Act 1: The Dawn of a War
The rights to the characters in this work of fanfiction belong to the video games in which they are from. Fire Emblem was developed by Intelligent Systems and Nintendo SPD and is owned by Nintendo. Dishonored was developed and is owned by Arkane Studios.
Chapter 1 – A Good Show
The sun was rising and Corvo Attano had just arrived in the world, wondering if Emily would be all right alone without her bodyguard, without her father. As grassy plains stretched out in front of him. The Outsider's words echoed in his mind 'I expect a good show' the black-eyed deity had said. The Royal Protector was summoned to the Void by him the night prior.
Corvo had awoken in his room, the Royal Protector's Chambers, converted into such after Emily was crowned as Empress sixteen years ago. The bodyguard recognized this as his room, however, it was different. The feeling could not be described, if the bodyguard had to put it into words, he would say that it was general unease. The Void had always felt like that, truly terrifying in the sense that when one is there, they are at the very edges of time and space. The beginning and end of everything. As Corvo left his bed, he realized that he was fully clothed, as if ready for a full day at court with the Empress. He approached the hard wood door and grasped the cold brass handle and pushed the door open.
He was definitely in the Void. Chunks of walls and floors suspended in the air, a sky-blue glow emanating from below. Approaching the floating islands of wood, Corvo peered below them, spying a platform-shaped rock which he jumped onto. His left hand began to itch. The one who had pulled him into the Void is close by, the Royal Protector knew him all too well. The being who had assisted him in rescuing Emily during the years of Hiram Burrows' rule, who had helped Emily during the time of Delilah's usurping, just one year ago. The one many had come to see as a demonic figure, said to start and end all evil and by many others seen as a god-like figure who would grant them good fortune.
The Outsider.
Corvo called out into the outstretching vastness of nothingness, "Where are you? You brought me here for a reason, what is it?" Silence for a moment. He heard his echoes bounce off the pieces of Dunwall Tower. Just as they were dying down, the enigmatic god had appeared in front of him. Arms crossed, smirking slightly, floating in the air, black particles shuffling beneath him, almost obstructing his feet. Corvo met his eyes unimpressed. He had done this before. The Outsider spoke, a slight bit of glee in his voice,
"Greetings Corvo, old friend."
"What do you want?" the Royal Protector impatiently replied.
"Right into it. Of course you are."
The Outsider stepped down, allowing his leather shoes to touch the floor, darkness surrounding him as he began to pace back and forth.
"I want you to do something for me."
"I refuse." Corvo stated coldly, not wanting to be in the Void any longer than he had to, whenever he was here, it meant the start of something long and dreary.
The black-eyed god sighed sharply, as if he was losing his patience with the bodyguard.
"I want you to do something of interest in another dimension of my choosing."
Corvo was a little shocked by this statement. Another reality? Another dimension? The Royal Protector was taken back to his long discussions with Piero Joplin - who also led the conversation - about if alternate realities exist. Worlds existing with doppelgangers of themselves, but each different from the last. Corvo's nights in the Hound Pit's Pub were filled with thoughts that maybe, there was a reality where Jessamine was not assassinated, and the plague was stopped without so much bloodshed. Maybe he had a happier life.
"I can tell your mind is racing… the world I am sending you to does not have a 'you' in it, it doesn't even have a Dunwall, ergo, no one you know." Corvo's mind slowed at his words. The trickster god continued, "As always, you will do as you see fit. I won't delve into the details, that's what you're going to do once you are there. I will give you a name, though." He began floating again, Corvo guessed to signify the end of their conversation. He spoke after some silence "Corrin." And then Corvo began to lose conscienceless, falling to the floor, he gazed up to see a whale floating above, then the Outsider stepped into view. His lips were moving, but Corvo could not hear anything. Despite this, he knew what he was saying.
"I expect a good show."
The last thing he saw before he blacked out was the smiling face of the trickster god.