George Westhouse

"The Council shall guide us, sound advice that your father would have seconded."

―George to Jacob and Evie Frye, 1868.

George Westhouse (born 1820) was a member of the British Brotherhood of Assassins during the Victorian era. A close friend of Ethan Frye, he was responsible for planning the missions of his children, Jacob and Evie Frye, after Ethan's death.

Biography

Early life

George grew up working in an old mill by a river in Crawley, which proved strenuous for him. One day, he was attacked by robbers by the riverbank, only to be rescued by the Assassin Ethan Frye. Instilled with a sense of adventure, George left behind his job and joined the Brotherhood, after which he took part in missions with Ethan and his wife Cecily, who acted as his superiors and taught him how to fight.

In 1847, Cecily passed away after giving birth to twins, Jacob and Evie, while Ethan elected to leave for India for six years to mourn and recover from his loss. Upon his return, Ethan and George became good friends, and the former would occasionally report his activities to the latter.

Partnership with Ethan

In 1860, George received a letter addressed to Ethan, revealing that the latter's student, Jayadeep Mir, had been imprisoned in the Assassin facility known as The Darkness by the Indian Brotherhood and was awaiting execution for compromising the Creed during his first assignment. George relayed the information to his friend, and Ethan subsequently traveled to India to save Jayadeep from his plight.

In 1862, following Ethan's assassination of the Templar Robert Waugh, he reported the incident to George at the latter's home in Croydon. Seeing that his friend was lying about the circumstances of the assassination, George warned Ethan of his own carelessness. The two then formulated a plan involving Waugh's body and the Assassin known as "The Ghost", whose identity George had not been informed of yet.

Sometime later, George was present in the Frye household when the Indian Assassin Ajay arrived to deliver a cryptic letter to Ethan. Sensing something was amiss, Ethan decided to pursue Ajay, bringing George, Evie and Jacob along. After cornering the Indian Assassin, he apologized for endangering the Ghost's life and committed suicide. Later, George suggested to Ethan that he warn the Ghost to abandon their assignment, but Ethan insisted on continuing the mission, claiming he knew the Ghost and had faith in their abilities.

After Ethan and the Ghost were unable to prevent the Templars from acquiring an Apple of Eden, George visited the Ghost at their residence in the Thames Tunnel in London. Discovering the mysterious Assassin to be Jayadeep Mir, who had fallen into depression after the Templars killed his friend Maggie, George advised him to adopt a new identity and create a network for the Brotherhood in London. Months later, George and Ethan accompanied Jayadeep's parents Arbaaz Mir and Pyara Kaur when they came to visit him, and they eventually managed to convince him to adopt the name Henry Green and return to the Brotherhood.

In 1867, George suggested to fellow Assassin Pierrette Arnaud that she leave England for Egypt in order to learn about the roots of the Assassins, in part because he thought her induction into the Brotherhood to have been very unorthodox.

Working with the Frye twins

"The iron ships from here. The Templar running things is Rupert Ferris, and our target one. Target two is Sir David Brewster, who's got his hands on a bauble that could ruin us in this wretched war. Think you both can handle it?"

―George giving the Frye twins the details of their mission, 1868.

By 1868, Ethan had contracted pleurisy and was on his deathbed. George stood by his friend's side in his final days, during which they discussed the Brotherhood's future, and Ethan trusted George to continue his children's training after his death. George had been previously paired with Jacob and Evie on several missions and had grown to consider them somewhat reckless, but upheld his promise to Ethan and became responsible for planning the twins' missions.

George also maintained Ethan's course on the conflict with the Templars, who had taken firm control of London, believing that the Assassins should wait for a more opportune moment to strike, which itself was a risky move. Henry Green tried to convince him otherwise in a series of letters, warning George that the Templars under Grand Master Crawford Starrick were now expanding their ambitions to the world at large. However, Henry's pleas for help were largely ignored by the Assassin Council.

George with the Frye twins

In February 1868, George sent Jacob and Evie to assassinate the Templars Rupert Ferris and David Brewster, respectively, in Croydon. While Ferris kept the London industries in his firm grip, Brewster was experimenting on an Apple of Eden. On their successful return, the twins argued to George that they needed to strike at the Templars in London, especially since Evie had learned that Starrick was pursuing a lead on another Piece of Eden.

George disagreed, claiming that the Templars were still too strong and that, without Brewster, they would not be able to use the artifact. He also believed that the Assassin Council was wiser on the matter, something Ethan would have agreed with. After George left, however, Jacob and Evie decided to defy his orders and take on the Templars in London.

Several months later, George arrived in London himself and met with Henry, who informed him of the recent developments in the city, namely Jacob and Evie's actions in undermining the Templars' control and locating a Shroud of Eden. As Henry was doubting his own abilities as an Assassin, George reassured him that the Brotherhood needed its analytical minds as much as it needed its warriors, and that both his parents and Ethan would be proud of what Henry had achieved so far. He then took his leave after handing Henry a book Evie had requested he find, which contained information about the Shroud.

Partnering with Pierrette

In 1873, George met with Pierrette in a pub in Crawley following the latter's return from Egypt. As the two exchanged information, Pierrette revealed that she wanted to discuss a list of London businesses affiliated with the Templars from her findings in Cairo and the Suez Canal. George informed her that most of the businesses had fallen due to the Vienna stock market crash, the only exception being a business called Drake Line, which the pair decided to investigate. George also offered Pierrette a promotion to the rank of Master Assassin due to her diligent work ethic.

After nine years working together, George and Pierrette spent their time tracing Templar leads especially after Konstanze von Visler's double betrayal of the Assassins. Although George stated his mistrust in the judgement of Simeon Price, Pierrette stated the contrary. In the spring of 1882, George met with Pierrette at Crabbet Farm and assigned her a mission to protect Queen Victoria, who he believed was being targeted by the Templars. Pierrette initially refused the assignment, but George convinced her by bringing up the assassination of Alexander II in Russia, and handed her a maid outfit.

Behind the scenes

George Westhouse is a character first introduced in the 2015 video game Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, where he was portrayed by Peter Mikhail.

George's Assassin robes resemble those worn by the protagonist that featured in leaked pre-release screenshots of Syndicate, which was still referred to as Assassin's Creed: Victory at the time.

Gallery

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  A close-up of George
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  The Frye twins looking down at George
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  George speaking to the twins

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Syndicate (first appearance)
• Assassin's Creed: Underworld
• Assassin's Creed: The Engine of History – The Resurrection Plot
• Assassin's Creed Roleplaying Game (indirect mention only)