Puissance Treize (English (Literal): "Power Thirteen") is an international criminal organization and the main rival of the ICA.
Background
The Puissance Treize is a consortium headed by the thirteen richest and most influential people in the world with the sole purpose of supplying specific specialized services—namely, specializing in privately commissioned killings.
Throughout the conversation with Pierre Douay and Aristotle Thorakis in the book, we learn that Puissance Treize began a serious competition for the International Contract Agency.
It's leaders were not satisfied with being second best or even on equal terms with the ICA and want to reach for more the Agency’s market and become the only organization of its kind. For this reason, their goal was to eliminate the Agency’s best assassin – Agent 47, who always performed the most lucrative contracts. With 47’s death, Puissance Treize would gain a better position in the market and would have access to more lucrative jobs.
Its founder and former managing director was Louis Legard, who was imprisoned for tax evasion in the Santé (short for “La prison de la Santé ”: The Prison of the Santé) in Paris.
At the time of incarceration Legard was head of the organization but named Pierre Douay as his second in command, whose task is to perform all the day to day activities in running the organization—but in reality Pierre ruled the organization itself.
Trivia
- The Puissance Treize calling card was simply the number "13".
- Regarding French grammar, "Puissance Treize" is incorrect. It should be "La puissance de treize", or "The power of thirteen".