unscrupulously uses that to his advantage. Meanwhile, the Seljuk army besieges Alamut. Some of the soldiers are captured and Hassan decides to demonstrate his power to them. He orders a pair of fedayin (Yusuf and Suleiman) to kill themselves; Suleiman by stabbing himself, Yusuf by jumping off a tower. They gladly fulfill their master's order since they believe that they will soon rejoice with their beloved in heaven. After the siege, Hassan orders ibn Tahir to go and kill the grand vizier of the Seljuk sultan Nizam al-Mulk. Hassan wants to take revenge for al-Mulk's treachery against him long ago. Ibn Tahir stabs the vizier, but, before he passes away, the vizier reveals the truth of Hassan's deceptions to his murderer. Upon hearing of his success, Hassan informs Miriam that Ibn Tahir is likely dead as a result of discovery, Miriam commits suicide from her disillusionment. Halima also commits suicide when she learns she will never be with Suleiman whom she fell in love with. Ibn Tahir decides to return to Alamut and kill Hassan. When ibn Tahir returns, Hassan receives him and also reveals him his true motto: "Nothing is an absolute reality, all is permitted". Then, he lets ibn Tahir go, to start a long journey around the world. Another fedai kills the Seljuk Sultan and the Seljuk empire dissolves. The fight for the Seljuk throne begins. Hassan encloses himself in a tower, determined to work until the end of his days. He transfers the power over the Ismaelits to the hands of his faithful dai, military, and religious chiefs. Interpretations Some of the contemporaneous literary critics, such as Lino Legiša, have interpreted it as an allegory of the TIGR, an organization formed in order to fight the Fascist Italianization in the former Austrian Littoral. Allegedly, Vladimir Bartol had sympathised with said organisation. Cultural impact The novel and its plot were the inspiration for the popular Assassin's Creed series of video games. Many elements of the book's plot can be found in the first game, and the phrase from the novel under an alternative translation: "nothing is true; everything is permitted" is the guiding principle of the game's Assassin Brotherhood—who are the descendants of the Ismaili Hashashin. The novel helped inspire the Assamite clan of the Vampire: The Masquerade tabletop game. Author William S. Burroughs found fascination within the story of Hassan-i-Sabbah and included the motto, "Nothing is