Aleksei Zima was a member of the Ottoman Brotherhood of Assassins of Russian ethnicity active during the 15th century.
Formerly a member of the Byzantine Rite of the Templar Order, he used his past connections with the Templars to uncover a secret trade deal in Spain between the Byzantine Rite and the Spanish Rite in 1495.
Biography
Born in Constantinople during the 15th century, Aleksei Zima was an Orthodox priest, driven by faith and a desire to help his fellow Orthodox Christians, Aleksei became a priest of the Greek Orthodox church at a young age, but soon discovered it was plagued by rampant corruption. Disgusted, he was easily convinced by agents of the Byzantine Rite of the Templar Order that the Ottomans were at fault, and restoring the Byzantine Empire was the solution. Hoping things changed for the better, Aleksei joined the Templars.[1]
However, Aleksei's trust in the Templars was broken when he saw them ruthlessly killing an entire family of Orthodox commoners who had witnessed the murder of an Ottoman noble. Aleksei then realized that the Templars stopped at nothing to achieve their goals, no matter the costs to innocent lives.[1]
Deeply disturbed and not knowing what to do, Aleksei was approached by Murat Bin Husn who introduced him to the Assassins' Creed. Murat explained the Assassins' timeless feud against the Templars and their dedication to defending the innocents regardless of religion, nationality, or origin. Realizing they shared the same sincere beliefs, Aleksei defected from the Templars and joined the Ottoman Brotherhood.[1]
Thanks to his public identity as a priest of the Orthodox Church and his past connections with the Byzantine Templars, Aleksei proved to be an invaluable informant for the Ottoman Brotherhood.[1]
In 1495, this led him to uncover a Byzantine Templar plot about to unfold in Spain, and to accompany Ishak Pasha and his most loyal Assassins into a foreign land.[1]
Trivia
- Aleksei (Алексей) is a variant of the name Aleksey, which itself is derived from the Greek name Alexis (Αλεξις) meaning "helper" or "defender". The last name Zima is of Slavic origins, meaning "winter".
Appearances
References