For every end, there is a beginning. For every beginning, there is an end. No matter who you are or where you live in the world, a similar phrase has been uttered by almost everyone on the planet.
This is the premise of Assassin’s Creed: Origins. The beginning of many ends and the end of something that was just beginning. That is one of the biggest takeaways in this storyline, but the end of the game has more to tell than a simple phrase.
How They Got There
The end of the game is gotten to by way of two main characters having a horror cast upon their home. Bayek was a Medjay in the protection of the Pharaohs of Egypt at the beginning of the game and had a wife, Aya, as well as a son Khemu. While in this employ, the two lovers’ son became a target by a secret organization known as the Order of the Ancients. They were seeking a power known to be held in the tombs located in Siwa. Losing their son wasn’t enough, as they became outcasts thanks to the Order’s pull. This is how they began their hunt for justice, eventually stumbling their way towards forming the original Assassin’s Creed in the form of the Hidden Ones.
The End
Julius Caesar falling and the seemingly ended Order of the Ancients would make most think the job is over. Everyone who had a hand in Khemu’s death is now disposed of, and the world seems safer with Rome no longer in the hands of a dictator. The end of an ending, as it were.
Instead, Aya has come to the conclusion that there is no room left in the world for the woman she once was. Claiming that with the death of Khemu, Aya also died. It’s understandable, having gone through the trauma of losing your child and having his death taunted at you by each of his killers. All in the pursuit of the Order craving absolute power. With this in mind, she explains herself to Bayek via a letter and how there is no room left in her heart for the love they once shared.
Taking the name Amunet, in the end, will leave those with a love of history atwitter. It implies she keeps her promise to Cleopatra she made after slaying Caesar — If Cleo doesn’t take care of the people of Egypt as a true ruler, Amunet will come back to end her. That is historically considered accurate because Amunet is the infamous assassin who killed the last pharaoh with a poisoned asp. This also shows that, as Amunet, she considers the Creed the only way to go forward in the world and protect others and her own mind after dealing with everything that has transpired.
After slaying Caesar and taking her new name, Amunet and Bayek lay out the infamous Creed that fans know from previous games. The agreed-upon Creed they form after sacrificing their remaining relationship is that only those that deserve it shall die and that they will work from the shadows. This works wonderfully as their main hubs are in major cities that remain undetected by those that would see their end. They also kill only those abusing their power over others while protecting the vulnerable. This is shown when Bayek and his team kill a wicked woman about to chop off a child’s hand.
Bayek also agrees that the Creed needs to be upheld for the people who can’t protect themselves. His history as a Medjay is one of trying to protect those he thought needed it the most. When he is betrayed by the very people that he tried to help, he loses his way for a moment. Eventually, he comes to the same conclusion as Amunet, that their relationship must be sacrificed to make sure the world continues having someone in the shadows to stave off those abusing others. He doesn’t necessarily embrace it as Amunet does. Losing his son and wife in a moment of perceived failure shook his faith in himself to the point that he still hesitates in bringing others into the Creed at first. He understands someone must do the work but worries about those that take up the Creed. This is shown when he tries to stop Tahira from removing her finger for a moment.
Final End
In the final end, Bayek and Amunet are in a cave addressing a set of assassins on the Creed they have formed. Tahira and others stand and listen as Amunet and Bayek explain the Hidden One’s Creed and why they do what they do. Amunet is dressed as a person of great importance and shows how she stands in the light while working in the darkness to guard those they deem in need. Bayek is in his usual attire but has the conviction in his words that was not there when they first separated during the events of slaying the Order of Ancients.
Amunet and Bayek stand as guiding units in the plans for the future of the Hidden Ones. Despite their agreement on the best course of action for the future of the world, there is a moment that shows some regret in the path they have chosen. Standing outside the cave after addressing the group of people, they share a tender moment not as the leaders of an organization but as a married couple still in love. They will separate and focus on growing their ranks to protect every part of the known world, but there is still a wistfulness about what once was.
