Flavius Metellus
Flavius Metellus (c. 90s BCE – 47 BCE), also known as The Lion, was a Roman general and the proconsul over the Roman Republic's province of Crete and Cyrenaica during the mid-1st century BCE. A close ally of Gaius Julius Caesar, he was also the leader of the Order of the Ancients, secretly leading the organization in the Ptolemaic Kingdom.
Biography[edit | edit source]
Early life[edit | edit source]
Flavius was born in the Roman Republic to an old patrician family which had lost much of its wealth. Although initially married to an unknown woman with whom he had a son, Flavius later married the wealthy Porcia Orestilla, which helped to restore his family's treasuries.[1]
Flavius later rose through the ranks of the Roman army and became a close ally and advisor to Julius Caesar. Due to his distinguished military career, he was selected to become the proconsul of Cyrenaica and Crete, a position he held until his death.[1]
Quest for the vault[edit | edit source]
By 49 BCE, Flavius had joined the Order of the Ancients, taking "The Lion" as his cryptonym. That year, he and four other Order members—Lucius Septimius, Pothinus, Medunamun, and Rudjek—travelled to Siwa after learning about an Isu vault beneath the Temple of Amun. The Ancients hoped to uncover the vault's secrets and further their goal of establishing a New World Order, using an Apple of Eden in their possession. However, when the temple priests refused to cooperate, the Ancients decided to coerce the Medjay Bayek into helping them unlock the vault.[2]
They had their soldiers capture Chenzira, a friend of Bayek's son Khemu, and convinced the boy and his mother Rebecca that they only wished to speak with the Medjay. Chenzira led the soldiers to Halma Point, where Bayek was defeated and knocked unconscious, after which he was brought inside the Temple of Amun and before the vault door. Medunamun showed Bayek the Apple, but the Medjay did not know how to unlock the door. Frustrated, Flavius kicked Bayek to the ground, but was calmed down by Pothinus.[2]
Before the interrogation could continue, Pharaoh Ptolemy XIII, who had accompanied the Order to Siwa, came to investigate. While Flavius and some of the other Order members went to distract the Pharaoh, Khemu stole a knife for Bayek, allowing the Medjay to cut his bindings. Returning, Flavius brandished a sword at Khemu, threatening to cut the boy's heart out if Bayek would not tell them how to open the vault. Bayek then broke free of his restraints, and a scuffle broke out between him and the Order.[2]
Bayek pinned Flavius, holding the knife to his throat. The Roman simply sneered, taking Bayek's assault as his answer, and deflected the blade away. The knife struck Khemu in the chest, killing the boy instantly. A grief-stricken Bayek attempted to attack Flavius, but the latter used the Apple to knock the Medjay unconscious. Flavius and the rest of the Order then fled the scene, leaving the Medjay for dead.[2]
Khemu's murder earned Flavius a reputation as a ruthless killer among the other Ancients and he quickly rose in the Order's ranks to become its leader.[3] Unbeknownst to Flavius, however, Bayek had survived their altercation in the Temple of Amun and began hunting down those involved in his son's death.[4] The Medjay later learned of the Order's existence and thus allied with Cleopatra, Ptolemy XIII's exiled sister, to track down and assassinate every member.[5]
Alexandrine war[edit | edit source]
During Caesar's civil war, Flavius accompanied Caesar during his pursuit of his son-in-law Pompey to Egypt. Arriving in the city of Alexandria, they were greeted by Ptolemy XIII, who presented the head of Pompey to Caesar, in the hopes of gaining an alliance.[6]
During their meeting, however, they were interrupted by the arrival of Aya, Bayek, and Apollodorus, who carried Cleopatra into the palace within a rug. When Ptolemy ordered his guards to eliminate them, Flavius clashed with one of the guards but stood down at Caesar's command. Caesar then demanded an audience with Cleopatra alone, ordering Flavius and Cleopatra's followers to leave the building.[6]
The next day, Flavius entered the Tomb of Alexander the Great after it had been opened by Aya and Bayek at Cleopatra's request, reporting to Caesar that Ptolemy's forces were attacking their legions. While Aya and Bayek left to rescue the Roman emissaries, Flavius remained with Caesar in the tomb, informing him of his "friends" that he hoped to introduce him to.[6]
During the Battle of the Nile in February 47 BCE, Flavius fought alongside Caesar, Aya and Bayek against Ptolemy's army. After Lucius Septimius, who had fought on the side of Ptolemy, was defeated by Bayek, Flavius used his considerable political power to save his fellow Order member's life. He convinced Caesar that, since Septimius was Roman, he should be judged under Roman law, and the general ended up pardoning the Gabiniani and even offered him a position right next to him and Flavius; an act which greatly infuriated Bayek and Aya.[7]
Following Ptolemy's defeat, Cleopatra was crowned as the sole Pharaoh of Egypt and began to be influenced by the Order through her relationship with Caesar. Flavius, who had secretly stolen Alexander's Staff of Eden from his tomb, presented it to Cleopatra at her coronation, as a sign of the Order's alliance with the queen. By influencing both Caesar and Cleopatra, the Ancients effectively gained control of both Rome and Egypt, just like Flavius had hoped.[7]
Unlocking the vault[edit | edit source]
Later, Flavius and Septimius returned to Alexander's tomb, where they confronted Apollodorus, who had been entrusted the Order's Apple of Eden stolen by Bayek from Medunamun. After mortally wounding Apollodorus and taking the artifact from him, the two Order members left for Siwa with both the Apple and Alexander's Staff, intending to finish what they had started two years ago.[8]
As they arrived in the village, the Ancients used the power of the two Pieces of Eden to incapacitate everyone in their path and unlock the Siwa vault. Inside, they found a map indicating the locations of more vaults and were confronted by Bayek's friend Hepzefa, who had been appointed Siwa's guardian in his absence.[3]
Flavius and Septimius easily overpowered Hepzefa and tore out his heart as a mocking gesture, before leaving his body inside the vault as a warning to Bayek. They then parted ways, with Septimius taking the Staff back to Alexandria while Flavius headed to Cyrenaica with the Apple.[3]
Death[edit | edit source]
With the Apple of Eden in-hand, Flavius marched to Cyrene, where he had been appointed proconsul. Along the way, he used the artifact's powers to subjugate the population to his will, making them worship him like a god. However, Flavius was soon tracked down by Bayek, resulting in a confrontation between the two at the Temple of Mars in the Akropolis of Cyrene.[3]
Although Flavius detected the Medjay's presence before he could sneak on him and subsequently used the Apple's powers to summon illusions to fight him, he was ultimately defeated and mortally wounded by his opponent. In his final moments, Flavius expressed how Khemu's death had made the Order and Caesar bow to him and showed no remorse for his actions. He then urged Bayek to finish him off, which the Medjay did after some hesitation, finally avenging his son.[3]
Personality and traits[edit | edit source]
Impetuous and intensely hostile, Flavius was defined primarily by his pathological, megalomaniacal ambition, [citation needed] and would use any opportunity to improve his lot, be it personal or political, as shown when he reportedly murdered his first wife and son in order to be married into a wealthy family, thereby restoring his own family's wealth. Although one of Caesar's loyal allies, Flavius saw the alliance as being built on his own personal wealth and strength instead of trust and respect.[1]
Flavius possessed a ferocious temper, and was prone to violent outbursts, as shown when he stuck Bayek in impatience while his compatriots were interrogating him.[2] Other members of the Order, especially Pothinus, seemed to consider him a loose cannon.[7]
Juxtaposed to Septimius' aggressive efficiency, Medunamun's cynical philosophizing, Pothinus' desperate moralizing, and Rudjek's shallow avarice, Flavius was motivated by pure egoism, and his nigh-unhinged sadism made it easy for him to commit any atrocity that fed his delusions of grandeur, even acts his co-conspirators found contemptible or unnecessary.[2][7] He had no scruples whatsoever, and openly admitted to feeling not a shred of remorse for his role in the murder of a child, even going so far as to goad and mock his victim's distraught father.[3]
In spite of his viciousness, Flavius could also be manipulative. He was able to convince Caesar to spare Septimius, and recruited him into the Order of the Ancients, shaping him to be the organization's leading figure. In particular, he looked down on the Egyptians, seeing them as nothing more than a resource to be exploited for his and Rome's personal gain.[3]
Skills and equipment[edit | edit source]
Flavius was a skilled swordsman and displayed impressive combat abilities during the Battle of the Nile, easily defeating numerous Ptolemaic soldiers.[7] He could also hold his own in a duel against Bayek, though it is unknown if his fighting skills were in any way enhanced by the Apple of Eden.[3]
When in control of the Apple, Flavius displayed a number of superhuman abilities. He possessed the power to control the wills of the people and make them do things they would never do, such as walk into a fire, allow themselves to be eaten by a lion, write his name on walls, and recite the Order of the Ancients' propaganda. He was also able to create tangible holograms of his fellow Order members which attacked Bayek, as well as turn invisible, project golden energy, and fire a kinetic blast which slowed Bayek momentarily.[3]
Behind the scenes[edit | edit source]
Flavius Metellus is a fictional character introduced in the 2017 video game Assassin's Creed: Origins, where he was voiced by Canadian actor Julian Casey.
The name Flavius is derived from Latin flavus, meaning 'yellow, golden'. Metellus means 'hired servant', and was a common Roman cognomen.
Gallery[edit | edit source]
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Flavius' Order symbol -
Close-up of Flavius -
Flavius reporting the capture of Caesar's emmisaries -
Flavius with Caesar during the Battle of the Nile -
Flavius and Septimus inside the Siwa Vault -
Flavius and Khemu in the Memory Corridor
Appearances[edit | edit source]
- Assassin's Creed: Origins (first appearance)
- The Curse of the Pharaohs (indirect mention only)
- Assassin's Creed: Where's the Assassin? (non-canon)
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Assassin's Creed Origins: Official Game Guide
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Assassin's Creed: Origins – The False Oracle
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Assassin's Creed: Origins – The Final Weighing
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Origins – The Heron Assassination
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Origins – Egypt's Medjay
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Assassin's Creed: Origins – Aya: Blade of the Goddess
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Assassin's Creed: Origins – The Battle of the Nile
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Origins – The Aftermath
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