Basim ibn Ishaq

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"But a man you trust with anything... can take everything."

―Basim recalling Odin's betrayal to Eivor Varinsdottir, c. 874.

Basim ibn Ishaq (Arabic: بَاسِمُ بن إِسْحَاقَ; born c. 844) is a human incarnation of the Isu Loki and a former Master Hidden One active during the 9th century.

The son of Ishaq ibn Khalid, the architect responsible for designing Samarra's renowned Great Mosque, Basim was left orphaned at a young age following Ishaq's exile and his mother's death. Forced to make a living as a thief, he joined a network led by Dervis in Anbar. However, he was frequently tormented by nightmares of a djinn, which were a representation of his repressed memories as Loki. At the same time, Loki's personality took the form of Nehal, whom Basim perceived as his childhood best friend.

In 861, Basim became acquainted with the Master Hidden One Roshan and sought to impress her in order join the Brotherhood. However, his attempt to steal a Memory Seal sought by the Hidden Ones resulted in his accidental murder of Caliph al-Mutawakkil. Becoming a fugitive, Basim fled Anbar with Roshan and traveled to Alamut, where he joined the Hidden Ones.

Basim played an important role in the Brotherhood's struggle against the Order of the Ancients in Baghdad, assassinating many of the Order's high-ranking members. However, he also began to question his own nature and, after defeating Roshan, who sought to prevent him from learning the truth, entered the Alamut Temple. Discovering the temple to have been a former prison for Loki, Basim had an internal struggle that culminated in him regaining and embracing the memories of his past life.

Over the following years, Basim continued to further the Hidden Ones' cause, leading a branch in Constantinople and taking on an apprentice, Hytham, who accompanied him on his travels. However, Basim's main goal was to be reunited with his family and exact revenge on the other Æsir Isu, in particular Odin, who had been responsible for imprisoning his son Fenrir and banishing his other two children, Jörmungandr and Hel.

In 870, Basim met and befriended the Viking Sigurd Styrbjornsson, Týr's incarnation. Seeing a way to accomplish his plan of revenge, Basim accompanied the Viking to Norway while also tracking the Ancients in the region. After meeting Sigurd's clan, Basim and Hytham joined them on their voyage to England, where the clan established the colony of Ravensthorpe. The two Hidden Ones installed a bureau in Ravensthorpe, intending to restart one of the Brotherhood's oldest chapters.

While Hytham tracked the Order's presence in England, Basim searched for the Saga Stone with Sigurd to awaken Týr's memories. After Sigurd was captured by the Ancient Fulke, who succeeded in awakening Týr's personality, Basim worked with Sigurd's foster sister Eivor Varinsdottir to rescue her brother. In 877, having realized Eivor was Odin's incarnation, Basim followed her and Sigurd to Norway, where he confronted them in Yggdrasil's chamber to take his revenge. However, he was defeated and trapped in the Grey, where he would remain for the next several centuries, running countless calculations and plotting his escape.

In 2020, Basim contacted the Assassin Layla Hassan, who was the wielder of the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus that contained the consciousness of Loki's lover Aletheia. After guiding Layla to Yggdrasil and tricking her into freeing him, Basim used the Staff to rejuvenate his body. He later met and offered his help to the Assassins, while secretly hoping to use their Animus to explore Eivor's genetic memories and find proof of his children still being alive.

Biography

Early life

"I am merely the son of a public servant who dedicated his life to the betterment of his people... only to be slighted and forgotten."

―Basim to Nehal, 861.

Basim was born around 844 in Samarra, to the architect Ishaq ibn Khalid and his Norse wife, who died of an unspecified illness during Basim's youth. After Caliph al-Mutawakkil took credit for Ishaq's greatest creation, the Great Mosque of Samarra, he was sentenced to exile. Abandoning his seven-year-old son, Ishaq left the caliphal capital and was presumed to have later died in poverty, but in truth was held hostage in al-Ula by a group of robbers led by a man named 'Abis. In Ishaq's absence, Basim was considered an orphan and grew up on Baghdad's streets.

Basim discussing his nightmares with Nehal

As a child, Basim frequently visited the city's House of Wisdom. During one such visit, he met the famed astronomer Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, whom he described as kind and openhearted, and the experience left a lasting impression on him. For a time, Basim lived in the Karkh district of Baghdad, where he met and befriended the Chinese tea merchant Kong.

Basim was secretly the inheritor of the memories of Loki, an Isu who had used Yggdrasil to seed his genetic code into humanity's gene pool to circumvent the Great Catastrophe that destroyed his race. His goal was to be reunited with his lover Aletheia, whose consciousness was preserved within the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus.

Basim was initially unaware of his past life, though he still experienced Loki's repressed memories in the form of nightmarish visions of a djinn, representing the torture Loki had been made to endure during his imprisonment in the Alamut Temple. He also mistakenly perceived Loki's consciousness as Nehal, his alleged best friend, who accompanied Basim at every step and encouraged him to pursue his own self-interests. This went against Basim's desire to fight for justice, born from the injustice his own father had experienced.

Introduction to the Hidden Ones

Meeting Roshan

Basim: "You need something stolen, I am your man. Dervis can attest. He has given me all your contracts."

Roshan: "Then you have done your part."

Basim: "I can do more."

—Basim trying to convince Roshan to recruit him into the Hidden Ones, 861.

By 861, Basim was living in Anbar, where he was part of a network of thieves led by the peddler Dervis, for whom he conducted various jobs on behalf of his clients. One of those clients were the Hidden Ones, whom Basim admired for their dedication to fighting injustice and oppression, hoping to one day join them.

Basim offering his services to Roshan

On 11 December 861, Basim was tasked by Dervis to steal a shipping ledger from the harbor on the Hidden Ones' behalf. This upset Nehal, who viewed the job as a favor due to the Hidden Ones usually paying very little, and she reminded Basim that he owed nothing to anyone but himself. After infiltrating the harbor and stealing the ledger, Basim returned to Dervis' hideout, finding him in the midst of a conversation with the Master Assassin Roshan.

Basim gave Roshan the ledger, from which she deduced that a chest sought by the Hidden Ones had arrived in Anbar that morning. Basim volunteered to steal the chest and expressed his intention to join the Hidden Ones, but Roshan dismissed him and left. Dervis was infuriated by Basim's attitude towards Roshan and threatened to reduce his pay, before telling him that if he wished to keep working for him, he had to do as he was told.

Breaking into the Winter Palace

Al-Mutawakkil: "Do you have any idea what they will do to me?"

Basim: "Please, I—I am sorry."

Al-Mutawakkil: "This... This is your fault."

—Al-Mutawakkil confronting Basim after the latter stole the chest's contents, 861.

After talking with one of his fellow thieves, Jasib, Basim learned that the chest had been taken to Caliph al-Mutawakkil's Winter Palace and decided to steal it in the hopes of ingratiating himself with the Hidden Ones, much to Nehal's protests. Breaking into the palace at night alongside Nehal, Basim witnessed a meeting between al-Mutawakkil and five masked figures, who threatened the caliph to keep the chest safe and to never lay eyes on its contents.

Al-Mutawakkil confronting Basim

After the masked people left, Basim stole the contents of the chest: a disk-shaped artifact which displayed a holographic message of an unknown man striking a prisoner. This attracted the attention of al-Mutawakkil, who realized that the masked people would punish him for seeing the artifact and attempted to take revenge on Basim. In the ensuing struggle, the caliph managed to pin Basim against a pillar and began choking him. Acting quickly, Basim grabbed the caliph's knife and stabbed him in the neck, though in his mind it was Nehal who had done this.

Al-Mutawakkil's son Abu 'Abdallah was drawn by the commotion and, seeing Basim standing next to his father's corpse, ordered the guards to capture the thief. Basim managed to escape from the palace and outrun the guards chasing him before returning to his dwelling. After processing the events that had just transpired, he attempted to go to sleep, but experienced one of his recurring nightmares of the djinn.

Joining the Brotherhood

"I cannot explain what I saw. That object. It did something to me. I was... somewhere else. Cold. And frightened. Before I knew it, the Caliph had his hands around my neck. I... it was an accident, I did not mean for... just wanted to help."

―Basim trying to explain the events that went down at the Winter Palace to Roshan, 861.

Basim discovering the consequences of his actions

The following morning, Basim was awoken by Roshan, who questioned him about the artifact he had stolen from the Winter Palace, but he could not explain what he had experienced. Roshan then invited Basim to join her in fleeing Anbar, as the guards were searching for a thief matching his description. However, Basim refused to abandon his friends and went to Dervis' hideout.

To his horror, he found the bodies of all his friends hung and tied to wooden poles—a clear warning from the Caliphate guards intended for him. At that moment, Nehal appeared to console Basim, but he angrily blamed her for killing al-Mutawakkil, thus indirectly causing his fellow thieves' deaths, and ended their friendship. Realizing that the guards would not stop until they killed him, Basim decided to accept Roshan's invite to escape and went to the docks.

Basim rescued by Roshan

At the harbor, Basim was caught by several guards who attempted to execute him, but he was saved by Roshan, who killed his assailants. As more guards showed up, Roshan instructed Basim to follow her to the top of a nearby building. There, he watched as Roshan took a leap and jumped into the river below. With the guards rapidly approaching him, Basim followed suit and fell into the water while dodging a soldier's sword swing.

Hidden One training

"Never forget the tenets you have sworn to uphold. Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent. Hide in plain sight. Never compromise the Brotherhood. Then out of the dark, you will come into the light. And from the light, you will return to the dark."

―Roshan at Basim's induction into the Brotherhood, 860s.

Roshan subsequently took Basim to the Hidden Ones' base at Alamut in order to induct him into the Brotherhood, and became his mentor, training him in swordsmanship, stealth, and freerunning. During his training, Basim became acquainted with several of his fellow Hidden Ones, including Nur, who became a close friend; the Eagle Master Fuladh Al Haami, who introduced him to an eagle named Enkidu; and the blacksmith Rebekah, who forged him a personal scimitar at Roshan's request.

Basim and Nur informing the Alamut Council of the mercenaries

Two months into his training, while Basim was on patrol duty with Nur, the two spotted several mercenaries near the Hidden Ones' camp. After dispatching them, they reported back to Roshan, Fuladh, and the Brotherhood's Mentor, Rayhan. Believing the mercenaries had been sent by the Order of the Ancients to find their hideout, Rayhan decided to send someone to Baghdad to investigate the Order's activities, and Nur volunteered.

Eventually, Basim completed his training and was formally inducted into the Brotherhood, receiving a Hidden Blade after cutting off his left ring finger, as well as Enkidu as a companion. Shortly after Basim's induction, Nur returned from Baghdad, gravely wounded but still alive. Realizing that the Order held more power in Baghdad than they initially thought, Rayhan assigned Basim, Roshan, and Fuladh to continue Nur's investigation and establish a stronger presence for the Hidden Ones in the city.

Hunting the Order in Baghdad

Tracking down Ali ibn Muhammad

Ali: "And you are?"

Basim: "Basim. Friend to Nur. Let us save the details for another time. We need to get you out of here."

—Basim introducing himself to Ali, 860s.

Basim, Roshan, and Fuladh discussing their leads

After crossing the desert, the three Hidden Ones reached Baghdad, whereupon Roshan and Fuladh went to the Harbiyah district to establish a bureau while Basim investigated around the city and reminisced of his past there. Eventually, he decided to join Roshan and Fuladh at the bureau, where they discussed the leads Nur had managed to gather during his investigation. The Hidden Ones found a map with the location of a dyeing factory marked and learned about Nur's contact Beshi, a member of the Zanj Rebellion led by Ali ibn Muhammad.

Investigating the dyeing factory, Basim found a stall which was run by none other than Dervis. As the two had assumed each other to be dead following the events in Anbar, they were overcome with joy to be reunited and quickly caught up with each other. Basim explained how he had been recruited into the Hidden Ones by Roshan while Dervis revealed that he was secretly aiding the Zanj rebellion, which was in disarray since Ali's capture a few weeks prior.

Dervis telling Basim of Ali's last known location

After Dervis provided him with Ali's last known location, the Khurasan Gate Guardhouse, Basim headed there and eavesdropped on a conversation between two guards. Learning about a scribe who kept a record of various prisoners, Basim eliminated him to acquire his key and access his office, where he recovered a list of possible prisons Ali might have been transferred to.

Meeting with Beshi, Basim was informed that half of his men had been captured and were being held prisoner at the Upper Harbor. Rather than risk a direct attack, Basim infiltrated the harbor discreetly and freed Beshi's men before escorting them to safety. The rebels then informed the Hidden One that a man known as "Al-Ghul" was responsible for the capture of the Caliphate's enemies, whom he forced to dig in the desert in search of something.

Basim meeting with Beshi and the rescued rebels

When Basim asked for Ali's whereabouts, one of the rebels told him that he had been marked and moved with another group to a more secure location. Before leaving, Basim was given a Khidmah Token as a reward for his assistance by Beshi, who explained that it could be exchanged for the services of certain groups.

Returning to the Harbiyah bureau, Basim saw that Abu Jafar Muhammad ibn Musa, one of the Banū Mūsā brothers who served the Hidden Ones as inventors, had arrived in Baghdad. He then discussed the information he had gathered with Roshan and Fuladh, who deduced that Ali was being held at the Damascus Gate Prison, the most secure prison in Baghdad.

Fuladh subsequently went to scout the prison for possible access routes while Roshan left to meet with Beshi and his rebels, telling Basim to find her once he had rescued Ali. Before leaving the bureau, Basim talked with Abu Jafar, who informed him of contracts posted inside each Hidden Ones bureau in Baghdad. The inventor also revealed that he could upgrade Basim's tools to make them more efficient using materials that the latter delivered to him.

Basim and Fuladh overlooking the Damascus Gate Prison

To break Ali out of the Damascus Gate Prison, Basim met with Fuladh, though the Eagle Master had been unable to find any way in. After Basim presented the token he had received from Beshi, Fuladh suggested using it to bribe the guards or enlist the help of some nearby merchants. He also revealed that his father had perished inside the prison and advised Basim that such losses forged their paths. With that, Fuladh took his leave, trusting Basim to complete the mission alone.

Regardless of the method, Basim managed to infiltrate the prison and made his way to Ali's cell, finding him being tortured by a jailer. After eliminating the jailer, Basim freed Ali, who deduced the Hidden One was after Al-Ghul and revealed that the prison's guards were serving the Ancient and supplying him with workers for his dig sites. To obtain information on Al-Ghul's identity, Basim escorted Ali to the guard quarters, where the latter retrieved a book. As the two were set upon by guards, Basim told Ali to escape while he slowed down their assailants.

Eliminating Al-Ghul

"You think your cruelties are well-hidden, Al-Ghul, for you chose those with little voice whose cries you knew would go unheard. They dug at your bidding, died at your hand and were cast aside like so much refuse. All to scour the desert for some artifact. Even now you haggle for flesh, safe in the Caravanserai. You prefer your victims chained and starved. It is time you faced a man unbound."

―Basim, prior to Al-Ghul's assassination, 860s.

Roshan, Basim and Ali discussing their findings

After escaping from the prison and losing his notoriety, Basim headed to the northern outskirts of Baghdad, where Ali's rebels and Roshan were waiting. At a watermill, the Hidden One witnessed Ali holding a speech before a crowd, in which he recognized Basim's great aid to his cause. After Ali finished his speech, he and Basim met with Roshan to discuss their leads regarding Al-Ghul's identity. Using information from the book recovered by Ali, they deduced the Ancient to be Mas'ood Al-Ya'qoob, a soap mill owner who employed foreign settlers that he then forced to work at his dig sites.

Just then, an injured Beshi arrived, having been caught while posing as a prisoner to spy on Mas'ood. After Beshi revealed the Ancient's base of operations to be the Caravanserai and provided a description of the man, Basim and Roshan decided to head there and eliminate their target. Ali offered to help but Roshan declined his assistance, believing the rebel leader would turn their mission into a large spectacle.

Basim about to hang Mas'ood

On their way to the Caravanserai, Roshan told Basim that, despite the harshness of her lessons, she was proud of her pupil and believed he was ready to take on the Order of the Ancients. After arriving at their destination, Roshan left Basim to choose his approach and gave him a heron's feather to dip in Mas'ood's blood after his death. Infiltrating the Caravanserai, Basim was able to lure out his target on a balcony and stabbed him from above with his Hidden Blade before using a nearby rope to hang him.

With his dying breath, Mas'ood revealed that he had been searching for artifacts in the desert on behalf of the Order and claimed that Basim was more than just a Hidden One. This confused Basim and caused him to experience a vision of the djinn, the first one since he had joined the Brotherhood. He then saw Nehal among the crowd that had formed at the scene, but before he could approach her, he was quickly pulled away by Roshan.

Basim telling Roshan about his nightmares

After leaving the Caravanserai, Basim questioned the Order's interest in the artifacts, to which Roshan promised that they would find all the answers to his questions together. Noticing that something was on her apprentice's mind, Roshan then asked him to tell her what was troubling him, and Basim revealed his recurring nightmares of the djinn to her. He also asked for a respite to find Nehal and speak with her, which Roshan granted to him.

Suspecting Nehal would have returned to their old home in Anbar, Basim traveled there and was reunited with his childhood friend. After catching up, Nehal showed Basim a symbol, which he recognized as being the same one from the artifact he had stolen from the Winter Palace. Claiming that the symbol was calling out to her, Nehal asked Basim to look into it and he agreed to do so.

Nehal showing Basim the symbol

Basim investigated Nehal's lead, which pointed to an oasis north of Baghdad. There, he discovered an ancient vault containing strange equipment locked behind energy barriers. Deducing he needed some keys to deactivate the barriers and that the Order was likely in their possession, Basim hunted down the members of the Order's Tha'abeen branch and claimed the shards they carried. He then returned to the vault and placed the shards in the corresponding pedestals, deactivating the barriers and allowing him to claim the equipment, which consisted of a sword, a dagger, and a set of armor.

Investigation at the House of Wisdom

Basim: "Knowledge is a tool, a weapon. It can be used for good or ill, and the Order is using it for ill indeed."

Tabid: "What have you learned?"

Basim: "Rot runs deep through the House of Wisdom. They are using some ancient book, hoping to build a wicked device."

—Basim reporting to Tabid Al-Nubi after his investigation, 860s.

Sometime later, Basim returned to the Harbiyah bureau, where he was greeted by Fuladh, Roshan, and Abu Jafar. As the Hidden Ones decided to hunt down the remaining Order members in Baghdad and expand their influence in the city, Roshan revealed that Fuladh had scouted the other districts for possible locations to establish new bureaus. After Fuladh and Roshan left, Basim spoke with Abu Jafar, who offered to expand his arsenal with a new tool.

Basim meeting with Tabid

Resuming his hunt of the Order, Basim headed to the bureau in the Abbasiyah district first, which was led by Tabid Al-Nubi. He found the Rafiq reading some of the court poet's, Arib Al-Ma'muniyya, work and remarked that he too was familiar with her poetry thanks to his visits to the House of Wisdom in his childhood. Tabid then revealed that the House of Wisdom was not what it had once been and that Ahmad ibn Musa, who had an workshop there, had gone missing.

Basim decided to investigate Ahmad's disappearance and traveled to the House of Wisdom, only to learn about a recent book burning that had taken place. As Fazil Fahim al-Kemsa tried to calm down the angry crowd formed at the scene, Basim approached the scholar to inquire about both Ahmad's whereabouts and the fire. Fazil claimed to have no knowledge about either, so the Hidden One resolved to investigate on his own.

Basim investigating Ahmad's workshop

After locating Ahmad's workshop, Basim was suddenly approached by Nehal, who handed him a book she claimed to have saved from the recent fire. As Basim reprimanded Nehal for stealing the book, she mocked him for his Hidden One duties, causing him to dismiss her and resume his investigation. Looking around Ahmad's workshop, Basim found several strange schematics but nothing to indicate the inventor's current whereabouts.

Just then, Ahmad's assistant Hamid Al-Haleem walked in and offered to help Basim with his investigation. However, instead of assisting him, Hamid led the Hidden One into a trap where he was set upon by several guards. After dispatching them, Basim angrily confronted Hamid, who claimed that a masked man had ordered him to keep people away from the House of Wisdom's dig site. After Hamid drew him a map to the site, Basim decided to spare his life and allowed him to leave.

Basim about to assassinate Hassan

Traveling to the heavily guarded dig site, Basim managed to infiltrate it and found a letter addressed to Ahmad from Doctor Hassan, revealing that the doctor was at the Great Bimaristan. At the hospital, Basim pickpocketed the key to Hassan's office from the head nurse and investigated the room, finding a mask which confirmed Hassan's affiliation with the Order, as well as a note addressed to another Ancient, "Al-Rabisu". After eavesdropping on a group of doctors, Basim learned where Hassan was located and assassinated him.

Moments later, Ahmad walked into the room and was confronted by Basim over his work with the Order. The inventor claimed that he was unaware of Hassan's affiliations and that the doctor had requested his help to build a machine using advanced technology found in the desert. He went on to explain that his machine allegedly allowed people to view an ancient world, but at the cost of their sanity. In the end, Basim promised not to tell the Hidden Ones about Ahmad's activities if he returned to the Abbasiyah bureau, which the inventor did after sorrowly remarking that knowledge always ended up in the wrong hands.

Basim finding the caretaker's body

Investigating the book burnings, Basim learned that an ancient manuscript written in an unknown language had been stolen from the House of Wisdom during the fire and that the books' caretaker had been killed. While looking for clues at the crime scene, he found that the caretaker had written "Scriptorium" in his own blood before dying, so he decided to head there.

Making his way past the Scriptorium guards, Basim found the scholar Hunayn ibn Ishaq being held prisoner in one of the rooms and freed him. Hunayn then explained that a woman named Zahra had kidnapped him to force him to translate the stolen manuscript, which he had been unable to do. After Hunayn left to return home, Basim, suspecting Zahra to be a member of the Order, searched around the room for clues to her whereabouts. He found several notes, including a love letter from Hassan referencing Arib Al-Ma'muniyya's poetry and a message with instructions from Al-Rabisu.

Basim assassinating Zahra

After learning that Zahra's residence was located at the Scholar's Estate, Basim headed there and assassinated the Ancient once she arrived. On her body, he found a letter addressed to Al-Rabisu, which revealed that the Order had orchestrated the book burnings as a cover to steal the manuscript, which they believed contained the necessary knowledge to make their "Great Work" functional.

The Great Symposium

Fazil: "Science is the noblest purpose. Knowledge is the greatest power."

Basim: "No."

Fazil: "No? Then what?"

Basim: "Justice."

—Basim and Fazil Fahim al-Kemsa, moments before the latter's assassination, 860s.

With both of his investigations complete, Basim returned to the Abbasiyah bureau to inform Tabid of his findings. He then declared that he needed to put an end to the Order's lethal experiments with their "Great Work" by eliminating the Ancient who was overseeing them: Al-Rabisu. Suspecting his identity to be Fazil Fahim al-Kemsa, Basim was informed by Tabid that a Great Symposium was set to take place at the House of Wisdom that night, which would likely be attended by his target.

Basim and Nehal observing the diagram

After being given a feather by Tabid, Basim headed to the House of Wisdom and learned that Fazil was set to host a lecture as part of the symposium. While waiting for Fazil's lecture to begin, Basim saw Nehal and approached her. Claiming she had something to show him, Nehal led Basim to Ahmad's workshop, where the two found a strange diagram hidden behind some curtains. Basim recognized the diagram, having seen it in the ancient manuscript stolen by the Order, but did not wish to investigate any further.

This upset Nehal, who could not understand why her friend refused to search for the truth even when it was right in front of him. Basim claimed that sometimes it was better not to know the truth behind their actions and that, when he had joined the Hidden Ones, he had taken an oath to leave his past behind. To this, Nehal vowed that she would continue to accompany Basim at every step, to prevent him from forgetting who he was, and left angrily.

Basim meeting Arib Al-Ma'muniyya

Continuing to explore the House of Wisdom, Basim ran into other attendees of the Great Symposium, including Hunayn ibn Ishaq, Arib Al-Ma'muniyya, and the famed astronomer Al-Farghani. Eventually, Fazil's lecture began and Basim attended it, listening to the scholar as he tried to explain how an ancient race had roamed the Earth before humanity and left behind "gifts" for them to uncover. However, after being informed of Hassan and Zahra's deaths, Fazil ended the lecture abruptly and left in a panic.

Basim searched the House of Wisdom for clues to discover where Fazil might have retreated to and eventually learned of a secret underground chamber. Infiltrating the chamber, the Hidden One found a cell containing one of Fazil's deceased test subjects and took his robes. With this disguise, Basim was able to approach his target, who attempted to experiment on him with his machine: the Alruh.

Fazil explaning the Alruh to Basim

Before the Alruh was fully activated, Fazil explained its functioning and claimed that it would allow humanity to gain the knowledge of the lost Precursor race. When Basim disagreed with Fazil's notion of knowledge being the greatest power, the Ancient approached him so that he could hear his reply. Once his target was close enough, Basim stabbed him with his Hidden Blade and gave his reply in the form of a single word: "justice".

After experiencing another vision of the djinn, Basim left the House of Wisdom to return to Tabid and inform him of his mission's success. Outside the Abbasiyah bureau, he unexpectedly ran into Nehal, who had come to speak with him. Claiming they had been drifting apart ever since the events at the Winter Palace, Nehal asked Basim if the djinn was still troubling him. After the Hidden One confirmed that he still experienced nightmares but was trying to leave them in the past, Nehal claimed that she was Basim's past too and asked if he would also try to ignore her.

Basim promising Nehal he would not forget her

Basim assured Nehal that he would never forget about her, much to her relief, and entered the bureau to speak with Tabid and Ahmad. After he presented the bloodied feather as proof of Fazil's death, Tabid congratulated him for his success and asked if he had found any evidence of Arib Al-Ma'muniyya's possible involvement with the Order. Basim responded that he did not know for certain before all three Hidden Ones returned to work.

Search at the Bazaar

Rebekah: "Rumors of harassment from officials, and goods being controlled and seized. We think someone here has a hold over the district."

Basim: "Let me guess. The Order."

—Basim and Rebekah discussing the corruption in Karkh, 860s.

Sometime after these events, Basim traveled to the Karkh bureau to begin his hunt of the next Order member. Meeting with Roshan and Rebekah, who served as Rafiq, the Hidden Ones discussed the corruption in the district, which had become stronger than usual, with rumors of harassment from officials and goods being seized. Believing the Order to be responsible, Basim and Roshan decided to investigate the Bazaar, where Baghdad's annual grand auction, the Da'irat Al-mal, was set to take place.

Basim asking Roshan about her first kill

On their way to the Bazaar, Basim and Roshan discussed the former's childhood spent in Baghdad and how much the city had changed due to the Order's influence. Reaching the entrance to the Bazaar, Basim decided to ask his mentor about the first time she had taken a life. Roshan answered vaguely, claiming it was a man she had known well and that her memories of him were buried next to his body, as she refused to allow herself to be defined by her past. She then advised Basim to distance himself from the past as well, to prevent it from haunting him like the djinn.

After Roshan took her leave, Basim decided to look for his old friend Kong, who he believed could help him find a way into the Da'irat Al-mal. He found him arguing with another merchant, Luca, whom Kong accused of reporting his crates of tea leaves to the Abbasid authorities, resulting in their confiscation. Kong pretended not to recognize Basim at first, but after getting away from Luca, the two old friends quickly caught up with each other. When Basim revealed that he required Kong's help, the latter asked him to retrieve his confiscated crates from a nearby storehouse first.

Basim asking for Kong's help to get into the Da'irat Al-mal

Basim accepted and infiltrated the storehouse, recovering the crates. He then informed Kong that he needed a way into the Da'irat Al-mal, though he refused to disclose the reason. Kong agreed to help Basim in exchange for retrieving more of his seized wares, which were being held at a confiscation warehouse belonging to the Harbormaster. As Basim left Kong's stall, he was approached by Luca, who had eavesdropped on their conversation and offered to tell the Hidden One where the warehouse was located in exchange for something in return.

After Basim offered Luca a token, he provided him with the warehouse's location and the Hidden One headed there. In addition to Kong's goods, he discovered several notes which indicated that the Harbormaster was a member of the Order and had been tasked to seize all foreign merchandise in search of an ancient Chinese hairpin. After assassinating the Harbormaster at the Harbor Camp, Basim returned to Kong and provided him with a note which would allow him to reclaim his confiscated wares; in exchange, he received an invitation to the Da'irat Al-mal.

Basim finding the caravan

While investigating the Bazaar, Basim learned that the taxes merchants had to pay had recently been raised and that those unable to afford them regularly faced harassment from guards. After saving a perfume merchant from a group of guards, Basim learned from her about a caravan bound for the Da'irat Al-mal which had failed to show up. Deciding to investigate, Basim traveled south towards the Palm Grove, where he found the merchants had been forced to stop and camp due to the death of one of their horses.

After searching the area for clues, Basim deduced the Order to be responsible, trying to intimidate the merchants and prevent their arrival. He then offered to escort the caravan to Baghdad and fended off a group of bandits that attacked them on the way. Recovering a note from one of the bandits' bodies, Basim learned that they had been hired by an Order member known as "Al-Anqa", whom one of the merchants identified as the tax collector Suhail.

Basim investigating the tax collector's mansion

Upon reaching Baghdad safely, the merchants thanked Basim for his assistance and informed him that Suhail lived in a mansion in western Karkh. The Hidden One headed there and assassinated Suhail before investigating his residence. He found several notes which revealed that the Order was responsible for raising the taxes for merchants, using the money earned this way to fund the Harbormaster's blockade.

The Da'irat Al-mal

Roshan: "The first feather without a head. It is your duty to find the right one. Do not let yourself get distracted. Focus on the mission at hand. It does no one good to linger on things that do not exist. This is real."

Basim: "I understand."

—Roshan assigning Basim his mission, 860s.

With the information he had managed to gather on the Order's activities in Karkh, Basim returned to the Hidden Ones bureau to report to Roshan and Rebekah. Together, the three deduced that the Ancient giving orders to the Harbormaster and Suhail was an affluential merchant, though they were unable to determine their exact identity. With the Da'irat Al-mal as his only lead, Basim decided to infiltrate the grand auction using his invitation and find his target, "The Treasurer", there.

Kong asking Basim to retrieve a saucer in exchange for information

While exploring the Bazaar, Basim ran into Kong, who again offered him aid with his investigation in exchange for retrieving something: a saucer, which the merchant claimed had been stolen from him by Luca. Basim broke into Luca's stall and recovered the saucer, only to later learn that Kong had never owned it in the first place. Nevertheless, his friend kept his word and revealed that the Treasurer wore a robe with intricate eastern embroidery.

Basim next found a merchant who was selling Chinese pottery and artifacts, including the hairpin sought by the Treasurer, which he learned would be up on auction. Finally, Basim overheard a conversation between a perfume supplier and the royal concubine Qabiha concerning his target and decided to follow the two women. After the perfume supplier left, Basim approached Qabiha and, during their conversation about perfume, he learned the Treasurer's identity: Ning.

Basim bidding for the hairpin at the Grand Auction

Once the auction began, Basim attended it and witnessed Ning arrive to make her bid for the hairpin. Ultimately, the Ancient was unable to secure the item she desired, so Basim acquired it instead and attempted to secure an audience with his target. However, he learned that only members of The Ivory Coin were allowed to meet Ning.

After speaking with a spice merchant, Basim learned that The Ivory Coin was an exclusive merchant guild, whose members carried a brooch that granted them access to certain areas. Locating the guild's chambers, Basim infiltrated them and stole a brooch belonging to a merchant who had forgotten it there. He then returned to the entrance to Ning's quarters and presented the brooch to a guard, who granted him an audience with the Treasurer.

Posing as a merchant, Basim presented the hairpin to Ning and listened to her go over her life and the lessons she had learned. When Basim asked Ning if any of her connections had played a role in her rise to power, the Ancient answered that one only had themselves. She then tried to attack him with the hairpin, having deduced his identity, but the Hidden One assassinated her. In her final moments, Ning re-stated her belief that people had no one but themselves, both in life and death, which Basim disagreed with. However, he then experienced another vision of the djinn, more intense than the last.

Basim telling Roshan that he saw the djinn again

After escaping from Ning's guards, Basim returned to the Karkh bureau to inform Roshan and Rebekah of his success. The former remarked that, despite this victory, the Order was still far from vanquished, before noticing that her apprentice seemed troubled. When Roshan asked Basim in private if he had seen the djinn again, he claimed that it was gone for now and went to rest.

Aiding the Zanj rebellion

Ali: "Does it not bother you that those you obey are the same ones who make the rules demanding your obedience?"

Basim: "They do not control me, I am free. I fight so that others are free as well."

Ali: "Everything you do serves the Hidden Ones. That is a strange kind of freedom."

—Basim and Ali ibn Muhammad discussing the former's freedom, 860s.

Later, Basim visited the final Hidden Ones bureau in Baghdad, located in the Sharqiyah sub-district of Karkh, for information on his next target. There, he found a furious Ali arguing with Fuladh, as many of the former's rebels had been executed by the Caliphate's Turkic mercenaries. Suspecting this to be the work of the Order and believing that the Ancients were trying to lure out Ali, Fuladh refused to let him go out and avenge his men's deaths, suggesting that Basim could do it instead. Ali agreed on the condition that he receive the credit and left.

Basim and Ali arriving in Jarjaraya

Basim and Fuladh then discussed the Order's influence in Sharqiyah, with the latter suspecting that the Ancients held control over the Turkic Army. Believing that helping Ali was their best chance to uncover the identity of the Order leader in Sharqiyah, Basim left the bureau and met with Ali at one of the city gates. As the two rode for Jarjaraya, they discussed the Hidden Ones and their personal views on freedom. Basim disagreed with Ali's notion that he was not truly "free" due to having to obey his masters, and believed that the Hidden Ones had simply helped him find his purpose.

In Jarjaraya, Basim and Ali split up to search for information on who was abducting the latter's men. Near a teahouse, Basim found a drunken man rambling about his slaves having gone missing and threw him into a pond to sober him up. The man then told him that two of his slaves had simply vanished while working on the fields, prompting Basim to investigate further.

The teahouse owner telling Basim about the rebel's widow and her missing son

Speaking with an elder at the teahouse after offering him a bribe, the Hidden One learned that anyone caught speaking with Ali's rebels went missing. Basim was then approached by the teahouse owner who, after heading to a secluded spot to talk, informed him of the disappearance of an executed rebel's son. Claiming that he was close to the family, the man directed Basim to their farmhouse to speak with the rebel's widow and learn what had happened to her son.

His investigation complete, Basim returned to Ali at the rebel hideout, only to find him torturing a captive guard for information, which both the Hidden One and Beshi disagreed with. Nevertheless, Ali had been able to learn that the guard was set to meet with an informant at the harbor, so Basim left to investigate this lead. He tailed the informant and saw him pass a note to a captain, which he then pickpocketed, finding that the letter was addressed to someone named Dogan bin Arslan.

Basim meeting the rebel's widow

Basim also went to the farmhouse mentioned by the teahouse owner and met the rebel's widow. Empathizing with her loss, Basim offered to bring her flowers to place on her husband's grave, something the Hidden One had been unable to do for his deceased friends in Anbar. After collecting the flowers, the widow revealed that her son had gone missing the previous night, and Basim looked around the farmhouse for clues. Finding a note revealing that the son had been investigating a farm where mercenaries were gathering, he informed the widow and promised to bring her son home.

Following this, Basim returned to Ali, finding that he had killed the captive guard. When the Hidden One angrily confronted him over his actions, Ali claimed that he did not answer to any creed and that this was the price of war. Basim believed that Beshi would disagree, but Ali reminded him that Beshi did not lead the rebellion. Quickly changing the subject, Ali asked Basim about his findings before directing him to free some of his captured men, who were being held at a nearby farmhouse.

Basim, Ali and the rebels attacking Dogan and his men

After Basim rescued the rebels, including the widow's son, he joined them and Ali in an assault on Dogan and his men at the latter's personal villa. Following Dogan's death, Basim looted a note from his body which revealed that the captain was expected to attend a meeting with two Order members, "Al-A'eshma" and "Al-Rukh", at the Officers' Club in Sharqiyah. With this information, Basim parted ways with Ali and his rebels and returned to Baghdad.

Infiltrating the Officers' Club, Basim eavesdropped on a conversation between Al-A'eshma and Al-Rukh, learning that their real names were Nadir ibn Havid and Jasoor ibn Basil, respectively, and that they were following the command of a third Order member, "Al-Mardikhwar", who was currently away from Baghdad. Before Basim could learn more, the two Ancients were informed of Dogan's death by a guard and left.

Basim eavesdropping on Jasoor and his men

After escaping from the Officers' Club, Basim returned to the Sharqiyah bureau to report to Fuladh, finding that Ali was also there. While the rebel leader decided to search for Beshi, who had gone missing, Basim resolved to hunt down Nadir and Jasoor and uncover the identity of their master. Infiltrating the Qasr Salih, the Hidden One found Jasoor and his men in one of the fort's rooms and slew them in combat. From Jasoor's body, he recovered a note revealing that Al-Mardikhwar was based at the Great Garrison.

At the Sharqiyah harbor, Basim searched for clues to Nadir's whereabouts and found a note directing all shipments to a camp south of Baghdad. Heading to the camp, Basim discovered that Nadir was overseeing the construction of warships for the Caliphate and set one of them on fire to draw him out and assassinate him. On Nadir's body, he found a letter from Al-Mardikhwar which implied that the latter held a high-ranking position in the Turkic Army.

Assassinating Al-Mardikhwar

"Warlord. You cloak yourself in the Caliph's colors so you can kidnap and kill at will. You are a plague upon the land. Its soil is red with the blood of those you have butchered. All because they sought their freedom... or because you feared they would. You think yourself untouchable, surrounded by your soldiers. But we will storm the Garrison, free Beshi, and see your reign of terror end."

―Basim, prior to Al-Mardikhwar's assassination, 860s.

Basim informing Fuladh and Ali of his leads on Al-Mardikhwar's identity

With both Jasoor and Nadir dead, Basim returned to the Sharqiyah bureau to report to Fuladh and Ali and inform them of his findings. Together, the three were able to deduce that Al-Mardikhwar was Wasif al-Turki, a warlord in the Turkic Army, before Ali revealed that Beshi had been captured. Subsequently, Basim and Ali left for the Great Garrison, both to eliminate Wasif and to rescue Beshi, who was being held prisoner alongside other rebels.

Near the garrison, Basim and Ali observed a conversation between Wasif and Baghdad's governor Muhammad ibn Tahir, who advised the warlord to control himself, only to be threatened by him in response. Remarking that the governor should hold no authority over Wasif, Basim pondered if Muhammad could be a member of the Order. Afterwards, Ali went to find Beshi and the captive rebels, leaving Basim to find a way into the garrison and deal with Wasif.

Basim and Ali mourning Beshi's death

Taking advantage of a hole in the northern wall that was under repairs, Basim infiltrated the garrison and made his way to the central courtyard. There, he witnessed Wasif execute the captive Beshi before Ali showed up and was spotted by the warlord's guards. While Wasif retreated to his office, Basim and Ali fought and defeated the guards.

After briefly mourning Beshi's death, Ali asked Basim to free the remaining rebels, which he did after eliminating the prison's warden and taking his keys. Ali then informed the Hidden One of a signal brazier which, once lit, would lure out Wasif's remaining guards, creating the perfect distraction for Basim to assassinate the warlord.

Basim assassinating Wasif

Basim did as he was told and, while Ali and his rebels battled the guards in the courtyard, he infiltrated Wasif's office through a balcony on the second floor. The Hidden One then unlocked a door hatch to reach the first floor, where he overheard Wasif ordering his guards to send a letter to the caliph requesting reinforcements. After the guards left the chamber, Basim assassinated the now defenseless Wasif and experienced yet another vision of the djinn.

As Ali walked into the room, he saw Basim standing next to Wasif's corpse and impaled the body with his sword, to make it appear like he had killed the warlord and keep the Hidden Ones' involvement secret. Basim then followed Ali and his rebels as they fought their way out of the Great Garrison until losing their pursuers in a nearby alley. There, Ali told Basim that he would see him back at the Sharqiyah bureau before addressing his men.

Ali parting ways with the Hidden Ones

At the bureau, Basim presented the feather dipped in Wasif's blood to Fuladh before being joined by Ali. The rebel leader thanked the Hidden Ones for their assistance and, when Basim expressed remorse over Beshi's death, Ali revealed that his story was already being told throughout Baghdad, making Beshi more free in death than he had been in life. He then claimed that freedom had a price, which Beshi had been more than willing to pay, and wished the Hidden Ones good luck in their endeavors before parting ways.

Finding Al-Bahamut

Fuladh: "Rebekah tells me you have met his mother, Qabiha?"

Basim: "I did. I think she could be first among our foes. She, or Arib the Poet, or Muhamamd the Governor. All three had ties to our enemies."

—Basim and Fuladh discussing the possible candidates for Al-Bahamut's identity, 860s.

For his efforts in combating the Order's influence, Basim was promoted to the rank of Master Assassin, receiving a new set of robes. Sometime afterwards, he returned to his home in Anbar, where his visions of the djinn continued. After being awoken from one of his nightmares by Nehal, the two friends argued, as Nehal tried to convince Basim that the Hidden Ones were not telling him everything and that he should seek the Order's knowledge to better understand his nature.

Basim questioning Roshan about the artifacts sought by the Order

With four out of the five Order leaders in Baghdad dead, Basim set his sights on his final target: the Ra's Al-Af'a of the Order, known only as "Al-Bahamut". Traveling to the Harbiyah bureau, Basim met with Roshan, who informed him that Ali and his rebels were preparing to attack the Caliphal Palace and that the people of the Caliphate were divided over Caliph al-Musta'in's claim to the throne, which many considered he had stolen from al-Mutawakkil's son, Abu 'Abdallah.

As Basim recalled seeing Abu 'Abdallah at the Winter Palace on the night of his father's murder, he decided to ask Roshan if the Hidden Ones had uncovered any new information about the artifacts sought by the Order. Briefly taken aback by the question, Roshan asked her apprentice why he was suddenly so interested in the relics, to which he simply stated that it would benefit the Hidden Ones to uncover their secrets before the Order.

Roshan, Basim, and Fuladh discussing the candidates for Al-Bahamut's identity

Before Roshan could give her answer, Fuladh arrived and the three Hidden Ones proceeded to discuss the possible candidates for Al-Bahamut's identity: Arib Al-Ma'muniyya, Qabiha, and Muhammad ibn Tahir. Having met all three, Basim was unsure which one of them was Al-Bahamut since they all appeared to have ties to the Order, so he headed to the Round City to conduct an investigation.

Arriving at Arib's residence, Basim was greeted by her patron, whom he asked for a private audience with the poet. However, the man turned him down and, suspecting Basim had been sent by the Order, told him that Arib would not be drawn into any more of their plots. Basim then decided to investigate Arib's mail for clues and infiltrated the Postal Bureau. Among Arib's correspondence, he found a letter that used cryptonyms, which he suspected had been written by the Order.

Basim and Arib confronted by the latter's patron

Believing that Arib could lead him to the letter's author, Basim attended one of her recitals and handed her the letter. However, he was confronted by Arib's patron, who ordered his guards to kill both Basim and Arib after the poet stood up to him. Upon dispatching the guards, Basim followed Arib, who had gone to meet with the letter's author, her friend Sara. After eavesdropping on their conversation, the Hidden One concluded that Arib had no ties to the Order.

At the Mazalim Courts, Basim bribed the judge 'Adil ibn Munsif for information on Muhammad and learned that the governor had several spies that reported to him at the Shurta Headquarters. Tailing one of the spies, Basim was able to locate Muhammad's office and broke in to search for evidence of the governor's affiliation with the Order. He found a note revealing that Muhammad had made a deal with the Order, who promised to put a stop to Abu 'Abdallah's challenge to the Caliphate's throne in exchange for the governor removing the Tahirids' protection of Alamut.

Basim confronting Muhammad over his deal with the Order

At that moment, Muhammad walked into the office and, upon seeing Basim, assumed he had been sent by the Order, though he eventually deduced he was a Hidden One. Threatening the governor with his Hidden Blade, Basim questioned him about his deal with the Order, which Muhammad claimed had been done to restore peace to Baghdad. After clarifying that he only served the Caliphate and would do anything to ensure its well-being, Muhammad called upon his guards, forcing Basim to make his escape.

Outside the Harem, Basim overheard a conversation between three servants and learned that several new eunuchs were set to arrive later that day. After stealing a eunuch's disguise, Basim was allowed entry into the Harem by pretending to recognize one of the servants, Makira. He then tried to break into Qabiha's office, but found that it was locked and was caught in the act by Makira. Basim convinced her not to call the guards and to give him the key to the office in exchange for helping her with several favors.

Basim convincing Makira that they can help each other

After obtaining the key, Basim investigated Qabiha's office and found evidence of the concubine's Order affiliations. As he left the office, he saw one of the servants, Farah, die from poisoning and another, Nasrin, be accused of the murder. Realizing this was Makira's doing, Basim angrily confronted her, and the servant admitted to using him to eliminate those who had spoken ill of her mistress Qabiha. Makira then revealed that Qabiha was hiding at the Caliphal Palace for her protection, inadvertently providing Basim with his target's location.

Facing Qabiha

"I told you of the nightmares, the jinni—You called it weakness. Told me to mend it. I tried and tried but you hid the way—You let me struggle alone!"

―Basim confronting Roshan following Qabiha's death, 860s.

With all three of his investigations complete, Basim met with Roshan to inform her of Muhammad's deal with the Order and Qabiha's identity as Al-Bahamut. Roshan decided to kill the Ra's Al-Af'a herself, believing her apprentice was not yet ready for such a dangerous mission, but Basim convinced her to let him prove otherwise. After his mentor left, Basim was approached by Nehal, who reprimanded him for allowing Roshan to tell him what to do and again claimed that the Hidden Ones were hiding things from him.

Basim held at knifepoint by Qabiha

Taking advantage of the Zanj rebels' attack on the Caliphal Palace, Basim was able to infiltrate it and discover Qabiha's hideout by interrogating Abu 'Abdallah, who recognized him as his father's killer, and tailing Makira, who was there to protect her mistress. After solving a puzzle involving Arib's poetry, the Hidden One gained access to the hideout and confronted Qabiha, chasing her to the palace's bathhouse. There, the Ra's Al-Af'a, masked by the mist, managed to attack him from behind and disarm him, holding Basim at knifepoint.

After Basim freed himself, Qabiha began to cryptically speak about his true nature, which made the Hidden One curious and eager to hear what she had to say. The Ra's Al-Af'a then revealed what the Brotherhood had kept Basim in the dark about—a temple underneath Alamut Castle—and tried to entice him to accompany her there so that they could unlock its secrets together. Basim retracted his Hidden Blade as a sign of accepting Qabiha's offer, only for the Ra's Al-Af'a to be suddenly assassinated from behind by Roshan.

Roshan trying to convince Basim not to investigate the Alamut Temple

As Roshan angrily questioned her apprentice's actions, Basim responded by accusing her of preventing him from understanding his true nature and leaving him to struggle with his nightmares of the djinn alone. He also criticized his perceived hypocrisy of the Hidden Ones' Creed, which promoted free will but asked the Brotherhood's members to obey without question.

Roshan simply told Basim that it was in everyone's best interest if he did not learn what was inside the Alamut Temple, and invited him to accompany her back to the Hidden Ones, no more than a man but no less than a brother. When Basim refused, Roshan warned him that if he sought out the temple, she would not hesitate to kill him herself, before leaving.

Search for the truth

Defending Alamut

Basim: "I will make every last one of them pay."

Nur: "Vengeance is not our way, brother."

Basim: "Our way? You sit bleeding to death and still cling to this... foolish dogma! And for what? Our Creed could not protect Alamut. And neither could I."

—Basim vowing to avenge Nur, 860s.

Basim telling Nehal that she was right to doubt the Hidden Ones

After escaping from the Caliphal Palace, Basim returned to Anbar and met up with Nehal, telling her that she was right not to trust the Hidden Ones. He then decided to disobey Roshan's orders and investigate the temple mentioned by Qabiha, riding for Alamut with Nehal, who insisted that she accompany him. Upon arrival, however, Basim found the Hidden Ones' camp under attack by Tahirid forces, as a result of Muhammad ibn Tahir's deal with the Order.

While looking around for Nehal, Basim was knocked out by two soldiers but was rescued by Nur, who dispatched his assailants and brought him to a small cave where he had taken refuge. After Basim experienced a nightmare of the djinn and regained consciousness, Nur greeted him and claimed that Basim was alone when he had found him, which the latter took as a sign that Nehal had managed to escape to safety.

Nur showing Basim his injury

When Nur disheartenedly claimed that Alamut had fallen, Basim tried to encourage him to fight off the attackers, only to learn that Nur had been mortally wounded. Basim vowed to avenge him, but Nur told him that revenge was not the Hidden Ones' way and instead urged him to rescue any survivors he found so that their ideals may live on. Despite his disillusion with the Creed, Basim agreed and took Nur's horse, leaving his friend to succumb to his injuries and heading towards the Hidden One camp.

After clearing the camp of mercenaries led by Kabeer Al-Jund, Basim freed a number of captive Hidden Ones, including Rayhan. The Mentor was surprised to see Basim had returned to Alamut, to which the latter claimed he had come for the knowledge inside its temple. Rayhan was hesitant to let anyone explore the temple, which was considered forbidden ground, but ultimately conceded when Basim told him that this knowledge could help them win their endless war against the Order.

Basim confronted by Roshan

While Rayhan and the other Hidden One survivors fought off the remaining Tahirid forces, Basim headed to the temple's entrance and dispatched the mercenaries standing in front of it. He then found a familiar symbol and touched it, revealing a hidden door. At that moment, however, a wounded Roshan arrived, intending to deliver on her earlier threat to Basim. Taking advantage of Roshan's injuries, Basim was able to weaken her defense with a throwing knife to the shoulder before engaging his former mentor in a duel.

Basim ultimately emerged victorious, stabbing Roshan with his Hidden Blade and incapacitating her. Roshan made a final attempt to dissuade Basim from seeking the knowledge inside the temple, claiming that she only wished to protect him and the Hidden Ones, but Basim ignored her. He then cut his hand with a knife and used his blood to open the temple door before venturing inside with Nehal.

Regaining his memories

"This memory I buried of his place... this prison, the torture I suffered here... it festered for years, in darkness and dreams... masked as a jinni, to haunt me and hollow me... until it consumed my waking life. But I have faced my past. My pain. Embraced it. I shed my skin once, in another time, another place. But I am whole again. I remember. And as for those who thought to bind me... should any of them still walk the earth, I so look forward to our reunion."

―Basim, after regaining his memories as Loki, 860s.

Basim and Nehal exploring the Alamut Temple

Basim and Nehal explored the temple, which the latter claimed was familiar to her, worrying Basim. After taking notice of the temple's strange architecture and finding more artifacts like the one Basim had stolen from the Winter Palace, the pair eventually reached a chamber with a pod. When Basim opened the pod, he was shocked to see Nehal inside, and came to the realization that Nehal had never been real; she existed just within his mind and all of her actions had actually been his own.

At that moment, Nehal took one of the artifacts and activated it, displaying a memory of a prisoner being tortured by a guard. This caused Basim to have an internal struggle, where he tried to understand his own nature. In the end, he came face-to-face with the djinn that had been tormenting him his entire life, and realized that his visions were in fact his repressed memories as Loki. To end the nightmares, Basim had to embrace these memories, in the process erasing Nehal from his mind. After several moments of hesitation, Basim agreed to do so when Nehal assured him that he would never be alone.

Upon leaving the Alamut Temple, Basim was welcomed back by his fellow Hidden Ones, which caused a furious and disillusioned Roshan to resign in protest. After witnessing an argument between Rayhan and Roshan, in which the latter discarded her Hidden Blade and left Alamut, Basim approached the Mentor to discuss what he had seen inside the temple.

Enkidu rejecting and attacking Basim

Now fully aware of his previous life as Loki, Basim became fixated on finding other Isu who had used Yggdrasil to be incarnated as humans, in order to take his revenge for the suffering inflicted upon his past self. While he remained a loyal follower of the Hidden Ones and their Creed, his allies noticed his change in character, leading to Enkidu rejecting Basim as his master, and the other Hidden Ones describing Basim as a person of danger and intrigue.

Activities in Constantinople

By 867, Basim had taken on an apprentice, the young acolyte Hytham, whom he had first met years prior in Baghdad, when he taught him the Leap of Faith to help him descend from a minaret. That year, Basim and Hytham were tasked with traveling to the Byzantine capital of Constantinople to investigate rumors of an assassination plot orchestrated by the newly installed Emperor Basil I, against his son Leo.

Touring the city with Hytham, the two Hidden Ones ventured through the markets as Basim revealed that he had made himself known to the Order of the Ancients in the city. Soon, they found Norse warriors led by a female Viking in the market but noticed other warriors waiting for them. Engaging the other warriors, the Hidden Ones fought against them until the female Viking killed the rest. After she introduced herself as Thyra of the Eagle Clan and leader of the Varangian guards, Basim was asked for help and a private location. Together, they made their way to the house of Demetrios Hestiun, a Hidden One ally.

At Hestiun's house, Basim discussed his intent with Thyra before meeting Empress Eudocia Ingerina, who had come in secret. Together, Basim and Hytham were informed by the Empress that the rumors of Basil trying to kill his son were true. During the conversation, the Hidden Ones were asked to protect Leo. Basim agreed and it was decided that Hytham would become an undercover Varangian guard, on the condition that an alliance be formed between the Hidden Ones and the Eagle Clan. Both Thyra and the Empress accepted before leaving. Basim and Hytham later discussed their plans, though the former remained hushed on his ulterior motives to ally with the Eagle Clan.

On Hytham's first day as a Varangian guard, Basim kept to the shadows on the palace's grounds while keeping an eye on his apprentice. At the children's wing, Basim advised Hytham to make contact with one of the suspects, who was Leo's nurse Anna. After Hytham saved Leo from assassination attempt involving vipers, Basim encouraged his apprentice to use his hero status to gauge information from Basil. After Hytham's conversation with the Emperor, Basim met with his acolyte and a saddened Leo, whom he gave a healing salve for his injury. After talking about Emperor Basil with Hytham, Basim offered to show Leo a "magic trick" and quickly vanished from his presence.

Two weeks later, Basim and Hytham tailed Anna to a fortune teller named Ursina and eavesdropped on the two women's conversation. They learned that Anna had bribed Ursina to give a jeweled comb to her contact Isaac. After hiding again, they also discovered a relationship between Anna and Leo's tutor Theodore, who later came to the fortune teller. A few days after this, back at the palace, the Hidden Ones returned to their original duties. Basim later found Thyra and talked to her about Hytham's relationship with Leo as well as Anna and Theodore.

However, Hytham later came to Basim and Thyra and asked for help. While being shown the dead body of Varangian guard Steros, they all surmised that Basil had secretly sent out an order to kill Hytham. To hide the murder, while Thyra cleaned the blood, Basim and Hytham dumped Steros' body into the sea. The two Hidden Ones then talked about possible suspects, which included Theodore and the Varangian guard Justin, as well as their new objectives to hunt and kill Isaac. Given that Hytham's life was now in danger, Basim took a new position to guard his apprentice for the night.

The next morning, Basim and Hytham tailed Justin, who left the palace to meet with an unknown man. They both witnessed the conversation go sour when Justin killed the man and two more attackers showed up. Fortunately, the Hidden Ones killed the attackers, revealing themselves in the process, and questioned Justin. When the Varangian guard told them of the Order's threats against his loved ones, they believed Justin was helping the Order due to apparently showing no care for Leo. However, after Justin responded that his animosity was a front to protect Leo from his abusive father, Basim realized they had left the palace unprotected. Telling Justin to check on his friend, the Hidden Ones instantly left for the palace.

At nightfall, Basim and Hytham entered the palace's children wing, where they heard complete silence. Basim left Hytham to find Leo while he checked for any attackers. He soon found Thyra being attacked and assisted her. Taking down multiple Order assailants, Basim later caught sight of Hytham and nodded him to go while struggling against his current attacker.

After taking down all of their opponents, Basim made his way outside to the garden where he found Hytham worn out. Before an attacker could kill his acolyte, Basim assassinated him and scared off the remaining attackers. Hytham wanted to follow them, but Basim stopped him and implored not to take the attack personally. Hytham then retorted that he knew of Basim's ulterior motives, to which the latter revealed that he was aware Hytham had been tasked to spy on him by Mentor Rayhan. Before Hytham could respond, Basim vanished.

Later, Basim learned that Hytham had begun tracking the Order alone but had gone missing. Taking Thyra and Leo with him, they followed his acolyte's trail and found an Order hideout in an abandoned building. Attacking the Order members, Basim left Thyra to fight them while he went to the basement and found an injured Hytham. Together, the two Hidden Ones went to help Thyra defeat the last of the Order members and managed to kill them, but Isaac escaped.

While Hytham left the building with Leo, Basim and Thyra cleaned up in the aftermath of the battle and investigated the premises. They then prepared to return to the palace, but first headed to another building where Hytham informed them of Theodore's involvement with the attack. Basim scouted the area to make sure there were no more attackers waiting for them while they all walked back to the palace.

Several days later, Basim found himself at Philopation, where the Emperor and his family were having a public picnic. He called for Hytham while being approached by a wolf, which were rare in the park. Basim explained that he needed to cool off but showcased anger towards his apprentice for disobeying his orders. Immediately attacking Hytham with his sword, the master and apprentice began to spar as Basim continued to reprimand Hytham. He eventually overpowered his acolyte, though he then admitted that he cared about him, claiming that he had saved him both for the Hidden Ones and for himself.

When Basim expressed his desire to leave Constantinople, Hytham disagreed, so Basim came up with a plan to root out Isaac by having Leo serve as bait. Hytham reluctantly agreed with the plan after his master promised that Leo would not be harmed. Planning their ambush during Basil's Hippodrome event, Basim was soon caught off-guard by two Order members and managed to kill one. However, he was struck with a dagger by the other and was forced to flee.

Leaving a trail of blood, Basim headed to the top of a nearby tower to rest. He was soon found and tended to by Hytham before the two Hidden Ones returned to the Hippodrome, right as Basil was about to race. Spreading out, Basim realized he needed the Order to strike and reveal themselves so he threw a spike at Basil's chariot, causing the Emperor to crash. Just as Basim had anticipated, the Order used this opportunity to make their move and kidnap Leo. Though Basim tried to stop them, one of the captors used Leo as a shield and fled with the boy.

Managing to find another opening, Basim took a different route to stop the fleeing Order members while Hytham, Thyra, and Justin follow onward. Basim and his allies chased them out of the Hippodrome and into a nearby alley. There, they all saw a dead end while Isaac entered from the streets to aid his warriors. Fighting them, Basim and Hytham faced off against Isaac himself while Justin and Thyra battled the other warriors.

When Leo managed to break free, Thyra used the distraction to kill both her attacker and the captor. Basim then grabbed Leo and, after telling him to run to the streets, returned to help Hytham against Isaac. His acolyte eventually gained the upper hand and pushed Isaac back, right into Basim's blade, killing him instantly. Meanwhile, the last remaining Order member chased after Leo, but was killed by Justin in the streets.

With both Justin and Leo hailed as heroes and the Order's alliance with Basil dissolved, Basim and Hytham concluded that Leo was no longer in any danger and decided to leave Constantinople. Basim waited for Hytham to say his goodbyes to Leo and Empress Eudocia, who thanked the Hidden Ones for their help, before the master and apprentice left the city, their trust in each other renewed.

Fighting the Snake-Eaters

By 870, Basim and Hytham were stationed back in Constantinople, where the former served as bureau leader. That year, Basim traveled to Antioch with Hytham to fight the Snake-Eaters, a new faction of the Order of the Ancients trying to take control of the city. However, the Antioch bureau was decimated by this conflict and Basim sent letters to his Hidden One brothers and sisters asking for reinforcements.

His old friend Mahaut from Francia sent two of her acolytes, Matthias and Oisel, while the Alexandrian bureau sent four Hidden Ones led by Jessamyn. Eventually, Basim and the Hidden Ones successfully drove the Snake-Eaters away from Antioch. As he had matters to attend to back in Constantinople, Basim left with his apprentice and sent the six other Hidden Ones after the Snake-Eaters' leadership on the Silk Road.

Journey to Norway

Eivor: "Basim. Hytham. This feud is not yours, yet you fight it all the same. I find that strange."

Basim: "You find it strange because you are wrong. Our clan, the Hidden Ones, have been fighting with Kjotve's Order for centuries."

—Basim explaining the Hidden Ones' conflict with the Order of the Ancients to Eivor, 872.

Basim learning of Ammon's failure

During his tenure as Constantinople's bureau leader, Basim dispatched the Hidden One Ammon to a merchant's castle in Bulgar to acquire a Shroud of Eden before the Order of the Ancients. However, during his mission, Ammon encountered the Viking Sigurd Styrbjornsson, who killed him in combat and took his Hidden Blade as a trophy. After being informed of Ammon's failure by a fellow Hidden One, Basim expressed his disappointment, but his interest was piqued when he was told that Ammon's killer was a Norseman with a mark on his neck.

Basim and Hytham eventually met Sigurd in Constantinople and befriended him, acting as his guides and teaching him many of their organization's customs. When Sigurd decided to return home to Norway, Basim agreed to accompany him, and requested permission from Mentor Rayhan to leave, claiming that this was an opportunity fight the Order of the Ancients' growing influence in Northern Europe. Hytham also volunteered to join his mentor on his mission, and the two Hidden Ones set sail from Constantinople in 872.

Basim and Hytham meeting Sigurd's family, Eivor and Randvi

Basim, Hytham, and Sigurd arrived in the latter's hometown of Fornburg in late 872, whereupon they were introduced to the rest of the Raven Clan, including Sigurd's wife Randvi and his adoptive sister Eivor Varinsdottir. When Sigurd presented Ammon's Hidden Blade to Eivor as a gift, Hytham objected, especially after the Viking opted to proudly wear the blade on her outer wrist rather than concealed, but Basim overruled his apprentice. He then taught Eivor how to use the blade by taking her to a training ground, where Eivor practiced various assassination techniques on straw dummies while Basim, Hytham, and Sigurd watched.

When Eivor and Sigurd decided to join forces with Harald Fairhair in an assault on Kjotve the Cruel's fortress, Basim chose to inform Eivor of the conflict between the Hidden Ones and the Order of the Ancients, as Kjotve was a member of the latter and Hytham's intended target. However, Eivor insisted that she deserved the kill, since Kjotve had murdered her parents Varin and Rosta, and the Hidden Ones agreed to let her do it.

Basim drinking with Eivor

Following the Raven Clan's victory, Harald called a truce and invited all Viking leaders in Norway to attend an althing in Alrekstad. Basim accompanied Sigurd to the town tavern, where they were soon joined by Eivor. Upon being left alone with Eivor, Basim asked for a medallion she had recovered from Kjotve's body, which indicated his membership of the Order. He then offered to help Eivor get close to Kjotve's son, Gorm, in order to confront him discreetly due to the ongoing truce. He taught Eivor how to blend in with her environment, allowing the Viking to infiltrate Gorm's camp without being seen.

Life in England

Basim: "Be ready to ride at a moment's notice."

Hytham: "Count on it, my friend. The path ahead is bright."

Basim: "With glory at its end."

—Basim and Hytham prior to the former's departure from Ravensthorpe, 873.

After Eivor and Sigurd refused to acknowledge Harald as king in his efforts to unify Norway, they decided to leave their homeland to escape Harald's rule. Basim and Hytham joined the siblings and select members of the Raven Clan as they sailed to England, where they established the settlement of Ravensthorpe from an abandoned camp of the Great Heathen Army in the Kingdom of Mercia. Shortly after, Basim departed for parts unknown, leaving Hytham to set up a bureau in Ravensthorpe to help them better track the presence of the Order of the Ancients in England.

During his travels, Basim learned that Eivor had been tasked by Hytham to investigate the Hidden Ones' abandoned bureaus in England, and provided her with a lead on one bureau located in Lunden. However, Eivor ultimately assigned the task of investigating the Lunden bureau to one of her Viking warriors, Alva.

Search for the Saga Stone

Basim: "Fulke, we have heard that you possess a profane stone with strange markings and the image of a tree."

Fulke: "That I do. A monolith I call the Saga Stone, for it came to this land with the Dane, Ragnar Lothbrok."

—Basim questioning Fulke about the Saga Stone, 874.

Basim holding Eivor at knifepoint

In 874, Basim accompanied Sigurd to Oxenfordscire, where they allied themselves with the thegn Geadric, who sought to overthrow Lady Eadwyn, the wife of the shire's late ealdorman. The three settled in Buckingham while awaiting Eivor's arrival, but Basim and Sigurd were soon forced to take refuge in a fishing house when the town was overrun by Eadwyn's forces, who captured Geadric. Once Eivor arrived, she found the pair's hiding spot and entered the house. Basim grabbed her from behind and held her at knifepoint, but quickly released her upon realizing who she was.

After Sigurd explained the situation to Eivor, the trio decided to rescue Geadric and headed to Buckingham's longhouse, where they confronted Eadwyn. The noblewoman left her guards to eliminate them, but the trio prevailed and killed the soldiers before freeing a captive Geadric. Basim then questioned the thegn about a woman named Fulke, whom both he and Sigurd believed to be essential to their mission. Geadric directed them to a thegn named Holt, who was held at a trial at the Leah Villa Garrison.

The trio quickly rode for the garrison to prevent Holt's execution and managed to rescue both him and an additional three thegns accused of treason against Eadwyn. In gratitude, Holt informed them that Fulke was being held prisoner by Eadwyn's soldiers at Saint Albanes Abbey. While Eivor went to update Geadric on the situation, Basim and Sigurd traveled to the monastery and began devising a plan to infiltrate it.

Basim, Sigurd and Eivor meeting Fulke

After being joined by Eivor at their camp in the ruins of Linforda, Basim and Sigurd decided to let her pick between a direct and a stealthy approach. Either way, the trio successfully infiltrated the monastery and found Fulke being held in a cell guarded by a single Anglo-Saxon monk. After Eivor obtained the key from him, the trio freed Fulke, who revealed that she was searching for an Isu artifact known as the Saga Stone. Realizing that Basim and Sigurd were after the same prize, Eivor became angry that her brother was more interested in a relic than securing an alliance with Geadric.

Fulke led Basim, Sigurd, and Eivor to the Evinghou Tower, where the Saga Stone was being protected by one of Fulke's acolytes, Brother Paul. Upon arrival, however, they found that the tower had been ransacked by Eadwyn's forces, who had killed Paul and stolen the Saga Stone. At that moment, Eadwyn arrived in the company of several soldiers, and Sigurd attempted to negotiate with her, promising peace in exchange for the artifact. Believing that Sigurd was betraying their alliance with Geadric, Eivor threw an axe at one of Eadwyn's men in rage, initiating a fight.

Basim witnessing Eivor and Sigurd's argument

After killing Eadwyn's soldiers, Eivor got into an argument with Sigurd, which Basim intervened in, claiming that Eivor should have trusted her brother's judgement. He then left with Sigurd to prepare to besiege Eadwyn's fortress, Cyne Belle Castle, and recover the Saga Stone. After Eivor sabotaged Eadwyn's army to facilitate their assault, she met with Basim, Sigurd, and Fulke and, together with Geadric's men, the group raided Cyne Belle Castle, defeating Eadwyn and her forces.

Following their victory, Basim, Sigurd, Eivor, and Fulke found the Saga Stone in the castle's vault, but just as they began examining it, they were alerted to the arrival of King Alfred of Wessex, whom Eadwyn had summoned for help. During the peace negotiations, each party was required to surrender their best warrior. Basim offered himself, while the thegn Wolfrich was chosen on Alfred's behalf.

However, Fulke altered the terms at the last minute, convincing Alfred to take Sigurd instead due to being aware of his nature as an incarnated Isu. Realizing that Fulke was an Order of the Ancients member, Basim decided to track her down and promised Eivor that he would find and rescue Sigurd.

Hunting Fulke

Basim: "Children, they bewilder you. They can cause you so much worry, fill you with joy. Even stop your heart. And if you're lucky, they replace you. I was not so lucky. I had a son. I miss him terribly. Even now."

Eivor: "I'm sorry, Basim."

Basim: "He was taken from me. By someone I trusted. A friend, a mentor. A man who I would trust with anything. But a man you trust with anything... can take anything."

—Basim discussing his past with Eivor, 874.

Basim and Eivor meeting with Cynebert

Basim eventually managed to track Fulke to Cent and sent a letter to Ravensthorpe to notify Eivor. When Eivor arrived at Saint Hadrian's Priory to meet with Basim, she found the Hidden One in the middle of a conversation with a priest named Hortbert, where they debated Christ, the sins of Adam and Eve, free will, and more. Another priest named Cedric soon joined the conversation and the two priests got carried away with each other. Basim then informed Eivor of his lead on Fulke: an abbot named Cynebert who personally knew the Order member.

Following a brief conversation regarding the Hidden Ones and Hytham, who was taking after Basim according to Eivor, the pair met Cynebert, who requested a favor in exchange for Fulke's whereabouts. King Alfred had recently appointed a new ealdorman after the death of Cent's old ealdorman, Deogal, and the abbot wanted to know who the new leader would be prior to the public knowing. Hoping Eivor would help him, Cynebert directed the Viking to the Tonbridge Monastery, where the king's emissary had stayed, and left.

While Eivor headed to the monastery, Basim went to question more Christians for potentially useful information, telling Eivor to meet him in Folcanstan once she was done. After Eivor learned that the new ealdorman was to be a thegn named Tedmund, she traveled to Folcanstan as instructed, where she found Basim conversing with Cynebert. Upon learning the identity of the future ealdorman, Cynebert requested Basim and Eivor's help in earning his favor. Together, they devised a plan where the Hidden One and the Viking would kidnap the thegn so that Cynebert could then pretend to rescue him.

Basim and Eivor threatening "Tedmund"

Basim and Eivor rode for Beamasfield, where Tedmund was located, with Basim telling Eivor the story of "The Scorpion and the Frog" along the way. After kidnapping the thegn, the pair carried him back to Cynebert, who had arrived with a group of soldiers. However, while "negotiating" Tedmund's release, Basim and Eivor learned that they had not captured the thegn, but rather a decoy named Shergar. Fearful for his life, Shergar led them to a nearby camp of Danes which he had previously ordered to be taken over. However, they arrived too late and were forced to deal with the Anglo-Saxon soldiers located there.

After dispatching the soldiers, Basim and Eivor freed their prisoner, Runa Egilsdottir, who was the leader of the deceased Vikings. Runa agreed to go gather her remaining forces for a siege of Rouecistre Fortress, where the real Tedmund was hiding in self-exile. Eivor also sent a letter to Geadric in Oxenfordscire requesting reinforcements.

Basim and Eivor discussing their pasts

That night, Basim and Eivor camped together and bonded as they spoke of their pasts and families. Without revealing his nature as Loki incarnate, Basim obliquely told Eivor about his son and the man who had taken him away. The following day, Basim, Eivor, and their allies successfully stormed Rouecistre Fortress and captured Tedmund, just as Cynebert arrived with his soldiers to "rescue" him. To everyone's surprise, however, Tedmund died from the poison he had secretly ingested. Nevertheless, Cynebert agreed to uphold his end of his bargain with Basim and Eivor, but asked them to give him some time to relieve himself.

As instructed, Basim and Eivor later went to meet with Cynebert at his abbey so that he could give them Fulke's whereabouts. Upon arrival, however, they found the abbot dead at the hands of Fulke, who ordered her guards to kill the Hidden One and the Viking and bring their corpses to Canterbury. The pair managed to escape Fulke's trap and rode for Canterbury, with Basim telling Eivor more about his past along the way.

Arriving at the Canterbury Cathedral, Basim and Eivor discovered Fulke's sanctum, killing her guards and finding her writings, though the Ancient herself was already long gone. While Eivor continued to investigate the chambers, finding a box with Sigurd's severed arm, Basim found a lead to Fulke's current location: the fortress of Portcestre. The two planned to besiege it next, as Sigurd was running out of time, and parted ways, with Basim heading to Suthsexe to scout out the fort.

Siege of Portcestre

Eivor: "Have you noticed any change in him? Any loss of... of happiness? Or feeling?"

Basim: "He appears to me... more thoughtful. Introspective."

Eivor: "Thoughtful? That seems and understatement. He speaks as if he hears the voices of the gods whispering in his ear."

Basim: "We live in a strange time, Eivor. Among stranger people. Sigurd may be among the blessed. But who can say for certain?"

—Eivor and Basim discussing Sigurd's change of character after rescuing him, 875.

Basim talking to Eivor and Guthrum

The following year, in 875, Basim traveled to Croindene to meet with Eivor and her allies, in order to plan their attack on Portcestre. Once Eivor arrived, she and Basim went to speak with jarl Guthrum, who was unimpressed by the army Eivor had managed to gather. Eivor pointed out that not all of her allies had arrived yet and inquired about the others' whereabouts, to which Basim informed her that they were on their way. However, Eivor was unwilling to wait any longer, so Basim directed her to eliminate three of Fulke's scouts that had been spotted in the region.

After dealing with the scouts, Eivor traveled to the woods east of Portcestre where her allies had set up camp. There, she found Basim having a conversation with Guthrum and shared a note she had found on one of the scouts, mentioning a possible siege on Croindene by Fulke's forces. Shortly after, they were caught by surprise when Fulke's soldiers suddenly attacked the camp. Although Eivor, Basim and the others were able to defeat their assailants, they suffered heavy casualties during the battle, including Eivor's ally Brothir.

Basim consoled Eivor and tried to calm down Guthrum, who angrily blamed Eivor for allowing such an attack to happen. After Guthrum advised Eivor to be less reckless and carefully plan out her assault of Portcestre, Basim agreed and encouraged Eivor to take the jarl's advice. Eivor then gathered Basim, Soma, and Ubba Ragnarsson to formulate a plan of attack, intending to sabotage Fulke's army and resources.

Basim meeting Eivor near the Briggworth garrison

Basim traveled to Briggworth, a garrison holding many of Fulke's reinforcements, where he was soon joined by Eivor. The two proceeded to cripple Fulke's forces by burning their boats and killing two of the stronghold's commanders. After Eivor also aided Soma and Ubba in dealing major blows to Fulke's army, she met with all of her gathered allies at their camp to begin their assault of Portcestre.

During the siege, Basim fought ferociously, killing many of Fulke's soldiers while helping Eivor search for Fulke and Sigurd. The pair eventually found them both inside a chapel, but Fulke quickly fled underground. Basim offered to stay with the injured Sigurd while Eivor went after Fulke and eventually killed her. However, before her death, Fulke had reached out for Saxon reinforcements, forcing Eivor and her allies to fight them off while Basim took Sigurd to Ravensthorpe.

Upon her return to Ravensthorpe, Eivor noticed a change in Sigurd's character, which she believed was brought about by the torture he had endured at Fulke's hands. When she questioned Basim about it, the Hidden One claimed that Sigurd seemed more introspective and suggested that her brother could be "blessed."

Imprisonment

"For too long, I stared at the sun! It blinded me to the truth. That it was you. It was you I wanted all along."

―Basim, realizing that Eivor was Odin's incarnation, 877.

In 877, Basim followed Eivor and Sigurd when the siblings traveled back to Norway to investigate the latter's visions, which supposedly led to Valhalla. In Hordafylke, Eivor and Sigurd found an ancient Isu temple which contained the supercomputer Yggdrasil, used by certain Isu to reincarnate themselves in order to survive the Great Catastrophe. The siblings connected themselves to the computer and experienced a simulation of Valhalla, though they both eventually came to reject it and chose to return to the real world.

Basim holding Sigurd hostage

Upon leaving the simulation, Eivor was surprised to see Basim holding Sigurd hostage with a knife to his throat. Having deduced that Eivor was Odin incarnate, Basim challenged the Viking to a fight so that he could take his revenge for Odin's imprisonment of Fenrir. After Eivor released Sigurd, she chased Basim around Yggdrasil's chamber, confused as to why Basim had suddenly betrayed them but nonetheless attempted to kill him.

As Basim and Eivor fought, the Hidden One made use of his stealth tools, including throwing knives and smoke bombs, to try and catch the Viking off-guard. He eventually pinned her to the ground and took a closer look at her neck, seeing the mark which confirmed she was an incarnated Isu. After Eivor pushed him off, the two continued their fight as the platform they were standing on suddenly began ascending. Upon reaching the top, Basim used a smoke bomb to vanish and made his way back towards Sigurd, intending to kill him for "choosing the wrong side."

Basim's defeat

Eivor stopped Basim and the two resumed their duel, during which Sigurd went to Yggdrasil's controls and directed one of its branches to latch onto Basim after Eivor had stunned him. Though Basim managed to stab Eivor in the abdomen with his Hidden Blade, he was ultimately defeated when Sigurd activated Yggdrasil, lifting Basim's body into the air while trapping his consciousness within the Grey.

Eivor informed Hytham of Basim's betrayal and fate when she returned to England, much to the young Acolyte's shock, who could not understand what had driven his mentor to turn on his allies. Hytham in turn informed his fellow Hidden Ones, prompting Mentor Rayhan to invite Hytham to attend a council hosted by Fuladh at Alamut, in order to give a detailed account of Basim's betrayal.

A new world

Awakening

"The Heir of Memories fulfilled her role perfectly. Now then. A new world awaits."

―Basim to Aletheia, regarding the success of her and Loki's plan, 2020.

By 2020, Basim had spent over a millenium trapped in the Grey, running numerous calculations while looking for a way to escape. Eventually, an opportunity presented itself after the Assassin Desmond Miles sacrificed himself in 2012 to activate the global aurora borealis device and prevent the Second Disaster. This activated a protective shield around the Earth that, over the following eight years, caused the planet's magnetic field to strengthen beyond normal proportions, resulting in several anomalies.

Basim meeting Layla within Yggdrasil's simulation

Basim managed to send an audio message to the Assassins, offering a solution and directing them to Eivor's remains in New England. There, the Assassin Layla Hassan used her Animus to relive Eivor's genetic memories and eventually learned of the Yggdrasil chamber, which she and her fellow Assassins believed was the solution they needed. Venturing into the chamber with the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus, which protected her from the lethal radiation inside, Layla found Basim's body still connected to Yggdrasil and then connected herself to the machine, entering the Grey.

Within the simulation, Layla met Basim, who showed her how to slow down the machine that was causing all the anomalies. However, while this restored the Earth's magnetic field to its proper strength and effectively saved the planet, it also released Basim from the Grey and doomed Layla, who sacrificed her mortal body to remain in the Grey and help "The Reader" with his calculations.

Awakening within Yggdrasil's chamber, Basim used the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus, which Layla had dropped, to rejuvenate his body, and was at last reunited with Aletheia, whose consciousness was stored inside the Staff. Communicating with his lover, Basim confirmed that Odin was long dead and that Layla had fulfilled her purpose, and mused that a new world awaited them.

Activities in New England

"You bested me. I don't know how, but you did. Yet I'm the one left standing. And now I can take from you anything I want... your memories, your skills, your secrets. They're all mine. And when I have them, I will put them to good use. To find my children. And bring my family back together."

―Basim addressing Eivor's remains, 2020.

Basim meeting Shaun and Rebecca

Basim subsequently traveled to Layla's safehouse in New England, where he met the other members of Layla's Assassin cell, Rebecca Crane and Shaun Hastings. After enduring the couple's anger at Layla's fate, Basim remarked how his brotherhood of the Hidden Ones had renamed themselves to the Assassins, and requested a face-to-face meeting with their Mentor, William Miles, to discuss action against the Templars, the successors to the Order of the Ancients.

After Rebecca and Shaun reluctantly left to bring William, Basim was left alone in the cabin. He visited Eivor's grave, remarking how he had managed to outlive his adversary and how, thanks to the Animus, he now had access to Eivor's memories, which he hoped to use to find his missing children. Following an extended period of time in the Animus, Basim began to experience the Bleeding Effect, seeing an apparition of Eivor sitting by the campfire, where she smiled and nodded at him; a gesture he returned.

Basim reading Viking Myths

While waiting for Rebecca and Shaun to return with their Mentor, Basim explored the cabin and took to reading the books Shaun had gathered in his research of Norse culture and mythology. One such title, Viking Myths, recounted the tale of Loki and Baldr's exploits and Loki's eventual betrayal of Odin's son. While the events and setting differed over centuries of retelling, certain details remained the same, which Basim reacted to with an ambiguous smile.

Eventually, Basim finished reliving Eivor's memories in the Animus, realizing that the Viking's connection with her Isu self, Odin, was different from his own connection with Loki. At that moment, William remotely accessed his Animus simulation for their "face-to-face" meeting. As the Mentor was curious to learn how Basim had survived for so long in suspended animation, the latter agreed to help him understand while they worked together to further the Assassin cause.

Before they could begin, however, William requested that Basim provide the Assassins with a blood sample, to parse its genetic sequences through the Animus and allow the Brotherhood to relive his memories. Basim complied, musing that William was in for "quite a ride", before leaving the cabin to clear his mind. Outside, he had another Bleeding Effect-induced hallucination, this time of Eivor and Odin discussing the Great Catastrophe.

Personality and traits

"All my life I wrestled with who I was. Who I was meant to be. And there you were. All this time. The side of me I resisted. A reflection of who we... once were."

―Basim to "Nehal", upon realizing he was Loki's incarnation, 860s.

Similarly to Loki, Basim was a curious mind, possessing a deep commitment to the pursuit of scholarly activities and a hunger for knowledge and wisdom. In his youth, he was a frequent visitor of Baghdad's House of Wisdom, where he indulged in his passion for science, studying various books about astronomy and other scientific subjects.

Basim haunted by Loki's memories, represented as a djinn

Due to being orphaned at a young age, Basim was forced to become a thief to survive on Baghdad's streets. Despite this, he possessed a strong desire to help those in need and fight against corruption and injustice, likely born from the injustice his own father had faced. He was also earnest, charismatic, and witty. However, in his desire to impress and join his idols, the Hidden Ones, he could also be quite reckless, as shown in his decision to break into the Winter Palace, which later resulted in the deaths of most of his friends.

After becoming a Hidden One, Basim was initially a firm believer of the Creed and served without question. Over time, however, he began to doubt his own freedom and realized the Brotherhood's hypocrisy, which was first pointed out to him by people like Ali ibn Muhammad and Nehal, who believed that people only owed a moral obligation to themselves and should be free to act as they pleased. He also started questioning his own nature and sought to uncover the source of his nightmares of the djinn, which had been haunting him for most of his life. To this end, he effectively betrayed his master Roshan by choosing to investigate the Alamut Temple against her orders, though his decision was supported by Mentor Rayhan.

Upon learning that he was Loki incarnate, Basim chose to embrace his repressed memories, going back on his vow to abandon his past which he had made when he first joined the Hidden Ones. After becoming fully aware of his past life as Loki, Basim assimilated some of Loki's traits, becoming a darker and more mysterious character who mostly kept to himself. He also frequently employed manipulation as a tactic to achieve his goals. He was notably able to play on Sigurd's desire for greatness to convince him that he was a god and create a rift in his and Eivor's friendship.

Like his past self, Basim was a skilled manipulator

As Loki's human self, Basim's main objective was to reunite his family and exact revenge on Odin for imprisoning his son Fenrir. Despite this, he did not abandon the Hidden Ones, as he still believed in their cause, even if not as thoroughly as when he had first joined. He also sought to spread his teachings to his apprentice, Hytham, and took pride in knowing that Hytham was taking after him, according to Eivor.

Like his predecessor, Basim valued loyalty and kindness towards his kin. He was loyal to Sigurd's clan, despite being aware of his true nature, and showed them kindness and devotion throughout their time together in Norway and England. Only upon discovering that Eivor was Odin's human self, Basim went into a manic state and betrayed his former ally, attempting to kill Eivor to avenge the suffering brought upon his family. He also tried to kill Sigurd despite their friendship, simply because he had chosen "the wrong side."

Following his defeat and imprisonment in the Grey, Basim spent centuries carefully studying the calculations to determine the best paths to take for his next plots. By the 21st century, his repeated studies of the calculations and Loki's memories had made him capable of understanding how modern human societies and equipment functioned, such as the Animus.

Skills and equipment

"Through all my stoicism, my harsh lessons, know that you have impressed me, Basim."

―Roshan to Basim, 860s.

Growing up alone on the streets of Baghdad, Basim took to thievery as a means of survival, becoming a skilled pickpocket. A master freerunner, he was able to scale most buildings as well as natural elements with relative ease, and could also transverse over and under various obstacles almost instantly. He also proved to be a strong swimmer whilst exploring various underwater ruins, and was capable of holding his breath for a relatively long period of time.

Basim fighting two guards with his sword and dagger

While Basim had some experience sneaking around, being able to infiltrate the Anbar harbor and the Winter Palace, his stealth skills were refined upon joining the Hidden Ones. He learned how to blend in with his environment, such as groups of people and benches, and mastered several assassination techniques with his Hidden Blade. When focusing enough, he could assassinate enemies in such a rapid succession that, when an Assassin later relived Basim's memories via the Animus, the machine struggled to render his movements.

Basim initially possessed virtually no combat skills, but over the course of his training at Alamut, he became a proficient swordsman. During his time in Baghdad, he wielded a sword and a parrying dagger and would utilize both in combat, allowing him to strike at his enemies quickly and block incoming attacks. However, while he could take on a few guards with relative ease, he struggled when confronted by larger groups. During his later years in England, he preferred to utilize a single scimitar, which mirrored the weapon used by Loki during the Isu Era.

Basim fleeing from a group of guards after using a smoke bomb

Thanks to the triplet brothers Abu Jafar Muhammad, Ahmad, and Al-Hasan, Basim had access to a variety of gadgets, including throwing knives, smoke bombs, a blowpipe, noisemakers, and explosive traps that could knock out large groups of enemies. Furthermore, the brothers could upgrade these tools at Basim's request using materials he had found while exploring Baghdad. This increased their efficiency and allowed Basim to apply different effects to them. In his later years in England, Basim would abandon most of these gadgets, though he still occasionally used smoke bombs and throwing knives, as well as an early variant of the rope dart.

Basim possessed the rare ability of Eagle Vision, which allowed him to release a brief pulse that would locate and tag nearby enemies and points or objects of interest, even through walls and floorboards. Upon becoming a Hidden One, as was custom among the brotherhood, he received an eagle companion named Enkidu, who aided him in reconnaissance. After embracing his nature as Loki, however, Enkidu sensed the change in Basim's character and rejected him.

Basim's Hidden One initiate attire

When he first joined the Hidden Ones, Basim was given the standard initiate's outfit. After rising through the Brotherhood's ranks and becoming a Master Assassin, he received a new set of robes, including a red sash which signified his new rank. Eventually, Basim abandoned these robes in favor of the standard attire worn by Hidden Ones in the Middle East, though he added a personal detail in the form of a broach on the right side. The broach featured a wolf, a snake, and a skull, likely representing Loki's children Fenrir, Jörmungandr, and Hel; as such, its design was intended to reinforce Basim's ties to his past life.

Upon emerging from Yggdrasil in the 21st century, Basim changed out of his Hidden One robes in favor of a more modern wardrobe, wearing a grey hoodie, a black t-shirt with a wolf and moon design on the front, brown cargo pants, and brown shoes with red laces.

Behind the scenes

Basim ibn Ishaq is a character introduced in the 2020 video game Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, in which he is portrayed by the Canadian actor Carlo Rota. He later appeared as the protagonist of the 2023 game Assassin's Creed: Mirage, where he is portrayed by the Lebanese-Canadian actor Lee Majdoub.

As a series protagonist, Basim has several distinctions. He is the second mainline protagonist who was introduced in a previous installment, after Edward Kenway, who was referenced in Assassin's Creed III and first appeared in the novel Assassin's Creed: Forsaken. He is also the only protagonist to serve as an antagonist in another game, and the only one to be playable in both the Animus and the modern day.

In Valhalla, Basim's robes can be obtained for free from Ubisoft Connect as an outfit for Eivor to wear in-game. While wearing the outfit, Eivor's Hidden Blade is repositioned under her forearm as opposed to on top of it. As a result of this, she will have her left hand open as opposed to clenching it into a fist when assassinating enemies with the Hidden Blade. The repositioned Hidden Blade, however, can result in some animation errors in which the blade would clip through Eivor's hand while extended during certain attack animations and cutscenes. The same robes can be obtained again from Ubisoft Connect for Basim's younger self in Mirage, under the name "Basim Valhalla Costume". Unlike their depiction in Valhalla, the robes in Mirage have the large cloak removed and feature an additional red sash hanging behind Basim's right shoulder.

Etymology

Basim (باسم) is an Arabic name meaning "one who smiles", derived from بَسَمَ (basama) meaning "to smile". This is acknowledged in Mirage's 2025 downloadable expansion Valley of Memory, in which Basim's father Ishaq mentions that he was named after his mother's smile.

His nasab (نسب) "ibn Ishaq" means "son of Ishaq", with Ishaq, the Arabic form of Isaac, meaning "laughing". In official company material, Ubisoft continuously and erroneously stylizes Basim's nasab as "Ibn Ishaq", with a capital ⟨I⟩, when that is uncommon practice. Additionally, it occasionally renders his patronymic as "Is'haq", incorrectly adding a ⟨'⟩ to represent a sukūn ⟨ ْ⟩ denoting the preceding syllable ends in the consonant. This is a non-standardized way to romanize the Arabic إسحاق and is used to signify that the ⟨sh⟩ is not a digraph pronounced as a single phoneme. In standard transliteration schemes, a ⟨'⟩ is used to represent a hamza, which indicates a full glottal stop.

Appearances

An image gallery is available for Basim ibn Ishaq

• Assassin's Creed: Rebellion
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla (first appearance)
  • The Last Chapter
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Song of Glory
• Assassin's Creed: The Silk Road
• Discovery Tour: Viking Age (avatar only)
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Sword of the White Horse (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: Where's the Assassin? (non-canon)
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Forgotten Myths
• Assassin's Creed: Escape Room Puzzle Book (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: The Golden City
• The World of Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Journey to the North – Logs and Files of a Hidden One (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: Mirage
  • The Forty Thieves
  • Valley of Memory
• Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple (cameo)
• Assassin's Creed Roleplaying Game