Liberalis Circulum
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The Liberalis Circulum (English: Circle of Liberals) was a group of Hidden Ones active throughout the territories of the Roman Empire during the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE.[1] It was founded as a branch of the Roman Hidden Ones by Lugos, and its members operated in even the far reaches of the Empire, such as modern-day Spain and Germany.
History[edit | edit source]
Formation[edit | edit source]
The Liberalis Circulum was founded in the 2nd century CE by the Roman Hidden One Lugos, who later traveled to Egypt to recover two Pieces of Eden, the Ankh and the Scepter of Aset, which had been found in a pyramid by Roman plunderers. However, while trying to transport the two artifacts back to Rome across the Mediterranean Sea, a terrible storm opened an enormous waterway within Lugos' ship, causing it to sink. Before his demise, Lugos recorded a message with the Ankh, detailing the ongoing events and lamenting the failure of his mission.[2]
Hunt for the Ankh[edit | edit source]
By 259 CE, a group of Liberalis Circulum members, led by Lucius, operated out of the city of Lugdunum in Gaul. That year, Lucius' nephew, the Alemanni general and Hidden One Accipiter, found the Ankh during his travels in Germany, and Lucius arranged for the artifact to be given to his son, Aquilus. Aquilus was also tasked to assassinate three targets who held high positions within the Roman Empire to further the Hidden Ones' cause.[3] However, as Aquilus attempted to eliminate his final target, General Gracchus, his intent was discovered and he was stabbed in the chest by his own target.[4]
Fortunately for Aquilus, after he had passed out from his wound, Gracchus' camp was attacked by Accipiter's Alemanni forces, who defeated the Romans and found the Hidden One's unconscious body. Upon being nursed back to health by Accipiter, Aquilus was given the Ankh by cousin and returned to Lugdunum, where he gave the artifact to his father for safekeeping. However, the Ankh was later stolen by Caïus Fulvus Vultur, a Roman Senator and secret member of the Order of the Ancients, after he had killed Lucius.[3]
Aquilus tracked Vultur to Rome, where he eliminated him and retrieved the Ankh, taking it back to his home in Lugdunum. During this time, the Alemanni planned to ransack the city, but the Iberian Hidden One Cuervo convinced Accipiter to negotiate a deal with the Prefect of Lugdunum instead, in order to preserve the Liberalis Circulum's interests. The prefect agreed to pay Accipiter a significant tribute in exchange for sparing the city, but later ordered the arrest and execution of Aquilus and his wife Valeria.[2]
After learning about his cousin's plight, Accipiter tried to save Aquilus and Valeria, but only managed to rescue the latter, as Aquilus was executed by Roman soldiers. With the Ankh now in Valeria's possession, Accipiter asked her to hide it in a safe place, claiming that he was too busy with his conquests to do so himself. Valeria ultimately hid the artifact within an altar erected to the memory of her late husband.[2]
Legacy[edit | edit source]
By the 21st century, the Liberalis Circulum was remembered as one of the early incarnations of the Assassin Brotherhood. In 2016, when the rogue Templar Sebastian Monroe explained to his team of teenagers a brief overview of the Assassin-Templar War, he claimed that the Assassins traced their roots back to the Liberalis Circulum.[1]
Members[edit | edit source]
Allies[edit | edit source]
Behind the scenes[edit | edit source]
Presented in the accusative case, the Latin name Liberalis Circulum is grammatically incorrect because the nominative form of Liberalis Circulus should have been used.
Gallery[edit | edit source]
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Accipiter and an injured Aquilus -
Aquilus and his father Lucius examining the Ankh -
Accipiter and his army meeting the Prefect of Lugdunum
Appearances[edit | edit source]
- Assassin's Creed – The Ankh of Isis Trilogy (ambiguously canonical appearance)
- Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants (mentioned only)
References[edit | edit source]
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