Wednesday, 27 January 2021 13:00

Assassin’s Creed Origins: 10 Things You Should Know About Aya

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Aya's backstory might have been revealed in Assassin's Creed Origins, but the character's legacy can be felt throughout Ubisoft's franchise.

Aya was not given the same spotlight as Bayek in Assassin's Creed Origins, but her legacy has been deeply tied to the history of the assassins. She was presented as determined, tough, and skillful which made her character inspirational.

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Although Aya/Amunet was the deuteragonist in Origins, she was remembered by the Assassins in the present day as a revolutionary assassin. Her importance to the Assassin's Creed lore makes her one of the most valuable assassins in their entire history.

10 Her Assassin Name Was Amunet

At the end of Assassin's Creed Origins, Aya said she would be known as Amunet from then on. After creating the Hidden Ones, her real name was a secret known to few since this was a moment for rebirth.

Aya had new goals and aspirations in sight and she would go onto accomplish them as Amunet. Also, the name Amunet is named after the Ptolemaic Egyptian goddess which means "hidden one".

9 Behind The Death Of Cleopatra

In real life, it is debated whether Cleopatra took her own life by poisoning herself or if she was bit by an asp, a type of venomous viper. However, in the Assassin's Creed world, it's a bit different. Cleopatra and Aya had a turbulent relationship since the latter worked for the former but was also betrayed.

Aya showed mercy and let Cleopatra live at the end of Assassin's Creed Origins. However, according to the Assassin's Creed Origins comic, Cleopatra's death was assisted by Amunet post-Origins. Amunet provided Cleopatra with a vial of poison to take her own life. This differs from Amunet's description in Assassin's Creed 2, nonetheless, she was involved in Cleopatra's death. Amunet took Cleopatra's son, Caesarion, to become a part of the Hidden Ones.

8 The Original Main Character Of Assassin’s Creed Origins

Aya was originally planned as the main protagonist in the game. Reporting done by Bloomberg stated that Aya's role was minimized throughout the game's development which put Bayek front-and-center. Origins would have had Bayek killed off or injured in the beginning and then have Aya take the lead role.

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The change to the original storyline came from Ubisoft's marketing department and Chief Creative Officer Serge Hascoet. They believed female protagonists wouldn't sell. This is why players didn't get to know her character like they got to know Bayek.

7 Amunet Was In Assassin’s Creed 2

Amunet made her name as a notable assassin as early as Assassin's Creed 2. Her statue was held in high regard among other well-known assassins in the Sanctuary in Monteriggioni. This dictates that she was meant to play a larger role, especially when her statue is standing in a commemorative chamber.

The information on the statue states that Amunet is a female Egyptian assassin who killed Cleopatra with a snake. Players now know that Amunet gave Cleopatra a vial of poison. Perhaps the snake was only symbolic or a change in the story.

6 Location Of Amunet's Tomb

Although Assassin's Creed Origins states that Amunet's body was buried near Bayek in Egypt, Assassin's Creed 2 showed something else. The building that has the Seal of Amunet was hidden in the Basilica di San Marco in Venice, Italy. The tomb had a sarcophagus with her body in it. This discrepancy hasn't been clarified, but players have a few theories.

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Ubisoft could have changed the location to fit the story of Origins and to remove Italy as the center of the Assassin's Creed world. Another theory is that the tombs for the statues in the Sanctuary that were scattered around Italy were only symbolic to honor those assassins.

5 Founded A Roman Assassin Bureau

After the end of Assassin's Creed Origins, Aya became Amunet and left Egypt. In a letter to Bayek, Amunet wrote, "Bayek, Caesar has been assassinated. Septimius is also dead. I have founded a bureau in the middle of Rome, yet no one knows of our existence. Like Amun, we are...the Hidden Ones."

This letter was spoken by Amunet at the end of Origins. In the Assassin's Creed Origins comic, it reveals important parts of Amunet's life that took place in Rome. For example, there was a notable conflict between Amunet, the Hidden Ones, and their enemy Marcus Antonius.

4  She Was A Scholar

According to the Assassin's Creed Desert Oath novel, Aya was born to scholar parents in Alexandria, Egypt, and dreamed of studying in the Library of Alexandria when she was young. She was hesitant to marry Bayek for that reason and also because her views on the world were different than a Medjay.

Eventually, Aya married him and had their son, Khemu. After Khemu's death, Aya returned to the Library of Alexandria to continue learning and becoming a scholar. She also spent time learning about the people who were involved in the death of her son. She even had her own hideout by the Library.

3 She Renounced All Love

After getting revenge for her son's death, Amunet became an assassin that spent her life dedicated to the Hidden Ones. She moved on from her past life and she also claimed to have renounced all love she once had. The expansions for Origins shows that Amunet still cared for Bayek, but their romantic relationship was non-existent. However, they maintained a strong bond.

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Aya and Bayek had their own paths, which the latter supported as well. Also, they both grew up together and were buried together in Egypt. Neither Bayek nor Amunet had children after the death of Khemu.

2 Written In The Magas Codex

The Magas Codex was a six-page collectible in Assassin's Creed Valhalla which rewards players with parts of the armor set. Each page describes a conversation between the assassins Magas and Hakor in the Alexandrian bureau and an assassin in her 50s. The Codex describes the ironies and the three tenets assassins must follow.

Those tenets were that assassins must be stealthy, to never compromise the assassins, and to keep their blades away from the innocent. The final page of the Codex revealed that the woman was the founder of the Hidden Ones. Magas said that the woman "has seen the blood of Caesar, the tears of Cleopatra, and the wrath of Imperator Augustus no less!" He then revealed that the woman was Amunet.

1 Descendant of Kassandra

Amunet was half Greek and half Egyptian, but there is a lot more to her ancestry. In the Assassin's Creed Odyssey expansion called Legacy of the First Blade: Bloodline, players learn more about Kassandra's son, Elpidios.

In the DLC's cutscene, it shows Elpidios walking in Egypt and his decedents walking in his steps one by one. The cutscenes end with Amunet on top of the Sphinx performing the leap of faith. This cutscene tied in the two games Odyssey and Origins together while also emphasizing the importance of Aya/Amunet in the Assassin's Creed lore.

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