Alexander Graham Bell

Alexander Graham Bell (1847 – 1922) was a Scottish-born scientist, inventor, engineer, and innovator who was credited with inventing the first practical telephone. He was on friendly terms with the Assassin Henry Green, who nicknamed him "Aleck".

Biography[edit | edit source]

Early life[edit | edit source]

Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Alexander Graham Bell considered communication an important part of his family's life. When Bell was twelve, his father developed a phonetic alphabet for his deaf mother. Bell also showed inventiveness in his teenage years, formulating a system of dehusking wheat and, with the help of his brothers Melville and Edward, developed a speaking automaton by manipulating air.^[1]

As a genius for his age, Alexander was hired as a "pupil-teacher" of elocution and music in Weston House in Scotland. He eventually joined his family in London after Edward died due to tuberculosis. In London, Bell attended the University of London and worked with his father for the deaf.^[1]

Working with the Assassins[edit | edit source]

As the operator and installer of the telegraph, Bell came to resent Crawford Starrick and his company, Starrick Industries, which was responsible for monopolizing telegraph communication in London, severely diminishing the freedom of speech. As a result, he developed an alliance and friendship with the Assassin Henry Green, and aided his exploits to reduce the Templars' control over London.^[2]

In 1868, Henry introduced Bell to the twin Assassins Jacob and Evie Frye, who brought to him a broken grappling hook pistol acquired from Rexford Kaylock. Bell modified the mechanism so it could be attached to the Assassin Gauntlet as a rope launcher. In return, Evie volunteered to assist Bell in mending broken fuses atop the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster for the telegraph line being set up against the Starrick Telegraph Company.^[2]

While traveling to the Palace, Evie suggested to Bell that the phonetic telegraph he desired to invent could be renamed as the telephone. After the new fuses were installed, Bell created a formula for smoke bombs to be used by the Assassins. Returning to his workshop, Bell showed Jacob the first messages of his invention and was able to procure a second rope launcher for him.^[2]

Later, Bell installed a dart mechanism in Jacob and Evie's gauntlets, allowing them to fire darts containing a hallucinogenic serum, which would turn into gas form upon contact with heat. The twins further assisted him by recovering cable lines taken by the Blighters in the College Wharf and informed him of a poison shipment from Starrick.^[3]

After Jacob destroyed the factory making Starrick's Soothing Syrup^[4] and eliminated its producer, the Templar John Elliotson,^[5] Bell took it upon himself to inform his neighbors of the truth about the drug.^[6]

Starrick later offered Bell a significant sum of money to coax him to his side. The inventor refused; aware of what the Blighters were capable of, he then created voltaic bombs, should he ever find himself in a situation where he needed to stun his assailants. He offered prototypes and protective insulators to the Frye twins, hoping that they would test the invention for him to get the right formula. The opportunity came as the Blighters arrived to confront Bell. While he delayed the enemy gang with his talk, the twins tested the voltaic bombs on them.^[6]

Together with the twins, Bell next headed to the telegraph station to prevent Starrick from spreading false information and show the public the truth regarding the Templars' operations. Bell destroyed three telegraph machines to cripple Starrick's plans, whereupon he returned to his laboratory alongside Jacob and Evie. Thanking them for their help, he gifted them his finished voltaic bombs and told them how their actions had inspired him to defend himself against any future threat.^[6]

Later life[edit | edit source]

By 1870, his brother Melville caught tuberculosis as well and their family was forced to move to Canada. Though Alexander was showing symptoms as well, he still managed to invent his early version of the telephone. The inventor eventually died in 1922, and to honor him, phone traffic was shut down for a minute.^[1]

Behind the scenes[edit | edit source]

There is a Tesla coil in Bell's workshop; however, its appearance in 1868 is anachronistic as it was invented by Nikola Tesla in 1891 in reality.^[7]

Bell's role in Assassin's Creed: Syndicate resembles that of Leonardo da Vinci in Assassin's Creed II. He is also an inventor who repairs, improves, and invents equipment for Assassins.