Maffeo Polo (c. 1230 - c. 1309) was a Venetian merchant and explorer, the brother of Niccolò Polo, and the uncle of Marco Polo. Through their travels, Maffeo and his brother became influential members of the Assassin Order, who founded several Assassins Guilds, such as in the Byzantine Empire and Italy.
Biography
Maffeo traveled extensively between 1252 and 1294, but it was in the year of 1257 that Maffeo and his brother ventured to the aged fortress of Masyaf to meet with Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, the Mentor of the Levantine Assassins. Together, the two spent six months in Masyaf, and while his brother was by Altaïr's side frequently, Maffeo grew restless, longing to set sail and leave the Assassin fortress behind. To counter his brother's boredom, Niccolò told him about the fortress' Assassin heritage.
During the preliminary Mongol attacks on the Masyaf castle in 1257, the Mentor gave the Polo brothers his Codex, and guided them out of the fortress with the help of an Apple of Eden, an advanced technological device created by the First Civilization, in order to fend off Mongol invaders.
At the bottom of Masyaf, Altaïr bequeathed five keys to Maffeo's brother, asking him to keep them safe. Although the two safely carried the keys in their travels, the Codex was lost two days later during an attack by a Mongol scouting party. Following these events, the Polos, then honorary members of the Assassin Order, returned to Constantinople; their mission being to set up a trading post and found the Turkish Assassin branch.
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