That was the question that emerged in Basar’s mind as he stared at the carcass of his lord.
What had he done wrong?
Ever since he was chosen as an Apostle of the Evil Eye, he had done his work diligently.
He had brought in worshippers, spreading the good news of his master to all those who cared to listen.
Even when he was branded a cult leader, instead of the head of a revolution, his faith had not wavered.
Even when he was forced to hide and live as a fugitive, Basar had always believed that one day he would be rewarded by his lord.
So why had he been attacked?
Basar wondered if he had sinned.
Maybe he had done something wrong, but what it was he could not fathom.
Had he not done as instructed to bring his lord into Eventide?
Wasn’t it because of him that the plan was successful?
Basar glared at the corpse as his faith dissipated like a lie and in its place, strong hatred welled up.
"Why lord?... Why have you forsaken me?" He inquired softly.
Recalling how the eye had turned in his direction and attacked him without warning, Basar had initially wanted to accept his fate.
Maybe this was his lord’s way of rewarding him for a job well done but at the last moment, Basar had decided to flee.
Was it because he cared for his life?... Maybe.
Why did he have to die after completing the task assigned to him?
Wasn’t he meant to lead the innocent to a new world?
Wasn’t he meant to be the one to build the world after this sinful one is torn down?
That was when Basar realized that from the start, he never actually wanted to save the world.
He wanted to rule it.
The power, the money, the worship... he wanted all of it and obviously as a leader of the new world, he would have all of it.
So despite everything he suffered, he remained persistent in his desire for domination.
"Haha." Basar chuckled as he accepted his truth.
What was the point of lying to himself now that his lord was dead?
Basar sighed. "I was such a fool."
Slowly rising to his feet, he made his way to Penemuel’s carcass, oblivious to the fact that Alex was watching him from a distance.
It was more like he didn’t care.
Basar feared him once because the first time he saw him, he had seen nothing but an empty void.
A vast darkness that had no end.
That was what Alex was in his eyes.
He didn’t know when but the vast darkness had reduced to a more reasonable scale.
It was still there but now...it was not as terrifying especially since Basar had liaised with a Fallen Angel for so long.
He has grown accustomed to that level.
So as he approached Penemuel’s corpse, he cared less about what Alex would do.
This was why when the first bullet penetrated his chest, Basar did not flinch, instead, he kept on walking.
When the second penetrated his torso, he still did not fall.
And when the third penetrated his skull, Basar sighed softly. "It truly is a terrible world."
Dropping to his knees, he saw that he was but an arm’s length away from the carcass of his lord.
"My lord... into your hands, I commit my all."
With that, Basar took his last breath and collapsed to the ground.
Alex watched the scene quietly, unsure of what to make of it.
He slowly pocketed his revolver and turned to take his leave only to pause as he sensed something.
Turning back, he watched in utter disbelief as Penemuel’s carcass moved onto Basar.
Most disgustingly, the corpse invaded every part of Basar’s unmoving body until there was nothing left except the latter.
"What... just happened?"
Before he could recover from the first one, Basar’s finger twitched and a moment later, he drew breath again.
Blinking in shock at his sudden recovery, Basar slowly revealed a most twisted smile. "My lord... have you passed on your might to your most humble servant?"
"..." Alex slowly reloaded his revolver.
Basar looked at the sky. "My lord, is this my reward?... Have you heard my cries, o lord!?"
Basar staggered back as he felt a searing pain in his temples.
Placing his right palm there, he felt a hot liquid.
He brought his palm to eye level to find that it was stained with blood and gray matter.
"Mr. Hunter, I must say you have a pretty good aim." Basar casually remarked as the searing pain slowly died down.
Unfortunately, no response came, and instead...
Another bullet was shot.
Basar staggered and before he could regain himself, another bullet was shot.
And then the last one struck, causing his head to explode like a watermelon with blood and gray matter splattering on the ground.
However, despite the gruesome sight, Basar’s body remained standing.
Alex frowned. "This will be troublesome."
In the stump of Basar’s neck, tentacles slowly emerged.
As the tentacles joined together, Basar’s face was reformed but with added... organs and some missing ones.
Eyes dotted his head which was now as smooth as a ball with no mouth, ears, or nose to speak of.
Then at the center of the eye’s covered head, a mouth with rows of sharpened teeth appeared and out of it, words came out.
"Mr. Hunter. Can we talk?"
Alex replied. "I’m not in a very chatty mood."
"I want you to join me."
"This again?" Alex raised a brow underneath his mask.
Basar nodded. "Yes. Become a part of me and I promise you a painless death."
"I can see you and I know now that you are weak. A phony claiming a great authority as his own. Ah, isn’t the truth wonderful?"
Alex sighed as he massaged his temples. "I need to work on the concealment Nyx used on me."
"Don’t expect to escape your fate, Alexander Regulus. You have died once and right here, right now...you shall die again."