of the Animus — a location where there were no simulations or environments, but simply raw data. In this space, Desmond reflected on his past — the Farm where he grew up, training as an Assassin, his escape from the Farm, life in New York City, and his eventual capture by Abstergo. He recalled his relationship with his parents and regretted not listening to them, as well as coming to terms with his role as an Assassin, noting that his easiest days were long gone but that he didn't want them anymore.

Between certain sequences, Desmond was pulled out of Ezio's memories, and conversed with Subject Sixteen when he returned to Animus Island. The first time they talked with each other, Sixteen asked Desmond if it was possible that he could go with him once he exited the Animus, and attempt to find another body which he could occupy. However, Desmond hesitantly refused, and Sixteen remarked that he understood the reason why and lamented on his situation.

Later on, Sixteen asked Desmond if he regretted anything he had done in his lifetime — like leaving his parents and ignoring his role as an Assassin for so long. In response, Desmond admitted that he wished he had been more patient with his mother and father, as well as confirming to himself that things between him Lucy could have went differently. Afterwards, Sixteen thanked him for "making sense", before he disappeared.

Clay saving Desmond from deletion.

Being pulled out a third time, Desmond was confronted with the sight of the island disintegrating around him. Sixteen proclaimed cynically that the Animus had scheduled them for deletion, gripping onto him as the virtual ground beneath their feet began to fracture, in a final gesture of farewell to Desmond, though he was bewildered at both the suddenness of it and whether Sixteen intended to have both of them die together. Desmond was proven wrong with this doubt when Sixteen then sacrificed himself, pushing him back into Ezio's final memories.

Regaining consciousness

"I know what we need to do."

―Desmond, upon awakening from his coma.

Desmond confronted by Jupiter.

When Ezio discovered the Apple of Eden that Altaïr possessed, it began to glow. Ezio, recalling his experience in the Vatican Vault, called out to Desmond, knowing that he would be listening. He urged Desmond to make sense of all the questions and suffering he had been through in his life, while bringing his story to an end and directing Desmond into the Synch Nexus.

It was here Desmond was confronted by another member of the First Civilization: Jupiter. The advanced being explained that the other members of the First Civilization had built Vaults all over the world, each of them researching different methods of salvation from the impending solar flares. Each Vault's discoveries were transmitted to the Grand Temple (located in modern upstate New York), where Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva sorted through what the others had found. In all, six solutions were tried and tested, and although they failed, a major breakthrough appeared to be emerging. Unfortunately, before they could reach this conclusion, a massive solar flare struck the Earth, killing almost the entire First Civilization. Less than 10,000 humans lived, and fewer members of First Civilization remained, though both races worked together to rebuild mankind following this disaster.

Desmond awaking from his coma.

Jupiter then charged Desmond with a mission: to visit the Grand Temple. He told Desmond to take his words, and to "pass them from [his] head into [his] hands," as by doing so he would "open the way." However, he warned Desmond that he was not sure how things would end, for either him or Desmond. Following this, Desmond then woke up from his coma, with Shaun, Rebecca, and his father standing beside him as he sat up from the Animus' seat.

After Desmond took in his surroundings, he told the others that he knew what they needed to do next, before William then opened the door to the van, revealing that they had arrived at the remains of the Grand Temple.

Search for the Grand Temple

Desmond, William, Shaun and Rebecca at the Grand Temple.

Desmond, William, Shaun and Rebecca soon arrived at the Grand Temple, where Desmond used the Apple of Eden to unlock the entrance. However, on doing so, the Temple activated the Bleeding effect within Desmond, which showed him that a key was required to unlock its inner chambers. Due to the event causing Desmond's mind to enter a brief "fugue state", he was placed back into the Animus by the Assassin team.

On reliving the memories of Haytham Kenway, who was revealed to be the key's owner, Desmond soon learned that Haytham was actually a Templar. Following this, Dsmond began to relive the memories of Haytham's son, Ratonhnhaké:ton, to further his search for the artifact.

Desmond occasionally left the Animus to explore the chambers of the Temple, where he often came across Juno as he had done in the Colosseum Vault. She explained to him the details of the six methods that the First Civilization had tried to use in order to save the world from the previous apocalypse, as well as continuing to urge him towards finding the key.

However, Desmond's experiences in the Animus were interrupted when it was revealed that the Temple's power sources were running low, and that they needed to be replaced. Thanks to Shaun tracking some down, the first power source was found in Manhattan. Desmond journeyed there to carry out his first proper mission as an Assassin, in which he climbed a skyscraper and parachuted from a crane to another building, where the power source was located. Whilst there, he encountered the Templar operative Daniel Cross, whom he disarmed and then knocked out in order to escape.

Desmond in the stadium on his way to the power source.

Through further exploration of the Temple, Desmond came to realise that whatever was waiting for the Assassins behind the door was ultimately going to benefit Juno in some way, and warned the others to play it safe. It was also here that he revealed to the others what she had previously shown him whilst she took control of his body in the Colosseum Vault. During this time, Desmond had seen a vision what would occur if Lucy had obtained the Apple from him and handed it to the Templars, which led him to learn of her true allegiance. Because of this, Desmond felt like he had agreed to enact what had happened, rather than being forced as he previously believed.

Eventually, the team discovered a second power source that was located on woman at a stadium in Brazil. While there, Desmond came into contact with Cross once more, to which he engaged the Templar in hand-to-hand combat and managed to incapacitate him again.

Returning to the Grand Temple, another power source was found rapidly, but as opposed to having Desmond retrieve it, William volunteered himself so that Desmond could concentrate on finding the Grand Temple key. However, after reliving more of Ratonhnhake:ton's memories, Desmond received a video message from Vidic, who announced that Abstergo had captured William. In exchange for his father, Desmond would need to hand over the Apple. In response, Desmond returned to the Abstergo facillity in Italy with Shaun and Rebecca.

Entering Abstergo, Desmond was made the offer to make a peaceful trade-off, but he refused, fighting his way through the guards to the upper floors. He then encountered Cross again, who held him at gunpoint. Fortunately for Desmond, Cross suddenly began to suffer a mental breakdown due to the Bleeding effect, and Desmond eventually caught up with the Templar and assassinated him in the Animi training room, much to Vidic's displeasure.

After this, Desmond made his way to Vidic's office, who demanded the Apple from Desmond on his arrival. On telling Vidic to "take it", Desmond used the Apple to influence one of the guards to shoot and kill the doctor, along with everyone else in the room except William. Desmond then escaped from Abstergo with his father and made his way back to the Grand Temple, where he re-enters Ratonhnhake:ton's memories.

Sacrifice

Using the third power source, Desmond was able to learn the location of the key after encountering the final memories of Ratonhnhake:ton. Unlocking the door, he and the Assassin team came across Juno once again. There, she told Desmond that his touch on an orb and pedestal-like device, claiming it would save the world.

However, Minerva suddenly appeared and urged Desmond not to touch it. She explained to him Juno's previous crimes of using the First Civilization's technology to try and conquer the world, how she was sealed inside the Temple and that using the device would release her to do the same again. Accompanying this, Desmond was shown a vision of the world's destruction and rebirth if he did nothing, only for it to succumb to the cycle of war and death once again as history repeats itself.

Despite this, Minerva pleaded for Desmond to let the world burn rather than let Juno free. Desmond then made his choice, of which he decided that it would be better to try and stop Juno later and save billions of lives than let the world be destroyed by the incoming solar flares. A final warning was given from Minerva about how the consequences were his to deal with, but Desmond urged everyone to get as far away from the Temple, even though William pleaded with him to reconsider.

Resolute in his decision, Desmond forced them to leave as he touched the pedestal. As a result, while his actions protected the world in the form of an aurora-like shield, the process of doing so caused Desmond to perish. As his body lay on the Temple floor, Juno congratulated him for playing his part, before stating that it was time she played hers.

Ancestry

Shaun: "What is he... is he the chosen one, is that it? Little Jimmy Special or some bollocks like that?"

William: "I'm afraid not. But what he has is rare. His genes contain high concentrations of First Civilization DNA. Only about one in ten million are so lucky."

—Shaun and William about Desmond's importance to the Order.

Desmond's family tree.

Desmond Miles came about from many different lines of Assassins through both sides of his family. As a result, Desmond had a higher concentration of First Civilization genes in his DNA than most other humans, which allowed him to properly wield the Pieces of Eden, which the First Civilization had initially created so that only their race could use them.

Desmond's most distant known ancestor was Lucius, a Gallo-Roman Assassin. His son and fellow Assassin, Aquilus, was next in line in Desmond's ancestry, alongside Aquilus' wife Valeria. Lucius and Aquilus were also members of the Liberalis Circulum, an Assassin organization, and were closely related to the Ankh, a First Civilization artifact that was wielded by Isis.

During the High Middle Ages, Umar Ibn-La'Ahad and his wife would become Desmond's ancestors, and were both members of the Levantine Assassins under the leadership of Al Mualim. They had one son, Altaïr, who became one of the most legendary Mentors of the Assassin Brotherhood. Following them, Altaïr and his wife Maria Thorpe conceived two children, Darim and Sef, Desmond's next ancestor. Next, Sef married and had two daughters, who moved to Alexandria after his death at the hands of Swami.

Desmond's ancestry also extended to Renaissance Italy, where his ancestor Domenico Auditore founded the House of Auditore in Monteriggioni with his son, Renato. Two generations later, Desmond's ancestor Giovanni Auditore da Firenze was born, a leading figure in the Italian Brotherhood. Giovanni and his wife Maria gave birth to his next ancestor, Ezio, who like Altaïr before him would become one of the Brotherhood's most renowned Mentors. Late in his life, Ezio married an Ottoman-born Venetian woman named Sofia Sartor, who became Desmond's ancestor after conceiving one of their children, a daughter named Flavia.

As well as these individuals, during the 18th century, Haytham Kenway, a British Templar that became the Grand Master of the Templars in Colonial America, and a Mohawk woman named Kaniehti:io would become Desmond´s ancestors. They later had a son named Ratonhnhaké:ton, who was raised among his mother's tribe and became the next ancestor of Desmond. He was heavily involved in the Assassin-Templar conflict during the American Revolutionary War.

Characteristics and personality

Desmond's free-running abilities used in the Colosseum vault.

Desmond was a gruff and cynical individual, who held a serious outlook on life. This was mainly due to him learning of the Templars and Assassins in his youth, and even of their connection to Abstergo, as he was educated to their power and reach during his childhood at the Farm. However, he grew to disbelieve this, eventually dismissing what he was taught as paranoid delusions – and his parents as "conspiracy freaks" – until he was kidnapped and brought to Abstergo.

Despite this, he was not above jesting about his situation, and would occasionally crack jokes, although they rarely elicited a good reaction from anyone. After his emancipation from Abstergo, Desmond's demeanor became considerably more relaxed, and he spent a notable amount of time conversing with Lucy. However, he began to question his sanity after experiencing the Bleeding effect.

After Lucy's death and learning of his detainment in the Black Room, Desmond was overcome with grief and remorse. While trapped in the Black Room, he reflected on his life, his family, and his choice to not be an Assassin. However, Desmond eventually found closure while recalling his past and learning from Ezio and Altaïr's final genetic memories; he came to realize that his easier times were over, and that he had to face the fact that he was an Assassin and not to shy away from it.

Equipment and skills

Desmond in Monteriggioni, equipped with a hidden blade.

As Desmond was trained during childhood as an Assassin, he was proficient in basic reconnaissance skills, such as eavesdropping and pickpocketing. After about a week of being forced to relive the memories of his ancestor Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, Desmond developed an extra-sensory ability dubbed Eagle Vision.

Later on, after willingly exploring the memories of one of his other ancestors, Ezio Auditore da Firenze, Desmond learned how to free-run and use weapons. Not long afterwards, he was able to easily fend off a Templar attack with Ezio's combat skills.

Since fully synchronizing with Ezio, Desmond had been able to use all of the abilities his ancestor could in the modern era, most notably in free-running across Monteriggioni and the Colosseum.

After waking up from his coma, Desmond explored the memories of one of his ancestors, Ratonhnhaké:ton, and learned more deadly combat skills, as well as the ability to dual-wield. He would later use these skills in his mission to rescue his father in Abstergo. Accompanying this, his improved agility showed itself, as he easily outmatched Daniel Cross' freerunning capabilities.

Trivia

Name and ancestry

• The etymology of Desmond's name "the world" (or "man of the world" in Celtic) was not related to either of his ancestors', whereas Altaïr's and Ezio's names pertained to avians; Altaïr's meaning "the flying one" and Ezio's "eagle."
• Desmond's surname "Miles" was the Latin word for "soldier." This name suited him however, as he wanted to leave his parents' watchful eyes to see the rest of the world outside the compound, and referred to his role in saving the world from destruction.
• Desmond was a descendant of the First Civilization and humans. Proof of this was his Eagle Vision, a product of the unification of those two races, which also led to the birth of the first "Assassins," Adam and Eve.

Physical description

• Desmond was modeled after Francisco Randez and voiced by Nolan North.
• A "missing-person" poster, purportedly made by Desmond's friends after his disappearance, gave Desmond's physical characteristics as "Age: 25 - Height: 6' - Weight: 195 lbs - Brown hair - Brown eyes."
  • The medical report from Abstergo's evaluation of Desmond, dated 3 September 2012, described him as physically fit. His weight, however, was listed as 189lbs.
  • Also, while the poster stated that Desmond had brown eyes, his eye color has changed on multiple occasions. In Assassin's Creed they were golden; in Assassin's Creed II they were brown again; and in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, when he entered Subject 16's virtual maze, they were displayed as blue. The latter was best seen during the dialogue between him and Subject 16.
• According to the Assassin's Creed game manual, Desmond was an A+ blood type.
• Desmond's ancestors Altaïr and Ezio both possessed identical scars on their lips similar to Desmond's. However, Desmond's other ancestors, Aquilus and Ratonhnhaké:ton, both did not possess the scar.
  • As well as this, in Assassin's Creed: Revelations, Desmond's scar had been removed, possibly due to an oversight. The scar on his lip was returned in Assassin's Creed III, however.

Assassin's Creed

• Desmond's history showed that he never wanted to be an Assassin, nor did he have the skills before Assassin's Creed II to be one; as Shaun put it "You [Desmond] didn't even try to escape." However, in the graphic novel of Assassin's Creed that was included with the limited edition of the game, he did call himself an Assassin, and showed skills of stealth and lethality.

Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines

• The Animus machine, during the tutorial segment, referred to the subject viewing the memories as Subject 17, which was the subject number given to Desmond during the events of Assassin's Creed. Although likely, Desmond's presence in Bloodlines is highly debatable, due to time conflicts between Assassin's Creed and Assassin's Creed II.

Assassin's Creed II

• Desmond acquired a Hidden Blade at the conclusion of Assassin's Creed II. The original owner of the blade was not mentioned, but its bracer was identical to the one that Ezio inherited from his father, Giovanni. However, it was very unlikely that Ezio's bracer was passed down to Desmond, as Ezio replaced it upon traveling to Rome.
• Although only given a Hidden Blade, this was not the only weapon Desmond could use, as he could disarm and use the tactical batons of Abstergo security guards when he defended himself at the Assassin hideout in Rome.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

• Interacting with the statue of Altaïr in the Sanctuary at any point during the storyline would trigger Desmond to say "Hey, wassa-matta-you, Altaïr?", followed by Rebecca reprimanding him for being racist, and then Lucy rebuking them both for wasting time. This could be done as many times as desired after the cutscene, however it lacked any responses from the other Assassins.
• In early images, Desmond was seen with a beard identical to Ezio's. It was unknown why the beard was present then, and it was later removed.
• Surprisingly, Desmond's climbing resembled that of Altaïr rather than Ezio's, considering he had spent more time training through Ezio's memories than Altaïr's.
• During the beginning, when Desmond and Lucy were traversing through the tunnels to get to the Sanctuary, the two would engage in a brief argument on how to climb a small wall. Desmond suggested that one of them should give the other a boost into the air to reach a ledge, however, Lucy refused. This is a reference to the game Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, in which the protagonist, Nathan Drake, who was also voiced by Nolan North, must often launch his female companions with a boost to get around certain obstacles. Ironically, Lucy and Desmond also began using a catapult jumping technique exactly like the one seen in Uncharted 2, in order to cross gaps in the path to the Sanctuary later on.
• Desmond was practically invincible outside of the Animus, where he was able to survive, unharmed, from a fall of any height.
• Despite being equipped with a Hidden Blade throughout the story, Desmond only used it twice; the first in the Auditore Family Crypt, to lower a platform for Lucy, and the second in the Colosseum Vault, to stab Lucy.
• Should full synchronization be achieved in Sequence 8, Desmond would appear as a playable skin in the Animus. The Animus stated that the Desmond model was uploaded from the Animus memory banks, and despite him only wearing one Hidden Blade, double kills were still possible.
• An exact replica of Desmond's shirt (as well as one in an alternative color) was available from the Ubiworkshop online store.
• Desmond's t-shirt design had changed in development of the game. In screenshots, the eagle on his shirt was facing towards Desmond's right, but in-game, the eagle faced towards Desmond's left.
• If Desmond failed to return to the Sanctuary after 10 minutes, he would reappear back there to no ill effect.
• After Desmond was given the watch and earpiece by Lucy, he would continue to wear them even after returning to the Sanctuary for the duration of his stay there. Despite this, the watch and earpiece would still be located on the counter where Desmond received them.
• If medicine had last been used in the Animus and it was saved onto a quick use slot before exiting it, Desmond would be able to have the medicine as well, with no ill effects. The process of using the medicine as Desmond could be repeated until there was no longer any medicine in Ezio's inventory, despite Desmond not being able to injure himself when he fell from any height.

Assassin's Creed: Revelations

• As long as Desmond appeared in his subconscious state, he wore a black hoodie with a white shirt, which was inverted from what he wore in Brotherhood (white hoodie, black shirt). Despite this, the Desmond outfit that could be used within the Animus still depicted the Brotherhood outfit with his facial features from Revelations. However, he no longer wore his courier bag, headset or wristband/watch, and his Hidden Blade appeared to have been removed.
• A replica of the black hoodie that Desmond wore in Revelations was available from the UbiWorkshop site, along with the white hoodie from Brotherhood and two other versions that were not exact replicas.
• While on Animus Island, Desmond could flick his wrists as though he was activating his Hidden Blade, despite him not actually wearing one.
• William Miles noted that Desmond had an unusually high concentration of First Civilization DNA, allowing him to properly wield the Apple, and that there was a one in ten million chance that other people had similar concentrations.

Assassin's Creed III

• Typically, Ubisoft did not allow spinning to be incorporated in an Assassin's freerunning moves during development, though Desmond is an exception. "He can twirl his way to success," joked Creative Director Alex Hutchinson.
• When Desmond equipped his Hidden Blade to save his father from Abstergo, he wore it on his right forearm instead of his left. Normally when Assassins wield a single Hidden Blade, they place it on their less dominant side, typically the left. Indeed, in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Desmond wielded the Hidden Blade on his left arm. However, when fighting Desmond suddely wields a knife in a similar as Connor's hidden blade. It is clear that the game designers used the same move set for Desmond and Connor. For this to work, they had to move Desmond's hidden blade to his right arm as his did not include the upgrade that Connor posessed and could not be used as a knife.

References

An image gallery is available for Desmond Miles