The Dunwall Massacre
DISCLAIMER: This is a fanfiction, I do not own any part of the video game Dishonored, including certain characters and the quote on the overhead speaker. None of what happens in my story happens with in the video game storyline. All rights go to Bethesda Games. I do not own the cover photo either all rights go to the artist(s). Please note that not all of my political content will be 100% correct either, I hadn't played in a while when I wrote this.
The streets reeked of death, so badly that it burned my eyes to the point of redness. I wiped another tear off of my face, a feeble attempt to rid my eyes of the foul stench of decay. I passed by a body disposal trash can, and it sent me into a hacking and gagging fit. For an excruciating couple minutes I could not stop. After it finally subsided, I shuddered slightly, but I trudged on, splashing and sloshing through puddles that I wasn't sure were entirely water. Dunwall was getting more pestilential and crawling with rats by the day, and I couldn't help but wonder if we were all destined to die of this plague, brutally drowning in our own bodily fluids. I contemplated this thought with every step I took, it seemed like they might be in vain. A pitiful attempt to make our lives worth something. Medicine was easy enough to come by, but wasn't entirely fair to get, a lot of The Lord Regent's pawns wanted to stop a cure from being found so they could sell the their Sokolov's elixir. My big brother's illegal outlet was the easiest way to get it, but there was just enough to go around for us, and it was watered down. It was all we had for any chance of survival.
Eventually I reached a long and narrow walkway up to a towering wall, I was called in early this morning, apparently I was needed for something important-most likely a loan. I worked at The Hounds Pit Pub as an assassin, I made a decent living salvaging what I could off of bodies, and guards. I was allowed inside to a small court yard, a group of rugged and weathered men sat outside playing poker on a packaging crate. Their faces were grimy with dirt, blood and sweat. I nodded at them respectfully, and cut across the courtyard. I was bombarded by an assortment of friendly yells and uncaring nods from all my older brother's lackies. I opened the front door, and was met by a gust of fresh air rushing out into the courtyard. It was thick with the pungent smell of whale oil and alcohol, which was infinitely better than the street air-trust me. I took a deep breath, and began walking to the lower level. I walked for a few minutes until I reached a small wooden office, there I was stopped by more lackies.
"Cool i' fellas, I'm Slackjaw's li'l sis," I said with some irritation.
"He didn' tell us abou' you," the lackie that was holding me retorted back.
"New aroun' her' aye?" I raised an eyebrow.
"You be'er wa'ch your mou'h li'l girl!" His buddy got in my face. I contorted my expression into disgust when I smelled his breath, which only angered him more. He raised his hand and slapped me across the face, leaving a sizzling red streak. Just as I was about to say my favorite choice words for people that piss me off my big brother rounded the corner.
"Oi! Leave 'er alone!" He growled in a booming voice.
The two lackies' eyes widened with utter terror, and they let go of me. They then proceeded to mutter weak apologies and scamper off with their tails between their legs.
"I nee' to talk to ye alone," my brother said grimly.
My heart sank and I nodded, cautiously following him into his office. I was profoundly hoping that it would be that he need some money, or for me to take over the distillery so he could have some time to dip under the radar again. Unfortunately everything in my body told me it was much, much worse than that.
The moment I walked out of that small cramped office I knew that the lower part of Dunwall would get torn to pieces. The Empress was just assassinated, and she was the only person still fighting for her citizens survival. The general public was assuming it was her bodyguard, Corvo Attano. I can't say that I know Corvo on a personal level, but I knew that Corvo loved both The Empress and her daughter, Emily, who has been kidnapped. My brother told me not to worry about Corvo, that he probably did it, and there wasn't much to be done. Plus, even if it was unjust we didn't do charity work. First off, if Corvo did not do it then someone must have done it. Second, if the assassins who did this weren't brought down not only would they shut us down, but they would probably kill each and every one of us. They had the manpower and they had the resources to use it. I knew for a fact that The Lord Regent wanted The Empress dead because she would put him and out of buisness with her cure. I've never been one to follow everything my brother tells me, and this time was well warranted. Despite his warnings about Corvo, and what he had heard from his "city ears", Corvo was the only hope we had. I would have to find a way to break him out of prison, and I'd need to do it as fast as I could, or this would be the biggest massacre Dunwall has ever seen.
I waited quietly in the shadows, carefully watching everything that moved, and then I heard it on the overhead speaker: "Attention, Dunwall citizens. The assassin, Corvo, responsible for the murder of our fair Empress and the disappearance of Lady Emily, heir to the throne, has temporarily escaped state custody. Several brave officers of the state are dead by his hand. He is to be captured or killed at any cost." I swore under my breath, that was definitely not good, but at least he actually had escaped.
I cocked my head to the side to listen to the darkness, immediately I heard the smacking of feet against the ground. I rolled out of sight and watched as 20 guards went running into the other room, yelling and gesturing with their gleaming bronze pistols, Not good. I made my way into the torture room, I stayed in my shadowy cloak until I knew the coast was clear. I crept up onto the control platform where a large, antique safe was sitting on an extremely rickety table. My job was to plant the explosives that Corvo would need to get outside and make his way into the sewers. I would place the bomb in the safe where it wouldn't be noticed by any guards before he got here. Immediately I realized that I didn't know the combination for it. For the next few minutes I tore the single desk sitting on the platform apart, looking for any possible clue to it's combination. Gun fire in the background startled me, causing me on impulse to roll underneath the desk. I heard feet enter the room, I sucked my breath in slowly and exhaled shakily. If they found me not only would I be executed, but Corvo would be as well. Everyone would die, my entire home would crumble to pieces. I backed as far into it as I could, twisting and folding myself to take up as little space as possible.
"Look everywhere!" One of the guards shouted angrily. I started shaking uncontrollably as one of the patrols came onto the platform and stood before the desk, probably contemplating whether or not he wanted to look under it. In the end he looked under it where I was hiding, we made eye contact and I pulled my pistol on him before he could say anything. I held a finger up to my lips, warning him to stay quiet. He paused for a minute, and sat up to search for his comrades, realizing they weren't around anymore he bent back down to look and see if I still had him at gunpoint. I hadn't moved, and he backed off, exiting the room.
I waited a long while before I began reshaping myself into a crouching position, and then I heard more gunfire and that gave me an idea, I could use it for noise cover and blow the lock on the safe to bits. I stood slowly and I aimed the pistol I had in my hand slowly, braced myself for blow back, and pulled the trigger. The bullet erupted from the barrel, and smoke exploded with it. I watched with satisfaction as the bullet smashed into the combination knob and shattered it, but then something strange happened, the smoke twisted into a distinct shape that I recognized vaguely. I watched it float through the air and quickly dissipate. I shrugged it off and continued with my job, I opened the safe and took a relatively small bundle of highly explosive material and placed it gingerly inside the gaping safe.
The loud noise of the bullet's impact alerted more guards, even with my attempts to keep it undercover, they came streaming in but I was already gone, out the back entrance, and down the hall. I quietly made my way through the corridors, and eventually into the control room. I crept through the shadows, identifying about six, wary guards. One glanced directly at me, stopping for a moment, he assessed my position and the likelihood that he should check to see if anyone was there. He began walking my way, and I readied my foldable knife, steadied in front of my body at a slight angle as I waited for him to approach. He stood directly in front of me, staring down at me as he peered into my dark shadowy cloak, and he slowly raised his gun to point at me. For a moment I was sure he had seen me, but I kept my breathing steady.
A rat scurried past my feet, and towards him causing him to jump with fear and fire inches in front of my face. The rat practically got blown to pieces, smearing blood on my face. My breathing quickened as the guard continued to study the shadows where I resided, clearly hearing a little bit of my breath. I swallowed heavily ready to be found, but he eventually turned away walking with a slow saunter back to his post. I collapsed on the inside, but I had to continue with my mission. I followed the shadows until I was directly behind that same guard. I wrapped one arm around his neck and pushed his head forward, cutting off his airflow.
"Don' worry, this won' kill y'u, I jus' need to help a frien' out." I whispered slowly into his ear as he slipped from consciousness. I pulled his body onto a safely elevated table, to keep him from being the rat's next meal. For the next few minutes I worked on the rest of the guards, choking them out non-lethally and pulling them to safety. I finished up the last of the six, and he came bursting through the door. My body jolted with a sudden rush of adrenaline, and I turned with cat like reflexes. We were immediately at a stalemate, with his stolen guard's sword pressed to my throat, and my pistol to his temple.
"I won' hur' y'u if y'u don' hur' me." I said, slowly lowering my gun to it's holster. He nodded curtly.
"I'm assuming you are the one that planted this?" He held up my bundle of explosives.
"Yes, I did, I'm trying to break y'u out of here." He nodded curtly, and he removed his sword from my neck.
Without anymore words we ran to the huge door that would be allowing us to escape, we understood equally what was at stake here. He planted the bomb smack dab in the middle of the alarm triggering door, and set the timer. He grabbed my arms and forced me into the near by trash can and smashed the lid closed. We listened for our cu, which would be the door exploding. A few seconds of listening and the door was blown to bits, of course immediately sounding the alarm.
"On my count of three I want you to run, and jump into the water below us, alright?" He spoke in an aggressive tone, I nodded.
On three we swung the lid open, and charged through the door newly exploded door, making our way around the flaming debris. I stopped immediately, staring at the flames as they twisted into the the same curving symbol from earlier. I froze, and watched them dancing, then I heard them speak.
You can't escape me, I will see you soon my precious little prodigy, you and Crovo.
I stood, completely frozen as the voice lingered in my head, where have I heard that voice before? I was then pulled from my trance by the sound of Corvo screaming at me, and the sound of gunfire. A sizzling hot pain busted through my shoulder, finally waking me completely from my day dream, and the symbol was gone. My instincts kicked in and I swan dived into the water below me, ignoring the pain in my shoulder. I swam as fast as I could to the surface, bullets whizzing by my body, bubbles following them as they cooled off in the crisp water. The water mixed with my blood that was slowly leaking from my shoulder, but it did nothing to cool the searing burn that spread through my entire right side. After what seemed like forever I broke the water's smooth surface, and with all my power I propelled myself through the water onto dry land. Corvo joined me shortly, and we escaped into the sewers with the guards on hot pursuit.
We walked through a winding maze of dripping drainage pipes, and festering water with rat carcasses and human remains floating about.
"Why the hell are you helping me?" He spoke at last, sounding partially of self pity, and partially of self loathing.
"Because, I believe in justice and y'u can help me." I spoke slowly.
"I probably can't, I'm a wanted man." He said back, slightly harsher.
"Yes y'u can, don't give me any of this pity rubbish!" He stayed silent, "they are cutting off our supply y'u know, the distillery district is becoming more and more sick by the day, we can' get any of the elixir anymore, people are being taken in the night to join the guard force, some are even going willingly to provide for their families. Guards and higher ups are the only ones with access to it, unless of course one knows my big brother. Before I got here I broke into a medical office to steal more supplies for my friends in the distillery district, I know you help people Corvo, and we need the extra man power. The Lord Regent and his pawns are making a huge profit off sick people, I have never seen this many bodies pile up so fast in a week…" I showed him the large amounts of Sokolov's elixir that I had stuffed in my knapsack.
"The only reason the guard force is so loyal to the Lord Regent is because of that little shot of elixir you know." He sounded full of contempt, I studied his face slowly, going over the curves of his tired face.
"Yeah I know, they are putting up new gates too, big electric ones that practically incinerate people, they are whale oil powered and cut off almost all of the ways in and out of the distillery district to the rest of Dunwall. You can't get in without being checked by guards and admitted, they know we are all bloody foaming out the mouths with anger. I've been investigating everything I can, I even got my hands on some illegal banking records for , he's making a fortune too, and they are selling the plague meds with these stupid little posters saying it will make you healthy, trying to cover up what's really happening by telling people it will be ok if they just sign up as guards and get plague management. I've been threatened multiple times by people I've never seen before."
"Did they disappear and wear masks with black outfits?" He froze in his tracks, and spoke gruffly.
"Yeah how did y'u-" He cut me off.
"They killed The Empress, they are the ones responsible for all of this." I swallowed harshly again.
"They told me they would kill my brother, and anyone else they needed to if I didn't oblige, would they actually follow through?" I shook as I spoke.
"Yes, they would do it without a second thought." I suddenly became woozy, realizing that I had already soaked my makeshift bandage on my shoulder. Crovo caught me, and continued carrying me, until I slipped from consciousness.
I woke up later to find that Corvo has carried me all the way through the sewers to where Samuel, our boatman, was waiting. I expressed him my silent gratitude, and we were off, back to The Hound's Pit Pub, where if we were lucky, Corvo would help us.
When we arrived back at the pub, we debriefed Corvo, he agreed to help us if we guaranteed him revenge against The Lord Regent, and anyone else involved in The Empress's assassination and Lady Emily's abduction. I could finally breathe, maybe we would survive this and maybe we could win against all odds. Not long after Corvo went to bed and got more ammo for his upcoming mission, which would also be his first step to revenge, I asked Samuel to take me back to the Distillery district. I wanted to check on my friends and distribute the supplies that I stolen. I sat in pure silence, listening to my heart pound and the boat skipping across the water. We arrived, and I asked Samuel to wait a minute, so I could get back to the pub after I checked up on everyone, because I didn't actually live in this district.
I reached the entrance to the courtyard I knew so well, and I heard screaming. It was being ransacked by the guard force, I watched them take people and every crate of our watered down Bootleg Elixir that we had. I sprinted through the panic, trying to find my brother and my friends, tears streaming down my face. All I could see was blood, and horror as they publicly executed almost everyone I knew. Their blood splattered across the ground, always in the same symbol that I had been seeing everywhere.
Soon. The symbols repeated, over and over again, but I didn't care. I had to find my brother, and my friends and get them back to the pub where they would be safe. Even in my drunken state I heard my brother yelling, I followed his voice, but I was too late. They were already taking him away, to be thrown in prison. I screamed at them as loud as I could to let him go. I pulled both my pistols out and fired them simultaneously at guards, left and right they dropped as I hysterically scrambled after my brother. All the smoke spun around me, repeatedly in the same form of the symbol, I didn't know what it was, but I recognized it. I continued to hack and slash-with my knife now- my way through my opposition, but it was no use I was becoming too weak. My breathing was heavy and wheezing and I could barely stand. The pain in my shoulder was blazing again but I still didn't care, soo after standing to catch my breath I was smashed over the head with a half empty whiskey bottle and I blacked out.
I was roused by the maniacal laughing that sounded like the same voice that was in the symbols. I drowsily sat up, and looked around. Everything was broken apart and floating in mid air, my head continued to spin, and I kept telling myself it was only a dream, but then he appeared, out of the willowing ashy black smoke before me.
At last my little prodigy you are here, I am The Outsider and you have earned my favor, I know you've been seeing my messages, different things baring my symbol. Please take my mark as a gift, how you choose to use it's power is all your own, perhaps you will entertain me by using the power I have given you to get revenge, but realize I will be watching closely with much interest.
More burning sizzled to life on the back of my left hand, slowly carving itself into my flesh was The Mark of The Outsider.