Dagger to the Heart

Dagger to the Heart was a virtual representation of one of Kassandra's genetic memories, relived by Layla Hassan through the Portable Animus HR-8.5.
==Description==
Kassandra investigated the theater in Chalkis City on Agapios's request.
==Dialogue==
As Kassandra approached the theater, she overheard a couple arguing.
*Idyia: I won’t let you do something this stupid!
*Prexileos: That Dagger sympathizer has to die! He'll keep making us do his dirty work if I don't stop him.
*Idyia: They'll just do it all the same!
Kassandra approached the couple.
*Idyia: Killing him won't solve anything, Prexileos!
*Prexileos: But we can't just sit here and let him do this to us, Idyia! To the children!
*Idyia: You think I don't have their wellbeing in mind?!
*Prexileos: Well, you certainly aren't acting like it.
*Idyia: How dare you!
<tabber>
|-|Stop this! Both of you.=
*Kassandra: Enough, you two!
|-|Try speaking calmly.=
*Kassandra: Calm down and listen to yourselves. The kids are scared.
</tabber>
*Idyia: Who do you think you are?
*Prexileos: The misthios is right, calm down. It's bad for the—
*Idyia: Speak up, stranger!
*Kassandra: Agapios sent me. He wants to prove his brother's innocence and destroy The Dagger.
*Idyia: His brother? Neritos? Didn't he die on S—
*Prexileos: Stop, Idyia! We’re in enough trouble as it is.
*Kassandra: Tell me what you know.
*Prexileos: Let's make a deal. Kill a man for me, misthios. Help me, and I'll tell you about The Dagger’s base of operations.
*Idyia: We've been through this. No killing! Talk to the man instead! Make him honor his word to pay us.
(Accept – I'll help you.)
*Kassandra: Deal. I will take care of your problem.
*Prexileos: There's a man from The Dagger. He approached us one day to help them spread their agenda. We don't care about The Dagger, but we needed the extra income.
*Idyia: He wanted us and the children to spread the message of The Dagger in the theater and on the streets.
<tabber>
|-|That sounds fair.=
*Kassandra: Sounds like a fair trade.
|-|He's exploiting you.=
*Kassandra: He's just using you! Exploiting your children for sympathy.
</tabber>
*Idyia: And now he intends to do it for free. He stopped paying us and threatened to come after our children if we didn't continue.
*Prexileos: I was going to kill him myself, but Idyia—
*Idyia: We can't just take a life like that, Prexileos! That's not us.
*Prexileos: He lives in the large house in the middle of the city. Kill him, and we'll have drachmae for you.
*Idyia: Listen to yourself! Talk to the man and posture if you must. But we aren't savages. I don't want to set a horrible example for the children.
(Accept – I'll deal with him.)
*Kassandra: I'll deal with the man. Just make sure you pay up.
*Prexileos: If you need anything else or forget where to find the Dagger man, speak to us again.
(If "How will I get to this man?" was chosen.)
*Kassandra: This Dagger man, where will I find him?
*Prexileos: He lives in the biggest house in town. There are many guards there, so be careful.
(If "How many children do you have?" was chosen.)
*Kassandra: You are... prolific creatures. Eros would be proud.
*Idyia: W-what are you saying?!
*Prexileos: These kids aren't really ours. They're orphans.
*Idyia: We just started taking them in one at a time. And—
*Prexileos: Look at us now, one big happy family. And... I can't wait for it to expand again.
*Idyia: Idiot. Don't make it sound weird.
(Leave – That's all.)
*Kassandra: I've got all I need. I'll deal with the man.
*Idyia: Remember—no killing. No blood.
*Prexileos: Go now, misthios, do what you must. Thank you.
Kassandra left the theater and located the man. As she approached him, she could hear him talk to himself.
*The Smuggler: I can't keep doing this... But I have to! I have to do this. For family. Yes, that's right. For family.
He noticed her.
<tabber>
|-|If Kassandra chose to kill=
Kassandra eliminated killed the man.
*Kassandra: He didn't look too dangerous...
|-|If Kassandra chose to talk=
*The Smuggler: A misthios? What do you want?
</tabber>
Kassandra returned to the theater to find The Dagger's thugs threatening Idyia and Prexileos.
*Thug: You think you can take The Dagger on, theatre man?
*Idyia: No! Stop hitting him!
*Thug: I'll hit him as much as I like! You sent a misthios after one of ours? Mess with The Dagger and get stabbed.
*Prexileos: Stop... Please.
*Thug: You'll entertain me till the misthios returns, my friend. You best hope she gets here soon.
<tabber>
|-|Kassandra approached them.=
*Prexileos: Misthios! I've sent the children away. Make sure this Dagger maláka doesn't get to—
The Dagger thug interrupted Prexileos with a swift kick.
*Thug: Shut up! We'll find every last one of your precious kids. They'll fetch a good price.
He laughed.
*Thug: The Dagger doesn't appreciate your... intrusions into our affairs.
*Kassandra: Then you malákes should get out of my way.
*Thug: Oh! How tough! How brave.
*Thug: Brave like when you freed that slave! Remember her? The little spy girl?
The thug laughed once again.
*Kassandra: If you laid a finger on her—
The thug ignored her and continued laughing.
*Kassandra: Curse you.
*Thug: I'm a man that likes a little drama. So let's make this interesting. You, misthios, seem to have a flair for the dramatic, and we are in a theater after all. So let's have you decide how this play will.. play out.
*Kassandra: Get to the point.
*Thug: Someone's got to die here today.
*Thug: But, like I was saying. Someone's got to die. But just one! It's always more fun when one lover is alive to watch the other bleed. So, meddling misthios. Tell us, who should live?
*Prexileos: Save Idyia, misthios.
*Idyia: Wha—no! Save Prexileos, misthios. The kids can't do without him.
*Prexileos: No, save Idyia! Please! You'll be saving more than—
*Thug: All right, time's up. Pick an ending to our little play.
|-|Kassandra attacked them from afar=
*Thug: There! Kill the meddling misthios and these lovebirds!
Kassandra approached the thugs and attacked them. Idyia and Prexileos broke free from their cuffs and tried to attack the thugs, who quickly targeted Prexileos.
*Idyia: The Dagger's base is in Skyros! They've been manipulating Euboea like this for too long. Agapios wants you to deal with them, right? So go there. Go to Skyros and slay every last one of them.
</tabber>
*Kassandra: Skyros. Agapios needs to know about this. 
==Outcome==
Kassandra learned the Dagger operated out of Skyros, narrowing down the location of their leader. She also eliminated the thugs. Depending on her actions, she may be able to save both Idyia and Prexileos, only one of them, or neither.
==Behind the scenes==
Idyia's dialogue changes slightly depending on whether or not Prexileos is saved. To save both of them, players can circle around the back of the theater and ambush the enemy, entirely bypassing the dialogue choice to kill one parent and spare the other. Saving both of them in this scenario is entirely dependent on gameplay, and so difficulty settings may work against the player and affect the outcome.
The dialog triggers around 30 meters from the target. If players enter within that radius before attacking, even with the Rush Assassination ability, the dialog will trigger. However, in this counter-ambush scenario, Idyia cannot be killed, so prioritizing the guard(s) attacking Prexileos should also help keep them both alive. Oddly, the thugs do not immediately detect the player, even when ambushed. Rush Assassination or even the Overpowered Bow Strike can thus be used to eliminate many of them, and if any are left, they can be finished quickly in melee combat.
==References==
*Assassin's Creed: Odyssey
Category:Memories of Kassandra
Category:Memories relived using the Animus HR-8.5
fr:Dague au cœur