Isu incarnation

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Reborn Isu are human reincarnations of the Isu.

While initially believed that this only applied only to Aita, a member of the Isu and the husband of Juno, reincarnations of whom are referred to as Sages, it has since been discovered that reincarnations of other Isu surfaced in Scandinavia around the 9th century. Among that group were Eivor Varinsdottir, the incarnation of Odin; her adoptive brother Sigurd Styrbjornsson, Týr's reincarnation; and Svala, the rebirth of Freyja.

Sages

Main article: Sages

A Maya statue of a Sage's head in underground Tulum

The most prevalent Isu reincarnations are those of the Isu Aita, known as Sages. These Sages reappeared many times throughout history, bore a physical resemblance to Aita, and were recognizable by their antisocoria and heterochromia.

Reborn Asgardian Isu

Phenomenon

"All that power! All that potential, locked away. A god trapped in a prison of bones! The pain was necessary to free him!"

―The Magaester Fulke on the Reborn Isu Sigurd's nature, 875 CE

Odin, seven of his most trusted Isu followers, and Loki, had their DNA, memories, and consciousness integrated into the human gene pool by the use of the seventh method of salvation crafted by the Capitoline Triad through Yggdrasil, in hope of escaping the doom of their civilization and be reborn in human bodies millennia later. More specically, they injected their blood on human fetuses, prompting their DNA to remain dormant in the bloodlines of the future humans, possesing a recessive trait. Eventually, a trigger would take place under specific circumstances that would give the Isu's DNA a dominant trait, manipulating their physical characteristics to match the ones from the respective Isu and slowly forcing the resurgence of their memories and consciousnesses, which would try to take over the human host's mind.

Characteristics

Predecessor's Impulses

In stark contrast of Sages who were only plagued by memories of their previous incarnation Isu Aita, Reborn Asgardian Isu had aspects of their lives often partially or fully repeat themselves in the lives of their human reincarnations. Like Odin, Eivor had a strong aversion to wolves, ^{[citation needed]} had the raven Sýnin as her familiar echoing Huginn and Muninn, and when connected to Yggdrasil, regularly lost her left eye fighting alongside the einherjar in the simulation of Valhalla. In similar fashion, Sigurd mediated disputes and delivered judgements as jarl and had his right arm severed at the elbow, like Týr, the god of war and justice who lost his own arm to the wolf Fenrir, in Norse mythology.

Halfdan Ragnarsson, the reincarnation of Thor, had a strong affinity for using his hammer Orthstirr in battle, regularly threw it, and was extremely paranoid about being poisoned, unknowingly copying Thor's use of Mjölnir and foreshadowing the thunder god's demise in Ragnarök due to Jörmungandr's venom. Even Rig Reidarasson was haunted with strong impulses to kill a "man with the mark in the House of Shadows", unknowingly following Heimdall's desire of revenge of killing Loki due to his own murder by the trickster's hand during the Great Catastrophe.

Convenience of the reincarnations

In the particular case of the Reborn Asgardian Isu, the specific time period and the bloodline where they would be born were specially planned to happen at the same year span and region of the globe. As such, the Sages of Freyja, Thor, Sif, Freyr, Týr, Odin and Idun were born between the end of the 8th century and beginning of the 9th century and all of them were born in bloodlines that were natural from Northern Europe. Due to the disturbances caused by Loki in Heimdall's reincarnation process, killing him right after he injected himself with the "Mead", Heimdall's Sage Rig was born near Scandinavia but approximately twenty years before the other reincarnations. When he tried to take revenge in Loki's reincarnation in Constantinople, he returned to his crew stating that "[He] had become before [his] time", even reinforcing it by saying that "[He] was born too early and [he was] alone, without [his] father, without [his] friends" after concluding that Basim had not been born yet.

In addition to this, the fact that Loki only injected himself with the serum after all the other Æsir left the chamber made his reincarnation be born in the Mediterranean city of Constantinople, far from the place of birth of the other Sages. This loneliness accelerated the redevelopment of Loki's consciousness. ^{[citation needed]} This also allowed Loki's consciousness to fully assimilate Basim's mind into itself and, by 872 CE, the Isu's conscience had taken full control over his body, psychology, behavior and actions.

Physical features and similarities

"Show me your neck!"

―Basim Ibn Ishaq to Eivor Varinsdottir, 877 CE

These reincarnations could be identified by a mass of dark veins on their necks.

History

Isu Era

Desperate to save the life of her husband Aita, who had been left in a catatonic state after being used as subject test to the fifth method of salvation, Juno embarked on a quest to acquire the "Mead", the serum that would activate the latest solution to halt the Great Catastrophe designed by the Capitoline Triad, locked up in the Grand Temple under the guard of Jupiter and Minerva. This particular innovation, if used correctly, could reincarnate some members of the Isu as humans in the distant future, but Jupiter and Minerva deemed it dangerous to use as it would damage the human genome in the process and eventually influence human history in an uncontrollable way. Desperate for the Mead, Juno investigated their research sites and found the Mímisbrunnr, which was meant to receive the Mead when ready. Soon after, she began to inquire and plot out multiple ways to take it from the Vault in order to save her beloved, actions that eventually exiled her from the city guarding the Temple. Upon Odin's visit to Jötunheimr to meet Aletheia, she discovered that he too sought the seventh method and so decided to wait until she and her lover Loki dealt with him before deciding to collaborate with Odin to steal the serum from the Grand Temple.

Odin managed to successfully steal the Mead from the city of Útgarðar above the vault, but not without deceiving Minerva and battling with Jupiter himself. Juno told him to come to the experimental well in order to make the serum work. After Odin sacrificed his left eye in payment in order to use it as catalyst, the machine accepted this sacrifice and the serum was finally synthesized, much to Juno's delight. With both the Isu taking samples of the fluid, she cautioned him to use the serum moments before his death, in order for it to work, as only the memories happening prior to the consumption of the concussion would be preserved within the new body. With the Mead now in hand, she was able to successfully insert her late husband's essence into a human bloodline, tweaking the functions of the solution to reincarnate his beloved indefinitely for the following millennia.

The Æsir using the "Mead" through the Yggdrasil device

Odin eventually finished the construction of the abandoned project in Scandinavia, near their territory, naming it Yggdrasil. During the midst of the Great Catastrophe, a group of Asgardian Isu comprising of Odin, Freyja, Týr, Thor, Sif, Heimdall, Iðunn, and Freyr managed to successfully upload their essences into the supercomputer before heading off to face their end in battle, gambling that Yggdrasil would successfully save them through various reincarnations in human bodies in the upcoming ages. Unbeknownst to them, Loki also snuck into the room and uploaded his essence as part of his two-step plan to first take revenge on Odin in the future for imprisoning his son Fenrir, and also to reunite with his lover Aletheia, who had her consciousness preserved in the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus.

Viking Age

During the Viking Age, the reincarnations of the Æsir finally appeared. The first was Rig Reidarasson, a Viking of the 8th and 9th centuries who was the reincarnation of Heimdall. During his life, Rig was plagued by the memories of Heimdall, believing them to be visions of the gods. His life, adventures and struggles to seize the hallucinations were immortalized in the Rigsogur, a saga written by the monk Brissy the Elder.

In the 9th century, Thor and Sif were reincarnated respectively in the Vikings Halfdan Ragnarsson and his friend Faravid, though they were unaware of this link. In 865 CE, when King Ælla of Northumbria executed Halfdan's father Ragnar Lothbrok by throwing him into a pit of snakes, Halfdan and Faravid conquered his kingdom and executed Ælla in return in 867 CE.

In the mid-9th century in Rygjafylke, Norway, the Raven Clan who resided in the small settlement of Fornburg counted three Æsir reincarnations among their members: the volva Svala for Freyja, the prince Sigurd Styrbojnsson for Týr and his foster sister Eivor Varinsdottir for Odin. In 870 CE, during a raid by the Ancient Kjotve the Cruel, Eivor captured his slave Gull, the Sage of Iðunn. Together, they eventually went up the Feiknstafir mountains to the Temple of Heimdall, where they found an Apple of Eden that had been locked away. When Gull touched the artifact, she recovered Iðunn's memories, with the Isu's consciousness assuming control and, now armed with the knowledge necessary to control it, used the artifact to fight Eivor. As the Temple began to collapse from the damage sustained in Eivor's fight with Kjotve's men who also sought the treasure, Gull was left to her destiny with the Apple while Eivor decided to help her clan who was being attacked by Kjotve.

The same year in Constantinople, Sigurd met the Hidden Ones Basim Ibn Ishaq, a reincarnation of Loki who had become fully aware of his nature, and his acolyte Hytham. Recognizing the mark in Sigurd's neck, Basim pondered the possibility of him being Odin reborn and, as such, followed the Viking on a trip to his hometown to investigate further. In 872 CE, Basim became acquainted with Eivor on his arrival , granting her a Hidden Blade that had belong to the late Ammon. Together, the three Æsir reincarnations fought Kjotve the Cruel, taking his fortress and killing him. This act permitted Harald Fairhair, the Sage of Freyr, to unite Norway under his crown. As Harald became the lord of Fornburg, Sigurd, Eivor and Basim went to England in order to found a new colony while Svala returned to the Yggdrasil Chamber, guided by Freyja's memories, to enter a simulation of Valhalla.

Establishing the colony of Ravensthorpe in Mercia in 873 CE, Sigurd became the jarl of the village, working with Eivor to establish an alliance with the Sons of Ragnar. After that, Sigurd attributed to his sister the task of continuing to gain friends throughtout England in order to expand the settlement while him and Basim would go on an endeavor. During this time, Basim would try to reveal to Sigurd his true nature and, when that didn't fully worked, he decided to search for the Saga Stone with him, a fragment of the door of the Yggdrasil Chamber that contained the password to open it in hopes that it would revive his memory. Some time after, Eivor would go on to assist his brother in his search in Oxenefordscire, with the three Æsir reincarnations allying themselves with Fulke, a secretly Ancient who possessed the artifact and was studying it and the reborn Isu. Together, they fought Lady Eadwyn, who had previously imprisoned the scholar, taking the stone with her. After they recovered the relic, Basim let Fulke betray the group, who took Sigurd as an hostage, knowing that he would be tortured by her to awake his Isu nature.

In 874 CE, Eivor and Basim travelled to Cent, the place where Fulke had been reportedly seen by last. They ended up being tricked by the Ancient, who fled with Sigurd. The Hidden One and the Viking then found her sanctuary in Canterbury, discovering that Fulke had cut off Sigurd's arm and that she had took him to the fortress of Portcestre, in Suthsexe. In the year after, the two reincarnations and their allies besieged the castle, with Eivor saving her brother and finally killing Fulke. Nevertheless, the torture that he had endured greatly altered his mind after being exposed to Týr's memories, as he saw himself as a god, becoming arrogant.

During one of her adventures, in early 876 CE, Eivor allied with Halfdan and Faravid to fight the rebelling King Ricsige and his Pict allies. After Halfdan became the new king of Northumbria, an argument arose between Faravid and the new king, the latter accusing his friend to poison him; this greatly affected Halfdan, who rapidly became depressed, though Eivor helped him to recover his morals.

During her journey in England, Eivor experienced several hallucinations of Odin, manifestations of his conscience trying to emerge in her mind that sometimes spoke directly to her, constantly trying to direct her to the location of Yggdrasil's chamber. After Freyja's consciousness took over Svala, the seer Valka moved to Ravensthorpe, to help Eivor understand the meaning of the visions by creating potions that permitted her to witness altered memories of Odin's time in Asgard, Jötunheimr, Svartálfaheimr, and Niflheimr.

In 877 CE, Sigurd and Eivor returned to Norway, entering the Yggdrasil vault by pronouncing the words carved on the Saga Stone. Inside, they encountered the supercomputer and used it to enter the simulation of Valhalla, encountering Svala as Freyja, who had been there for four years. Despite initially enjoying the simulation, Eivor realised that everything in there wasn't real and managed to convince her brother to leave, while Svala stayed. However, Odin's consciousness tried to force Eivor to stay in the simulation, with her fighting it in her mind and ejecting herself from the machine, repressing her Isu side.

Basim, who had tailed them to the site, had understood that Eivor was indeed the host of Odin's mind, instead of Sigurd. He took Sigurd hostage but quickly released him as Eivor went to attack him. During the fight, Basim blamed the imprisonment of his son on a clueless Eivor, who in turn believed he had lost his mind. As the Hidden One was beat by Eivor, he decided to kill Sigurd instead in order to tease her, but she arrived just in time to save her vulnerable sibling from his blade. Eivor then proceeded to distract him in a last confrontation while Sigurd used the Yggdrasil device to trap Basim, sending his consciousness to the Grey and suspending his body. After this, Sigurd conceeded his role of jarl of Ravensthorpe to his sister, designing Eivor as his successor.

In January next year, Eivor led the assault that resulted on the Battle of Cippenham. Although the Vikings won the fight, conquering England in its totality, the confront resulted on several casualties on their side, including Soma, Hjorr Halfsson, and Hunwald. After giving the warriors their last rites, Eivor had a discussion about possible afterlives with Guthrum, venting to him that she would now seize her time among her friends and family rather than wish and strive for Valhalla after having witnessed its emptiness while in Yggdrasil's chamber.

Known Reborn Isu

• 
  Rig Reidarasson
  Reincarnation of Heimdall
  (c. 770s – c. 860s CE)
• 
  Svala
  Reincarnation of Freyja
  (? – 873 CE)
• 
  Halfdan Ragnarsson
  Reincarnation of Thor
  (c. 790 – 877 CE)
• 
  Faravid
  Reincarnation of Sif
  (? – ?)
• 
  Basim Ibn Ishaq
  Reincarnation of Loki
• 
  Sigurd Styrbjornsson
  Reincarnation of Týr
  (842 CE – ?)
• 
  Eivor Varinsdottir
  Reincarnation of Odin
  (847 CE – ?)
• 
  Gull
  Reincarnation of Idun
  (? – ?)
• 
  Harald Fairhair
  Reincarnation of Freyr
  (c. 850 – c. 930 CE)

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (first appearance)
• Assassin's Creed Unity: Abstergo Entertainment – Employee Handbook
• Assassin's Creed: Unity
• Assassin's Creed: Syndicate
• Assassin's Creed: Uprising
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla
  • Dawn of Ragnarök
  • The Forgotten Saga
  • The Last Chapter