Piece of Eden

"They're gifts, Mr. Miles. From Those Who Came Before."

- Warren Vidic to Desmond Miles regarding the origins of the Pieces of Eden.

The Pieces of Eden (abbreviated as PE or P.O.E. ) were technologically advanced pieces of equipment created by the First Civilization for various purposes. Each possessed unique properties suited to the purposes for which it was designed; with some capable of bending the thoughts of one or more individuals to the will of the user.

Early history
"Current examination of Subject Seventeen indicates that aside from the Piece of Eden, all other artifacts related to Christ-figure are literary devices derived from the Piece of Eden, and not actual objects."

- Alan Rikkin's e-mail.

The Pieces of Eden, the only known technological development (besides humanity) to be created by the First Civilization, have a long history that punctuate the tales of humanity. However, whether humanity was created to be susceptible to the effects of the Pieces of Eden, or if the Pieces were created after humanity remains unknown; Minerva attributed the initial period of peace between humanity and their "gods" to the effects of the Pieces of Eden.

Eventually, interbreeding between humanity and the First Civilization led to the creation of a hybrid race, which was immune to the hypnotic effects of the Pieces of Eden. At some point, two individuals, Adam and Eve, stole one of the Pieces – the Apple of Eden – from their masters. Soon afterwards, war broke out, pitting humanity against their gods.

Despite their technological superiority, the Pieces of Eden failed to protect the First Civilization from their other creation, who heavily outnumbered their former masters. The war ended catastrophically for both sides, and both humanity and their gods were forced to work together to rebuild their world. Eventually though, the gods became extinct, and their Pieces of Eden were lost to history.

Beginnings of human use
"What of these artifacts? Messages in a bottle? Tools left behind to aid and guide us? Or do we fight for control over their refuse, giving divine purpose and meaning to little more than discarded toys?"

- Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad's Codex, page 5.

Over the centuries, the Pieces of Eden resurfaced, and were mostly seen as religious artifacts or holy relics. However, as time went on, groups of individuals began to see the Pieces of Eden for what they truly were and sought to exploit them. As early as the 12th century, the Templars were actively seeking and obtaining numerous Pieces of Eden, in the hopes of forcibly uniting the world in peace much like the First Civilization had done.

During the late 12th century, the Knights Templar led by Robert de Sable, their Grand Master, had focused their efforts on obtaining one Piece of Eden in particular, the Apple. Using the cover of the Third Crusade, the Templars infiltrated the catacombs of Solomon's Temple, in the city of Jerusalem, where they knew the Apple was located.

The Templars sought to obtain the Apple to aid them in their mission to bring peace to the region, and ensure their rule. Unfortunately for the Templars, one of their own had betrayed them; Al Mualim, secretly a member of the Knights Templar, but public leader of the Assassin Order, had sent his best agents to take the device.

Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and the brothers Al-Sayf intercepted the Templars, and the two parties engaged one another. Despite the death of Kadar, and Altaïr being thrown from the battle early on, the Assassins prevailed and spirited the Apple to their fortress in Masyaf.

For a year following this, the Assassins and Templars fought one another for control of the artifact, until the conflict was ended with the deaths of both Robert and Al Mualim at the hands of Altaïr. Originally intending to destroy the Apple, Altaïr found himself unable to do so, and instead decided to seal the Apple in the Limassol Archives. Circumstances worked against this plan however, and he decided to keep the Apple for himself, lest it fall into the wrong hands.

Uses through the centuries
Altaïr's Piece of Eden, also known as the "Second Apple", was sealed away inside Altaïr's library.

Ezio's conflicts with the Templars circled around a different Piece of Eden, first uncovered by Templars in Cyprus 1488 and shipped to Venice for the Grand Master at the time, Rodrigo Borgia. However, Ezio Auditore managed to procure it before it could be passed into his hands.

During the events of Battle of Forlì, the Apple was taken from Ezio by Girolamo Savonarola, who used it to cause the Bonfire of the Vanities in Florence. In 1499, Ezio used the Apple, combined with the power of the Papal Staff, another Piece of Eden, to open up the Vault beneath the Vatican in Rome.

Throughout human history, the Pieces of Eden had an extensive history of changing hands with historically notable figures, many of whom were either Templars or Assassins. Among these were Napoleon Bonaparte, George Washington, Mahatma Gandhi, Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, Tsar Nicholas II, Winston Churchill, Henry Ford and Adolf Hitler.

By 2012, however, many had fallen into the hands of the Templars. Seeking to obtain the rest, the Animus project was set up with the sole intention of locating and securing the remaining Pieces of Eden. This Animus project was also an important component in the Templars goal of ensuring a New World Order, through use of the Pieces of Eden.

With the Pieces of Eden, the Templars sought to manipulate the neurotransmitters that made humanity susceptible to the devices' hypnotic effects. Eye-Abstergo, a branch of Abstergo Industries, planned to launch an "all-in-one telecommunication" satellite into orbit around the Earth. However, unbeknownst to humanity (and indeed, many employees of Abstergo Industries), the satellite would contain at least one Piece of Eden, and spread its power out on a global scale.

Modern history
In 2012, the Assassin team of Desmond Miles, Lucy Stillman, Shaun Hastings, and Rebecca Crane used the Animus to locate the Apple of Eden hidden by Ezio Auditore beneath the Santa Maria Aracoeli in 1507.

Characteristics and attributes
"This... piece of silver cast out Adam and Eve. It turned staves into snakes. Parted and closed the Red Sea. Eris used it to start the Trojan War; and with it, a poor carpenter turned water into wine."

- Al Mualim, speaking to Altaïr about the Apple.

Amongst the greatest tools known to man, by interacting with a neurotransmitter located deep in the human brain, the Apples of Eden could control the human mind. Other Pieces of Eden were capable of warping reality, creating illusions, ensuring total obedience and healing physical injuries.

Both the Templars and the Assassins believed that the Pieces of Eden were responsible for many historical tales and miracles, such as the Parting of the Red Sea, the start of the Trojan War, and the miracles enacted by "the Christ-figure," who foreshadowed the Christian faith, and the Biblical plagues that ravaged Egypt, amongst other supernatural happenings.

Abilities of the Pieces
Some Pieces of Eden were known to interact with and change the passage of time, possibly creating paradoxes. Others were able to "speak" to those who wielded them, as was the case with Ezio Auditore da Firenze, Perotto Calderon and Giovanni Borgia, who spoke with Ezio's Apple and the Shroud.

The Pieces of Eden, or at the very least the Apples, were capable of extending a pulse of energy when activated, that could drive those targeted to insanity and death. Doing so, however, had a detrimental effect on the physical health of the wielder if they were unskilled with using the Apples. A 92-year-old Altaïr was able to use the Second Apple for a limited duration without losing any physical health. Using the Pieces' powers in short bursts, however, could minimize the negative effects dealt out by the artifacts; though to what extent, is unknown.

Destruction of a Piece
Following the destruction of the second Apple of Eden during experimental use at Denver International Airport, the Templars found themselves in need of another artifact with similar properties. Needing access to a map that indicated the location of all Pieces of Eden, the Templar-front company Abstergo Industries kidnapped the descendant of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad – Desmond Miles – in order to view the memories of his ancestor. This would allow them to view the very same map that Altaïr had discovered in 1191.

Each of the Pieces of Eden contained a great deal of potential energy stored within, and the destruction of one would cause an explosion on the scale of a nuclear blast. One such explosion occurred in 1908, in the region of Tunguska, Russia, when a Piece of Eden known as "the Staff" was seemingly destroyed by Nikola Tesla with the firing of his wireless electric weapon, as a strike against the Templars. Even then, however, the blast failed to totally destroy the Staff, and at least one shard remained.

Despite the obliteration of every other remnant of the artifact, the Staff shard still possessed impressive powers of mind control, as demonstrated by Grigori Rasputin. While he was in the possession of the Staff shard, he managed to force the attraction of Alexandra Feodorovna, the consort of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, and the devotion of several disciples like Khioniya Guseva.

Resistance
"I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING. I KNOW WHAT YOU DID. I SAW HIM. HE HAD A METAL BALL. IT OPENED. THEY WENT CRAZY. SHOOTING. STABBING. TORE EACH OTHER TO PIECES. I KNOW IT WAS YOU PEOPLE. SAW THE LOGO. HEARD THE NAME. I'M GOING TO TELL. ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN. YOU'LL BE EXPOSED. THEY'LL KNOW THE TRUTH. AND THEN YOU WILL PAY. YOU CRAZY BASTARDS. YOU'LL PAY."

- An unidentified individual's e-mail to Dr. Warren Vidic.

Although the First Civilization created humanity with a neurotransmitter that forced them to accept the will of the Pieces of Eden, eventual cross-breeding between the gods and their slaves bore a hybrid species. These new humans possessed some of the natural abilities of their gods and, most notably, they were also free of the neurotransmitter that bound them to the will of the Pieces of Eden.

The first two known individuals to be born immune to the effects of the Pieces were Adam and Eve, who later stole one of the Apples of Eden, and precipitated the war that followed. Members of the lineage also inherited these natural abilities and immunity to the mind-control of the Pieces, although the Pieces' ability to physically manipulate them remained. Individuals such as Altaïr, Ezio, Clay Kaczmarek and Desmond all possessed these enhanced abilities, as well as a resistance to the effects of the Pieces of Eden.

By the early 21st century, the Templars were aware of the fact that some humans were immune to the mind control of the Apples of Eden, and as such, actively sought other devices to compensate for this. On at least one occasion, Dr. Warren Vidic, an employee of Abstergo Industries, received an email from an unknown individual who had not been affected by the powers of the Apple, and threatened to expose what they had seen.

Confirmed Pieces of Eden
Besides the Apples of Eden, the First Civilization created many more Pieces of Eden. Some of these affected humanity in similar ways, whilst others affected nature and even time itself.

The first, second, third, fourth, fifth and Ezio's Apple were all capable of controlling the minds of men, creating illusions and, to a degree, permitted physical control over said minds; the Apples could all be used in conjunction with a Staff, which increased the abilities of both Pieces.

Other Pieces included the Shroud, whose properties included the ability to heal the wounds of those it touched, the Ankh, capable of resurrecting the dead, and the Sword, a Piece that would pass through the hands of many great rulers through the centuries, including King Arthur and Attila the Hun.

The Crystal Skulls, Pieces that were scattered throughout Central and Southern America, allowed for truly wireless, unassisted telepathic communication between the holders of each Skull. At one point, a Crystal Skull came into the possession of Giovanni Borgia, who made use of its power in 1542.

According to e-mails read by Desmond Miles in 2012, at least one Piece of Eden existed that granted the ability to manipulate time. Concerns over possible paradoxes, however, led to Abstergo Industries locking it away.

Known locations of Pieces of Eden
Following the death of Al Mualim, and the Apple's projection of a map indicating the location of all Pieces of Eden, Altaïr copied the map and included it in his Codex, hidden away so that only one of his bloodline might see it. Based on the locations given on the Codex map, the following locations can be identified as containing a Piece of Eden:


 * 1) Giza, Egypt
 * 2) Lake Victoria, Africa, more on the Kenyan side
 * 3) The Gambia River, Gambia
 * 4) Timbuktu, Mali
 * 5) Taza, Morocco
 * 6) Canary Islands, Spain
 * 7) The Southern tip of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, near the volcano of Opala
 * 8) Odessa, Ukraine
 * 9) Kharkiv, Ukraine
 * 10) Rennes-le-Château, France
 * 11) Salisbury Plain, England (presumably at )
 * 12) Loch Ness, Scotland
 * 13) Maroantsetra, Madagascar
 * 14) Nara, Japan
 * 15) Somewhere close to Goodhouse, South Africa, near the border between South Africa and Namibia
 * 16) Inside or nearby Boston, Massachusetts, United States
 * 17) Delhi, India or the Taj Mahal in India, a short distance south of Delhi
 * 18) Persepolis, modern day Shiraz, Iran
 * 19) Jerusalem, Israel (possibly the Second Apple)
 * 20) Around the area of the Igara Parana River, Colombia
 * 21) Nazca, Perú
 * 22) South-western Sri Lanka
 * 23) Hellissandur, Iceland
 * 24) The area of Sabiene Island, Nunavut, Canada
 * 25) Around Phoenix, Arizona, United States
 * 26) Washington, D.C., United States
 * 27) Juneau, Alaska, United States
 * 28) In Padang West Sumatera and about Mid until East Java island, Indonesia
 * 29) The middle of the South Pacific Ocean
 * 30) The Pacific Ocean, close to the coast of Mexico
 * 31) The South Pacific Ocean, near the coast of the Easter Island and Chile
 * 32) The Atlantic Ocean, in an area where Atlantis was believed to have existed
 * 33) The Atlantic Ocean, a few hundred miles off the coast of Brazil
 * 34) The Antarctic Ocean, on the side of Antarctica facing up towards the Atlantic
 * 35) The Indian Ocean, almost cross sectioned with the tips of India, Africa and the southwestern tip of Australia - a small island called Ile Amsterdam
 * 36) The Antarctic Ocean, the side of the Antarctic ocean that faces up towards the Indian Ocean
 * 37) Arkangelsk, Russia
 * 38) Andorra le Vella, Andorra
 * 39) Sao Paolo, Brazil
 * 40) Barrow, Alaska
 * 41) La Rioja, Argentina
 * 42) Hervey Bay, Queensland, Australia
 * 43) Uluru/Ayers Rock, Northern Territory, Australia
 * 44) Somewhere in Padang, Sumatra, Indonesia
 * 45) Beijing, China
 * 46) Somewhere in the Altay Mountains in southwestern Mongolia
 * 47) Somewhere along the northern Coast of Chukotka province, Russia
 * 48) An area close to Tiksi, Russia

Trivia

 * According to the Glyphs and Truth files, many legends and myths throughout human history are actually historically accurate. The supernatural or paranormal parts of each legend can be explained by the protagonist in each having acquired his or her own Piece of Eden (i.e. the Greek myth of Perseus, King Arthur, etc).
 * In Assassin's Creed II, during the battle against Rodrigo Borgia in the Sistine Chapel, Ezio created copies of himself, much like Al Mualim did against Altaïr. If Ezio's robes are customized, or if the Armor of Altaïr is worn, his copies would appear with different sets of armor and colors. Whereas, if he was not customized, each copy would be perfectly identical to the real Ezio, besides his weapon.
 * Both the Codex map and the map projection at the end of Assassin's Creed shown that there were only fifty Pieces of Eden at a time, though Subject 16 said the Shroud was Piece of Eden 66. This discrepancy has yet to be rectified.
 * In the French and German version of Assassin's Creed II, the Shroud was referred to as number 36, not 66. Whether this is a mistake in the translation or not, remains to be clarified.
 * The Chalice was initially thought to be a Piece of Eden; however, besides the Shroud, all other artifacts linked to the Christ-figure were confirmed to be only literary tools, as stated in Assassin's Creed.