Al Mualim

"He that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow."

- Al Mualim

Al Mualim (Arabic: المعلم (The Teacher or The Master)) was the Grand Master of the Assassin Order's Syrian sect during the Third Crusade, and mentor to his successor, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. He was secretly a member of the Knights Templar.

Quest for the Chalice
In 1190 AD, Al Mualim tasked Altaïr with finding a Piece of Eden known as the Chalice, shortly after he returned from another assignment. During this year, Al Mualim resided in Assassin's stronghold of Alep.

Later life
In 1191, Al Mualim sent Altaïr to retrieve a treasure beneath Solomon's Temple and bring it back to Masyaf. Altaïr brought along two fellow Assassins on his journey, the brothers Malik and Kadar A-Sayf. The mission, however, ended tragically, with Kadar losing his life, and Malik being brutally injured in his left arm.

When Altaïr reported his failure to Al Mualim, he was infuriated, though his anger was curbed somewhat when Malik returned, revealing that he had managed to bring back the artifact. However, Robert de Sable and his Templars had followed the Assassin and, intent on recovering their treasure, laid siege to Masyaf.

Al Mualim spoke to Robert from the safety of the fortress walls, showcasing the dedication of his Assassins by ordering three of his men – Altaïr among them – to leap from a tower, supposedly to their deaths. He continued to hold their attention while Altaïr released a trap, killing and scattering the Templar forces.

Though Altaïr saved Masyaf, Al Mualim demoted him from Master Assassin to Novice, removing most of his equipment and his authority in the Order. Al Mualim decided to give Altaïr a chance to redeem himself and regain his rank in the Brotherhood, and sent him to kill nine men who were orchestrating events of the Third Crusade on both Christian and Muslim sides. Thus, Altaïr traveled through the Holy Land, hunting and assassinating these targets, and returning periodically to Al Mualim to report his progress.

After being fatally stabbed by Altaïr's blade, the dying Robert de Sable declared Al Mualim as a Templar himself. He also revealed the treasure at Solomon's Temple to be a Piece of Eden, the unimaginable power of which would have been used by the Templars to control the minds of the population. However, Al Mualim refused to share such a power.

Altaïr then returned to Masyaf to find that the people in the city had been put under a hypnotic trance by Al Mualim, though he and a few of his fellow Assassins were unaffected by the mind control. After reaching the stronghold, Altaïr confronted Al Mualim, who used the power of the Piece of Eden to create illusions to aid him in the fight.

After fighting nine guards made to look like his nine assassination targets, and replicas of Al Mualim himself, Altaïr finally managed to plunge his hidden blade into Al Mualim, ending the cause of the hypnotic trance. As he died, the leader of the Assassins said that he did it all to ensure absolute peace in the world, and claimed that Altaïr would not be able to destroy the Piece of Eden. After his death Altaïr took his rank as the Grand Master Assassin of Masyaf.

Final Words
(Al Mualim collapses. The Piece of Eden falls from his hand and rolls away).

Al Mualim: ''Impossible! The student does not defeat the teacher!''

Altaïr: Laa shay'a waqi'un moutlaq bale kouloun moumkine. (Nothing is true, everything is permitted.)

Al Mualim: ''So it seems. You have won, then. Go and claim your prize.''

Altaïr: ''You held fire in your hand, old man. It should have been destroyed!''

Al Mualim: ''Destroy the only thing capable of ending the Crusades and creating true peace?! Never!''

Altaïr: Then I will!

Al Mualim: We'll see about that...

Characteristics and personality
Al Mualim, though known for being a wise and soft-spoken leader, at times showed himself to be mysterious and unpredictable. He never spoke of anything too personal or suspicious about himself, ever changing the subject or giving an unexpected answer when people started questioning him; or as Altaïr says, "digging deeper".

He shrouded not only his Order, but himself in a great cover of secrecy. He revealed little about himself, thus almost nothing is known about his early life, let alone anything beyond his duty as the Master of the Assassins. By his efforts, the Order became a well-known, yet obscure faction, inspiring fear and uncertainty throughout the land, and spreading rumors that only increased the already legendary reputation of the Brotherhood.

A learned man, Al Mualim placed importance on education, spending much of his time in the Masyaf fortress, studying the books of the library. He had a thorough understanding of a variety of subjects, ranging from philosophy to science. In addition to preaching the brotherhood's goal of peace in all things, he emphasized that the Creed pushed for peace within as well, on one occasion advising Altaïr not to demonize his enemies: "Never harbor hate for your victims, for such things are poison..."

Appearance
Al Mualim was a middle-aged man in his 50s. In Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles, he had a short black beard; though in Assassin's Creed, set one year later, his beard had grown much longer and grayed considerably. He wore the black robes of a Grand Master, and was notably blind in one eye.

Trivia

 * Al Mualim is likely based upon a real life figure named Rashid ad-Din Sinan, who was also known as The Old Man of the Mountain, and led the Syrian Assassins. He died sometime between 1192 and 1194.
 * In Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles, Al Mualim wears different clothes, and his name is often spelled in dialogue as Al-Mualim.
 * Despite being Grand Master of the Assassins, Al Mualim appears to have all ten fingers. The same is true of all other Assassins in Assassin's Creed, apart from Altaïr.
 * In the Penny Arcade Assassin's Creed comic, the target that Altaïr hunts implies that some Assassins, including Altaïr, were fathered by Al Mualim. This is shown when he tells Altaïr, "For I think I see his (Al Mualim's) face in yours." However, no evidence is given to relate any such connection between Altaïr and Al Mualim, and in the Codex, Altaïr's parents are referred to separately from Al Mualim.
 * There seems to be a pattern in the Assassin's Creed series, where the mentors of the primary Assassins are blind in one eye. Just as Al Mualim, mentor of Altaïr, is blind is his right eye, Mario Auditore, mentor of Ezio Auditore, is blind in his left eye.
 * Al Mualim also shares a trait with a future Templar, Rodrigo Borgia, as they both never have their heads uncovered throughout the entirety of their respective games. They also have a similarity in the robes that they wear.
 * Oddly, when Altaïr uses Eagle Vision after conversing about the nine targets, Al Mualim is marked with blue, the color of an ally, despite being revealed to be a Templar in the end.

Reference
Al Mualim