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"I am known by many names: Consus, Prometheus, the Erudite God..."
―Consus, 1692.[src]

Consus, also known as the Erudite God, Prometheus, and the Voices, was a famed Isu scientist and a creator of Pieces of Eden.

Towards the end of his natural life, Consus, afraid of death, transferred his consciousness into his prototype Shroud of Eden. From there Consus developed an affinity for the human species, impressed with their ability to become more than what the First Civilization had ever intended, and communicated with various individuals in different forms throughout history. In the early 1500s, he became a guardian of sorts to Giovanni Borgia, an Assassin born into the notorious Borgia family.

While he could converse when the Shroud was active,[1] a side-effect of subsequent efforts to duplicate the technology copying the Isu's mind along with it,[2] it was theorized that Consus was also able to communicate to and through individuals with a high percentage of Precursor DNA.[3]

His consciousness transferal innovation is considered a pivotal innovation for the Isu, since it resulted in Juno studying its mechanics. Her replication of this innovation lead to the creation of the "Mead", which was also used in the construction of Yggdrasil. Yggdrasil's ultimate purpose was to reincarnate Aita and Asgardian Isu in human form throughout the centuries.

Biography[]

First Civilization[]

Isu scientist[]

"I was old. I wanted more time. Bodies constructs, minds are programs. Uploaded my program into the Shroud, to cheat death. Succeeded. Failed. Trapped in my prototype."
―Consus to Álvaro Gramática, 2012.[src]

In the days before the Toba catastrophe, Consus was known as a great scientist among the Isu. In 1923 Isu Era, during the War of Unification, Consus helped his master, Hephaestus, to create devastating weapons for their side, the Swords of Eden.[4]

After Hephaestus was killed, Consus focused his efforts on medicinal equipment, creating the Shroud of Eden, a prototype device designed to return the wearer's body to predetermined, healthy specifications. Later, when Consus became aware of his impending natural death, something the Shroud could not undo, he instead numerized his consciousness and transferred it into his prototype in order to live on. The transfer was successful, though Consus found himself trapped in the artifact, unable to speak or let anyone know that he was still alive, being forgotten for hundreds of years.[4]

First legacy[]

"Juno. Schemer. Three centuries after my death, she found me. Usurped my work. Used it for her own ends."
―Consus to Juhani Otso Berg, 2013.[src]

Although Consus was gone, his research became a field of science in Atlantis where a respository of knowledge, The Consus Archive, was established. Many subsequent attempts made by scientists to replicate Consus' designs met with limited success; however, one student of his work, a gifted member of the Isu Illuminat caste named Aita was able to utilize Consus' developments to advance and pioneer medical technology of his own.[5]

Three centuries after Consus' physical death, Aita's scientific partner and lover, another Illuminat named Juno – whose mind potentially exceeded that of Aita[5] – found the prototype Shroud of Eden in Consus' abandoned lab. Discovering that Consus had developed the consciousness transfer, Juno learned everything about it from the old entity, planning to use it for her own ends. Juno was also the one who informed Consus about the creation of the humanity as servants of the Isu, a feat that Consus hadn't believed possible.[6]

After the outbreak of the Human Rebellion in 2296 Isu Era, Juno and Aita became part of a group of Isu trying to prevent the impending Toba catastrophe but four times their attempts failed and Juno developed a fifth solution: using the knowledge that she had acquired from Consus, Juno planned to transfer the consciousness of their species into stronger, artificial bodies, but she failed and her husband fell into coma after he volunteered to be her test subject. He was euthanized shortly thereafter.[6]

The scientists eventually found a viable solution but it was too late, their civilization was doomed. In order to save the next one from a second catastrophe due to come 75,000 years later, they used an object called "the Eye", manipulating the patterns of existence to be sure that, in time, their successors would find the Grand Temple. But Juno, who had hated Humanity since the war, could not bring herself to let them inherit the Earth, so she tampered with the Temple patterns. Following in Consus' footsteps, she numerized her own consciousness and transferred it into the Temple network, ensuring that the activation of the Temple would release her from her prison.[6]

Helping humanity[]

Known contacts[]

"You are marvelous creations. Exceeded your programming. Made something from nothing. Flawed but bold. I approve."
―Consus on humanity, speaking to Álvaro Gramática, 2012[src]

Before the Grand Temple was sealed, however, the Shroud left Juno's possession and during the subsequent millennia it passed from owner to owner, Consus helping and conversing with humans with whom he came into contact. Through these contacts he became at some point known as Prometheus and his story became legend.[7]

Prometheus brings fire to mankind

Promethus brings fire to humanity, by Heinrich Füger

According to Greek mythology, Prometheus was a Titan who created mankind and stole fire from Mount Olympus to allow humans to create their own civilization.[8] As punishment for rebelling against the gods, he was to be chained to a rock for eternity, where an eagle would eat his liver daily.[9]

In ancient Greece, Consus came in contact with Jason, the leader of the Argonauts. A Greek hero, Jason was sent by King Pelias to retrieve the Golden Fleece, a mythical object of great healing; in reality, it was the prototype Shroud shielding the consciousness of Consus.[10]

At the beginning of the 15th century, an entity believed to be Consus by Abstergo Industries researchers was communicating with Jeanne d'Arc and guiding her in her battles for France against the English towards the end of the Hundred Years' War. The entity spoke to Jeanne in the guise of Saints Michael, Catherine and Margaret, who she called her "Voices", and thought they were telling her God's will. The Voices led her to the location of a Sword of Eden but the entity's time with Jeanne came to an end after the Assassins faked her death in 1431.[3]

During this time, the Shroud itself lay inside a box beneath Monteriggioni within the Auditore Family Crypt where it had been hidden a century earlier. After the town was attacked by the Florentines in 1454 looking to claim the artifact, Mario Auditore led a group of men into the crypt to retrieve the Piece of Eden. He was caught off guard by one of the traps protecting the Shroud and lost an eye which prompted Consus to announce his presence. Fearful and ignorant of the Isu's abilities, Mario cut down his companions to stop them opening the box and fled the crypt with the Shroud all the while ignoring Consus' requests to stop and allow himself to be healed. The artifact managed to prevent the eye from bleeding but Mario had his brother take the box away and place it under the protection of the wider Assassin network.[11]

Giovanni's guardian[]

"Consus is standing next to me. He is watching. He does not speak much. Papà tells me he is not real, but I see him."
―Giovanni, regarding Consus.[src]

In 1498, shortly after his birth, Giovanni Borgia was discovered to be malformed and likely to die within a few days. His father, the Assassin Perotto Calderon was able to heal him after stealing the Shroud.[12]

Entangled

Giovanni Borgia and Consus

Throughout his childhood thereafter, Giovanni would have hallucinations of Consus, whom only he could see and befriended him. Consus often spoke in Giovanni's head and gave him advice, even once allowing Giovanni to read a letter given to him, though the boy himself had not yet learned how to at the time.[13]

Giovanni's grandfather would ask Giovanni about Consus and if he could speak with him, but Giovanni would simply answer that Consus was not there, as he "does not play when Nonno is around."[13]

In 1503, Consus attempted to convince Giovanni to give the Apple of Eden to Fiora Cavazza, when she had come to retrieve it for the Assassins,[14] and later advised Giovanni to go with the Assassin Francesco Vecellio to join the Brotherhood.[13]

With Niccolò di Pitigliano in control of the Shroud in 1510, Francesco made an assassination attempt on his life in Lonigo. Though Niccoló was gravely injured by the Assassin, Consus urged him to heal himself, which he did, but fearing that he did not have the strength to escape to another town attempted to unleash the "power" of the Shroud to save himself. He felt a thousand voices shouting in his head as the Piece of Eden turned him inside out and ripped him apart, allowing Francesco to collect the Shroud.[15]

Meanwhile, Giovanni Borgia had grown up thinking that his time with Consus was at an end as his hallucinations did not appear to him in his later life. In 1515, however, the young Assassin was possessed by Consus during a brawl with fellow apprentice and rival, Hiram Stoddard. Consus delivered a cryptic message to Stoddard and through him to his descendants before releasing his hold on Giovanni. As Stoddard deserted the Brotherhood due to the accidental death of his lover during the ordeal, Giovanni went unaware of what had happened when he passed out.[16]

Upon bringing a Crystal Skull to Bombastus five years later, Giovanni encountered a madman by the name of Johan who, upon seeing him, called out to Consus. When Giovanni demanded an explanation, the Assassin received none, as Johan fearfully mumbled that he had simply said "consent".[17]

PL-Shrine

Giovanni's face being altered.

When Giovanni and Maria Amiel traveled to the Temple of Pythagoras in the late 16th century, the Vault within it reacted to Giovanni as it would to a descendant of the First Civilization, shining with symbols and glyphs.[18]

Giovanni fell unconscious and awoke soon after, but his face had changed into that of a seemingly ancient entity. He spoke in a distant and unfamiliar voice, where he announced himself to Maria as Consus, the Erudite God.[18]

Presence in Salem[]

Stoddard: "What have you done to the girl?"
Consus: "Be not afraid. She is with me"
—Consus possessing Dorothy Osborne, 1692.[src]
ACA Consus Dorothy

Dorothy Osborne, possessed by Consus.

In 1692, somehow bonded to a young girl named Dorothy Osborne, Consus was able to speak through her, in what appeared to be visions. His presence sparked the events that led to the Salem witch trials, with the Assassins and Templars fighting to gain control of Dorothy and through her Consus. Eventually after the Puritans led by Templar William Stoughton captured her, Dorothy committed suicide to prevent the Templars from using her connection with Consus to cause more innocent deaths.[7]

In actuality, Consus was attempting to make contact with Charlotte de la Cruz, who was reliving the genetic memories of her ancestor Thomas Stoddard in the 21st century, cryptically advising her to seek "the ones with greater knowledge". Later, de la Cruz understood that Consus was telling her to find Erudito, an organization of truth seekers.[7]

In the hands of Abstergo[]

"I have so many questions, but let's stick with you. How is it that your mind resides in this artifact?"
―Gramática to Consus, 2012.[src]

By 1944, the prototype Shroud, which had been in possession of William Robert Woodman during the previous century,[10] had ended up in Milan, in the hands of the Baguttiani family. On Christmas Day that year, Templar agent Keith Scipione purchased the Shroud from the family, and sent the device to an Abstergo facility.[19]

In 2011, Templar Isabelle Ardant found the Shroud through the ill-fated Project Legacy. Believing it to be broken, she gave the Piece of Eden to Abstergo scientist Álvaro Gramática for repair in order to satisfy Alan Rikkin. After months with no success, Álvaro ultimately reactivated the Shroud by shooting himself, thus summoning Consus, who possessed Álvaro's body and spoke through him, before finally healing him. All this happened in front of a horrified Isabelle.[1]

This led Álvaro to discover that whenever the Shroud healed what would normally be a fatal wound, Consus could temporarily take over the wearer and speak through them. Álvaro started using the Shroud on his new test subject Violet da Costa, repeatedly shooting her in the head so he could communicate with Consus and learn his secrets.[4]

On 21 December 2012, as he was talking to Gramática through Violet, Consus instantly became aware of the release of Juno from her imprisonment in the Grand Temple, after Desmond Miles sacrificed his life to prevent the world's destruction by an incoming solar flare. Greatly disturbed by the event, Consus declared that all was now lost.[10]

Violet and Juhani Otso Berg, who had grown concerned by the threat posed by Juno and her growing number of followers, traveled to Álvaro's Parisian lab on November 17, 2013, in order to make contact with Consus and gain insight on Juno's motivations. Consus warned them of Juno's dangerous and scheming nature, and informed them that, as a non-corporeal being, she had infiltrated the global network.[6]

The prototype Shroud, and apparently Consus' consciousness, were unwittingly destroyed in late 2014, when the Assassins Shaun Hastings and Galina Voronina attacked Álvaro's lab to end Abstergo's experiments there. Realizing all too late that Álvaro was wearing the Shroud, Shaun was unable to prevent Galina from detonating a grenade which took out the lab and the artifact with it. As his final act, Consus used what remained of the Shroud's damaged power to heal Álvaro, who had been fatally injured by the explosion.[20]

Legacy[]

Last hope against Juno[]

"Your enemy seems manifest child, but the mountain's glimmer calls to many. Its summit shall see her true awakening. You must let the wolf dwell with the lamb..."
―Consus possessing Giovanni Borgia, 1515.[src]

Despite the destruction of the Shroud in 2014, Consus continued to play a posthumous role in the affairs of the world by influencing the course of humanity's history through Charlotte de la Cruz. Indeed, the entity had made plans to guide humanity in their fight against Juno, by leaving messages throughout history to several ancestors of de la Cruz.[16]

In 2016, following the nebulous instructions received from Consus while relieving her ancestor's memories in Salem during the 17th century, Charlotte de la Cruz made contact with Erudito. The organization which had learned about Juno's plan to create a new body by manipulating the Templars' Phoenix Project through moles within the Instruments of the First Will, decided to ally themselves with de la Cruz and her Assassin team to stop the Isu.[21]

Believing that Consus was humanity's last hope and the antithesis of Juno, Erudito decided to use Charlotte's connection with the entity to learn more about him via the Animus. Through the fractured memories of the traumatized Hiram Stoddard, the young Assassin made contact with the Isu who delivered another cryptic message to her. Consus warned the Assassin about the imminent awakening of Juno and the unnatural alliance she would have to make to stop the goddess.[16]

Juno's Resurrection[]

Consus: "She'll stop you. You must know that."
Juno: "Who, de la Cruz? I'm glad the millennia haven't dulled your sense of humor, old friend. She's weak. You forget: I've been in her head."
Consus: "So you have, child. But I know her heart."
—Consus and Juno, 2017.[src]

In 2018, the Instruments of the First Will invaded Alvaro Gramatica's secret lab and coerced the Templar scientist into growing an Isu body for their mistress. Gramatica used strands of a Shroud of Eden, which the Templars had recently recovered in London, to create an amniotic sac for the new body. Upon learning this, Juno savoured the fact that the work of the "traitorous" Consus would be key to her return.[22]

Several hours later, as Juno was now inhabiting the Isu foetus which was growing at an accelerated rate thanks to the property of the Shroud, Consus once again transcended the barriers of death to speak with her through his creation. Consus called Juno's new body a monstrosity and warned her that Charlotte would be her doom. Juno retorted that she had been in the Assassin's head and saw her weakness, though Consus reaffirmed his confidence in Charlotte, stating that he knew her heart. Indeed, at the same time, Charlotte, her Assassins teammates, and the Master Templar Juhani Otso Berg–with whom the Assassins had entered a temporary alliance to stop the Instruments' machinations–were on their way to the lab.[23]

When finally Juno's new body was developed enough to survive outside, Consus' ability to communicate with her was lost. Despite this, he still played a part in Juno's downfall when Charlotte, helped by Elijah, used the Koh-i-Noor to create an illusion of Consus based on Juno's memories; this distracted Juno for long enough to allow the Assassin to stab her in the neck with her Hidden Blade, killing the revived Isu for good.[24]

Trivia[]

  • Consus was a Roman deity assigned to protect the grain. Later, he also became known as a deity of secret counsel.

Gallery[]

Appearances[]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Assassin's Creed: SyndicateDatabase: Reconstructed Data 002
  2. Assassin's Creed: The Essential Guide (2nd edition)
  3. 3.0 3.1 Assassin's Creed: Heresy
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Assassin's Creed: SyndicateDatabase: Reconstructed Data 003
  5. 5.0 5.1 Assassin's Creed: OdysseyThe Fate of Atlantis: Judgment of Atlantis
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Assassin's Creed: SyndicateDatabase: Reconstructed Data 005
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 Assassin's Creed #003
  8. Assassin's Creed RevelationsAbstergo Files
  9. Assassin's Creed IIGlyphs
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Assassin's Creed: SyndicateDatabase: Reconstructed Data 004
  11. Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyItalian Wars: Chapter 3 – Mario Auditore
  12. Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyItalian Wars: Chapter 4 – Perotto Calderon
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyRome: Chapter 2 – Giovanni Borgia
  14. Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyRome: Chapter 1 – Fiora Cavazza
  15. Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyItalian Wars: Chapter 2 – Francesco Vecellio
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 Assassin's Creed #013
  17. Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyRome: Chapter 4 – Giovanni Borgia
  18. 18.0 18.1 Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyDivine Science: Chapter 1 – Maria Amiel
  19. Assassin's Creed: Project LegacyHolidays: Chapter 1 – Ghosts of Christmas Past
  20. Assassin's Creed: SyndicateDatabase: Reconstructed Data 007
  21. Assassin's Creed #011
  22. Assassin's Creed: Uprising #010
  23. Assassin's Creed: Uprising #011
  24. Assassin's Creed: Uprising #012

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