Aletheia

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"Call me Aletheia. I am truth and its revelation, and I am calling you out."

―Aletheia

Aletheia was an Isu and the Dikastes of Atlantis around the time of the Human-Isu War. Unlike many of the known Isu who were deified by their human slave species, Aletheia became a personification of truth and was repulsed by those among her own people who had embraced divine status.

However, she was also involved in a potentially scandalous interrealm affair as the mistress of the Asgardian Loki, a union which produced three children: Fenrir, Jörmungandr, and Hel.

When Aletheia later suffered a grave injury, Loki, desperate to save his lover, transferred her consciousness into the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus. From there, she would one day interact with the Keeper of the staff and help the Staff's heir in her journey. She also made numerous recordings on the Olympos Project and stored them in the Gateway to the Lost City, a vault connected to Atlantis. In order to teach Kassandra how to use the staff, Aletheia also created several simulations based on the memories of her time as Dikastes of Atlantis.

Names

Aletheia was considered a god in Greek mythology. She was also known by her Roman counterpart Veritas. ^{[citation needed]} The Norse name for Aletheia was Angrboða, considered among one of the jötnar in Norse mythology. Her name of Angrboða could roughly be translated into "the one who brings grief," "she who offers sorrow," or "harm-bidder", while other sources translated it as "truth-giver."

Biography

Dikastes of Atlantis

"In my time as Dikastes, I also tried to bring balance to Atlantis, but it wasn't enough."

―Aletheia to Kassandra, c. 422 BCE.

During the Isu Era, Aletheia served as the Dikastes of Atlantis, appointed by the city's ruler Poseidon. During her tenure, she attempted to bring balance by passing judgement on the city's laws and customs. At one point, Aletheia became aware of the Olympos Project, a scientific exercise conducted by her fellow Isu Aita and Juno as a means to quell a rebellion by the humans if they ever revolted. Horrified at their experiments, Aletheia made numerous recordings detailing their actions and stored them in a number of steles in a vault connected to Atlantis. Seeing that Poseidon's prohibition of experiments on humans didn't stop the two Isu from using Atlantis' Knowledge to run their nefarious project, Aletheia advised the Dikastes Basileus to end the current cycle and sink the city for good.

War with Asgard

Some time later, the Greco-Roman Isu were at war with the Asgardian Isu, who lived in the city of Asgard in Scandinavia. During the conflict, Aletheia fell in love with Loki, an Isu who belonged to the Æsir group, with whom she mothered three children with: Fenrir, Hel and Jörmungandr. She and Fenrir lived on the territory surrounding the Grand Temple, in North America, and Loki would sometimes leave Asgard to be with them. Apparently, the child displayed a mark that was somehow connected to the impending Great Catastrophe, a sign that scared the other Greco-Roman Isu. As such, Aletheia and Loki were forced to smuggle their son to Asgard with the help from the Builder, who sought to kill Odin, the Asgardian Isu leader.

Before Loki left for Asgard, Aletheia spoke to the Capitoline Triad, Jupiter, Juno and Minerva, who had started to search for a method to save their people from the cataclysm. They assured her that their success was imminent, as they had started developing a Seventh Method of salvation. She told Loki about the meeting, but he was not convinced since they had already failed six times.

One day, she was hassled by Juno, who was trying to convince her to join her side, to which Aletheia responded that she was underestimating the humans, they would outlive their creators following the catastrophe. Suddenly, Odin, who was searching for a way to survive the disaster, entered her abode, searching for her. Having heard rumors about the new method, he questioned the two women. Juno immediately told him about their experiment. As she had learnt from Loki what Odin had done to their child, and seeing an opportunity to learn about Asgard's defenses, she drove Juno away and tricked Odin into subject himself to a truth device. As Odin was weakened by it, Loki reveled himself and demanded to know what he would do to Fenrir. Odin was honest and told them that he intended to keep their son imprisoned until the Catastrophe struck the Earth. Satisfied with the answers, Aletheia disabled him and the two Isu hung Odin from a tree. Unknowingly to her, Odin, with the help of Juno, stole the Mead from the Grand Temple and used it to build the Yggdrasil Chamber, that would upload the DNA of the Asgardian Isu and, millennia later, reincarnate them in humans.

Loki returned to Aletheia sometime after telling her he had killed the Mad ones child Baldr, Aletheia was worried of the possibility that Loki could have been seen by someone but Loki just laughed and later telling her that Odin was out trying to resurrect his son and that they could try and steal the Mead in the mean time. But the next morning Aletheia woke Loki up telling him that soldiers had been sent to arrest them but Loki would try to appeal to the council and tell them what Odin had done.

Aletheia became gravely injured before she and her love could use the Mead so Loki transferred Aletheia's mind into the Staff of Hermes. Planning a way to one day be reunited Loki left the staff to Hermes and left to the Yggdrasil chamber.

Appalled by Loki's treachery to his wife Sigyn and fearing what he had seen in the calculations, Odin locked away Fenrir. ^{[citation needed]} Angered by Odin's acts Loki talked to Aletheia about going public with Fenrir's imprisonment. Aletheia attempted to calm him down, worried for their other childrens' safety if Loki's wife found out about their affair, but Loki did not listen and left the conversation.

Helping the Keeper

Aletheia meeting Kassandra on the Island of Triton

Around 422 BCE, a projection of Aletheia summoned the Spartan misthios Kassandra, now the owner of the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus, to the Island of Triton. There, Aletheia introduced herself to Kassandra, asking her to pledge herself as the "Heir of Memories". She then told Kassandra to find Theras, in order for the Heir to continue her journey.

Aiding the Heir of Memories

After finding Theras, Kassandra was sent to find three tombs. Aletheia appeared at the entrance of each, in order that Layla, acting as the Heir of Memories, would be able to unlock the gate to Atlantis. During Layla's exploration of three tombs, Aletheia revealed that she had a consciousness kept within the Staff, able to communicate with Layla and listen to frequencies, speaking of a currently unidentified male "interloper" who was interfering with the communications frequency between the Altair II and Layla.

After the gate to Atlantis was unlocked, Aletheia appeared as a projection to Layla, and later to Victoria Bibeau, instructing that Layla synchronise with Kassandra's experience of Aletheia's custom built simulations in order to unlock the full potential of the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus.

When three members of Sigma Team attacked, Layla remarked that Aletheia had turned tail, and as such is nowhere to be found after the attack.

Aletheia eventually resurfaced to let Laya continue with the trials until Victoria interrupted, fearing for Layla's destabilizing vitals. Aletheia witnessed a Bleeding Effect-crazed Layla strike Victoria dead with the Staff's power, to which caused her to regret choosing Layla as the Heir of Memories.

Aletheia reluctantly agreed to let Layla conclude the final trial, but followed her into the simulation supervise her actions. Upon completion, Alethiea returned Kassandra from the simulation and congratulated her. Aletheia then spoke out to Laya one final time and warned her that the interloper, revealed to be Juhani Otso Berg, had reached their location before fading away with the Animus transmission.

Reunion with Loki

In 2020 Layla Hassan had brought the Staff to the Yggdrasil chamber where the dorment body of Basim Ibn Ishaq still layed. Having fufilled the plan Loki and Aletheia had planned long ago she dropped the staff on the floor. Basim's body was dropped onto the staff and revived. After being silent for so long Aletheia once again spoke to her lover asking if their plan had gone as planned.

Legacy

In 431 BCE, when Kassandra visited the Ancient Forge on the island of Andros, Aletheia spoke to her, acting as the system voice for the Forge as it upgraded the Spear of Leonidas.

Aletheia's recordings on the Olympos Project was later discovered by Kassandra, who traveled to the vault in search of her father, Pythagoras.

In 2018, Layla Hassan kept a record of her findings about Aletheia on her laptop.

Behind the scenes

According to Pindar's Olympian Ode, Aletheia was the daughter of Zeus, however according to Aesop's Fables, she was crafted by Prometheus. Aletheia was also revered as the Greek goddess of truth, as was her Roman equivalent Veritas. Aletheia, ἀλήθεια, is Greek for 'not a lie, truth'.

The 'impression' of Aletheia on Layla's computer is similar to Martin Deschambault's concept art of Minerva.

Gallery

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  Impression of Aletheia on Layla's laptop
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  Close-up of Aletheia
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  Aletheia as Angrboda

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Odyssey (first appearance)
  • The Fate of Atlantis
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla (as Angrboda)