Sinai

A map of the Sinai Peninsula in the Hidden Ones bureau in Klysma

The Sinai Peninsula, or simply the Sinai, is a peninsula in eastern Egypt. Situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, it is a land bridge connecting Africa to Asia.

History

Antiquity

In 38 BCE, the Egyptian Hidden Ones expanded their influence to the Sinai, establishing a bureau in the Klysma Quarry headed by Tahira. In time, the Hidden Ones formed an alliance with a local Nabataean rebellion led by Gamilat, who sought to drive out the Romans after they invaded Sinai, enslaved its population, and forced them to mine for turquoise. After two Hidden Ones were killed in a conflict with the Romans, Tahira wrote to her friend Bayek, the Hidden Ones' co-founder and Mentor, requesting his aid.

Bayek and Tahira overlooking the Klysma Quarry

Following his arrival in Sinai, Bayek met with Tahira and Gamilat and together they devised a plan to lure out Gaius Julius Rufio, the Roman general overseeing the occupation of the peninsula as a starting point for Rome's eventual invasion of Egypt. With the help of Tahira and Gamilat's rebels, Bayek assassinated Rufio's lieutenants: Tacito, who was in charge of the Klysma Quarry and ruthlessly executed his workers to discourage them from rebelling; Ampelius, who used the Walls-of-the-Ruler fortress as his base of operations and controlled the Way of Horus; and Ptahmose, who was pillaging the Pyramid of Amenmesse and other landmarks in Arsinoe in search of relics to fund Roman war efforts.

After his lieutenants' deaths, Rufio personally arrived in Sinai with his fleet and ordered an attack on the Hidden Ones' bureau, resulting in Tahira's death and Bayek's capture. Bayek later escaped with the help of a recently-arrived Amunet, and together they defended a village from an attack by Rufio's forces, before Bayek boarded the general's octareme and killed him. In his final moments, Rufio revealed his affiliation with the Order of the Ancients and mocked the Hidden Ones' efforts to defeat the Order, claiming that the latter was immortal due to their ideology.

Meanwhile, Amunet discovered that Gamilat had been employing corrupt tactics to strengthen his rebellion, creating martyrs by purposefully provoking the Romans and then hiding his men among innocent villagers. After she informed Bayek, the latter confronted Gamilat and ultimately killed him. As he passed away, Gamilat understood his wrongdoings and accepted his death. In response, Bayek vowed that no Hidden One would ever raise their blade against an innocent, thus creating the first tenet of the Hidden Ones' Creed.

The Hidden Ones at their Arsinoe hideout

Following the destruction of their Klysma bureau, the Hidden Ones established a new hideout in the mountains of the Arsinoe Nome. There, Bayek and Amunet addressed their apprentices, laying the foundations of their Creed and vowing to expand their influence beyond Egypt and Rome. Afterwards, Amunet left to return to Rome while Bayek remained in the Sinai.

Despite Rufio and his lieutenants' deaths, the Romans continued to control a significant portion of the peninsula, so Bayek took it upon himself to help the oppressed population in any way he could. He helped a woman named Shaqilat rescue Nabataean children being sold into slavery by the Romans, and later recruited her into the Hidden Ones. He also uncovered another child slavery ring in the Klysma Quarry, and killed the man running it.

Throughout his time in the Sinai, Bayek was hunted by two bounty hunters known as the Shadows of the Scarab. After eliminating them, Bayek was able to track down their employer, revealed to be Kawab, the vengeful son of the late Order of the Ancients member Taharqa. After a fight, Bayek and Kawab were able to settle their differences and the latter decided to renounce his past and join the Hidden Ones to serve a greater cause.

Middle Ages

In 824, the Martyrs of Agaunum, a cult affiliated with the Order of the Ancients, were tasked with delivering a case containing an artifact from Egypt to Baghdad. While passing through the Sinai, the Martyrs were ambushed by a group of mercenaries hired by the Hidden One Fuladh Al Haami. The group consisted of the young thief Roshan, the Persian mercenary Azadeh and her pet wolf Onyx, the Roman pirate Dias, the Welsh warrior Mared, the Chinese rebel Wei, the Samoan mercenary Nafanua, the Viking twins Geir and Gud, and the Christian self-proclaimed prophet Francis.

However, due to Francis signaling Wei to drop a bomb onto the Martyrs too early, the mercenaries' ambush failed and they were forced to battle the Martyrs. During the fight, Roshan nearly succeeded in stealing the case but was pulled back by one of the Martyrs. Meanwhile, Dias used Mared as a human shield to protect himself from a volley of arrows, resulting in her death. In the end, the Martyrs were able to escape with the case, and the mercenaries argued about Dias' actions.

After settling their differences, the group, deducing the Martyrs would travel to Karachi next, decided to arrive there first by sailing across the Red Sea. However, in order to reach the sea, they first had to cross a mountain and, during the journey, Wei fell to his death after being knocked out by a rock set loose by Gud. After Roshan recovered Wei's remains, the mercenaries stole a dhow and sailed to Karachi.

Behind the scenes

The Sinai Peninsula's name during The Hidden Ones expansion for Assassin's Creed: Origins is anachronistic; the ancient Egyptians called the land Ta Mefkat; their modern counterparts refer to the land as Arḍ ul-Fairūz (أرض الفيروز). Both of these translate as 'the land of turquoise'.

The modern name, Sinai, is believed to have been derived from the name of the ancient Mesopotamian moon god Sin, or from the Hebrew word Seneh (Hebrew: סֶ֫נֶּה Senneh).

According to the Bible, Mount Sinai is the place where Moses was appointed by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into Canaan.

Gallery

The painted Sinai map

Madiama Nome

Klysma Nome

Arsinoe Nome

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Origins – The Hidden Ones (first appearance)
• Assassin's Creed: Mirage – Daughter of No One