Chapter Four

A Student, Humbled

When I was twelve years old, Mentor Dodge gave me a book for my birthday. It was a collection of short stories. Horror stories. The tales depicted places like a sinister manor somewhere in Tyvia that was inhabited by a coven of Pandyssian witches; a cabin out in the countryside of Gristol that was owned by a deranged serial killer of noble blood; and an abandoned hospital in Morley, with spirits that could possess a person and forever walk in their skin.

Needless to say, those were only some of the stories, and each one of them gave me nightmares when I was a little girl. Ironically, at the time, we had been living in an old log cabin. That was long before the Whalers had begun expanding, when we only numbered in the handful. We did not come to Oracle Natividad's Asylum for Natural Philosophical Research until a few years ago, when we became more than a handful of people.

The Shrieking Pass reminded me of those old horror stories. Specifically, the one about the manor. The story was titled simply, "Let the Dead Teach the Living." The narrator of the story spoke of tubs filled with blood and sinew; a boiling soup pot filled with eyeballs, carrots, Tyvian pears, and whale meat; and tile floors, permanently colored dark brown because of dried blood. The manor was said to smell like mould, decaying bodies, and a mixture of human and rat excrement.

It was also said that no matter how many candles you lit, there was never enough light to illuminate up to the vaulted ceilings. Unspeakable horrors, like spiders bigger than a man's fist and bodies entangled in the webs, were only the beginning of what inhabited those ceilings.

I do not know why…That story has always stayed vividly in my imagination. I have always wondered if the serial killer in the story was based on the woman named Granny Rags. I have heard some truly disturbing stories about that woman. I have never been told if they were the truth, or if they were lies.

I am not sure that I really want to know the answer anymore…

In an uncanny way, the Shrieking Pass had begun to resemble that story. Minus quite a few details, of course, but…still…As I sauntered through the labyrinth-like hallways of the Pass, I only grew happier that I had never gotten the opportunity to eat this morning.

This place puts the word repugnant to shame!

And it is truly saying something that the smell of this place is able to penetrate the industrial strength air filter that is equipped on these vapor masks! These masks were created to protect whale oil refinement factory workers from the harsh fumes given off by the whale oil. Naturally, you would think that this would mean that nothing can penetrate the air filter. Apparently, I found the one place that can.

Truth be told, I have lost track of time. I somehow managed to get myself completely lost in the Shrieking Pass. So lost, in fact, that I have yet to see a single i cadaveri ululanti. This is…probably not a good thing…

Regardless, I kept pressing forward. What other options did I have? Master Daud literally locked me in here, and it is not like I can transverse out of this place…

I sighed.

I heard the sound of water dripping into a puddle, and I felt a rat scurry past my boot. A shiver coursed through my body. If Master Daud chose this test to try and humble me, I think it is working.

I never want to come back to a place like this.

As quietly as I could, I started humming, "The Drunken Whaler."

Do not judge me.

Whalers, in both senses, can have fun, too…even in life or death situations…

It is official.

I have completely lost track of time…and where I am.

I froze in place, straining to listen to even the faintest sound. I could have sworn I just heard something. It was not my imagination…

Was it?

I placed my hand on the hilt of my blade, and cautiously pressed forward.

That was when I heard it.

A shrill scream.

My eyes widened in dismay, and I cursed under my breath in Serkonan. I was trapped in the middle of a tight hallway, with nowhere to go. If I were to get surrounded now…

Okay…I do not want to think about that…

I heard another scream, and now I began to panic. Master Daud had not taught me how to deal with a situation like this! What do I do? Do I run? Do I try and somehow get myself onto the ceiling?

I do not know!

I shook my head and took off running, hoping for the best. Thank the Outsider that the resin on my boots was muffling my footfalls. Another scream. Closer this time.

And there they were. There were seven of them, surrounding each other like they were cattle relaxing in the grasses on a hot summer day. Master Daud was right. They were nothing more than shuffling corpses that could scream.

Even though I am an assassin in training, I cannot help but feel…saddened, at seeing humans turned into hideous creatures like this. And in that moment, I realized how easily I could have become one of these hideous souls.

I was choosing my footsteps with such care…

And that was when I heard it. A reverberating crack!

My legs fell through the floor, and I could not resist the urge to scream, as I hung on for dear life…

By the Outsider! I…Am I going to die?

I watched in horror as each i cadaveri ululanti slowly craned their necks to stare at me. They screeched in primal hunger. My heart felt as though it were going to leap out of my chest. And the worst part of it all was knowing that I could have been firing my wristbow at them, had I not needed to be clinging so desperately for life…

I began to try and pull myself up, yet I was too late. One of i cadaveri ululanti jumped me, grabbing my arm and pulling at me. Its howl sent a chilling shiver through my entire body. Tears ran down my face, as I knew I was about to die…

So I closed my eyes, not wanting to see my arm get torn into bloody ribbons.

I felt the creature wrap its hand around my arm, and I almost fell unconscious from the horror.

…

"What an interesting hand fate has dealt you." A male voice I had never heard before said. "You're quite the peculiar little girl, do you know that?"

I opened my eyes, and I was…stunned.

There was man with dark hair and eyes that were completely the color of coal…floating before me. Not standing. Floating. He wore magnificent finery, and his fingers were adorned with intricate rings. And he was smiling at me. Not menacingly. Contentedly?

Time had completely stopped around us. My arm was still being held by i cadaveri ululanti. Yet, everything was literally…frozen! How is this possible? Who is this man?

Wait…Black eyes…

Is this the "Black-eyed Bastard" that Master Daud has mentioned?

"Who are you?" I whispered, trying to calm my breathing.

The man swept his hand across him, and sent i cadaveri ululanti that was holding me captive flying across the room. It slammed into the wall, impacting upon it with a sickening crack!

The dark-eyed man leaned down to me, and took my hands in his.

"You know a lot more about me than you realize you do," he replied, lifting me up onto my feet. "I am the Outsider."

"You…you are the Outsider? In the flesh?" I stammered. "I…I do not know how to thank you for this…"

The Outsider gave me a mysterious smile. "Consider yourself one of the very privileged few, whose life is worthy of my attention."

"Why me, then? I am nothing more than a worthless Novice…"

"Worthless? You are far from such, child. Even though I am simply an observer of all things, I can see everything. I see forever. And I've seen your future. It will definitely be intriguing to watch as you mature into a consequential figure in the Underworld of Dunwall."

My head was spinning. So many questions…so few answers…And I am somehow intriguing? I find that hard to believe…

"Why me?" I echoed. "You rarely intervene directly in human affairs. If you are an observer, then why save my life?"

The Outsider laughed, amused at my words. "So many questions you ask. Just as many answers that I will not give you. Not yet. You have to earn them first. I will say this, however. Just as your Master has been testing you, I have been testing you, as well. The future is a very, very boring place. This particular…weave of Time was the most interesting. I needed you alive for it. You have a very significant part to play in the coming months. Now, listen closely, mortal child…

"In the coming months, perhaps even the coming years, the fate of the Empire will rest on the shoulders of someone you know dearly. However, the fate of the Whalers will rest on your shoulders and yours alone. You may not know it right now, but Daud holds you in higher esteem than he lets on that he does. He's going to make you work for everything you could possibly want. When he sees that you're truly deserving of it, then, and only then, will he give you what you so desperately seem to seek…

"Daud will never understand how the Arcane Bond works. What he doesn't realize is that I hold ultimate control of who is deserving of its power. As of today, child, I'd say you've earned its power. Consider this as a parting gift between acquaintances. I am not giving you my Mark, no…but I am giving you the next best thing."

The palm of my hand and parts of my forearm began to burn agonizingly. I gritted my teeth, trying to fight the pain. The Outsider watched me with steady amusement.

"How you use this newfound power falls to you. I've bestowed upon you the power of transversals and tetherings. Whether or not you gain some of Daud's more extraordinary abilities depends on you. Perhaps you'll learn how to Gaze at the world through eyes of the Void. Perhaps you'll be able to Bend Time to your will. Or, perhaps you'll be able to turn your victims into a pile of ash.

"And now, I must return to the Void. I truly advise that you heed my words, Arissa Daurana. Know this, however: I will be keeping a very close eye on you," the Outsider paused. "One more thing: 'Do not focus on the destination of your transversal with your eyes. That is folly, and will limit the potential of the power. Instead, focus on where you wish yourself to be standing, and it will be so…'"

The Outsider suddenly vanished, and Time resumed once again. My forearm and palm were still burning. Itching, almost.

I feel…different. Strangely so…

Why are i cadaveri ululanti swarming me so fast!? Wait, did one just grab my leg!? What is happening!?

"Do not focus on the destination of your transversal with your eyes…"

I once heard Mentor Galia say that to the others…What if I use Master Daud as a…a focus?

Here goes nothing!

I wanted to scream. My body felt as though it were being ripped apart at some unholy level, piece by piece. It was as though I was…melting, almost. Into what, I truly do not wish to know. Outsider's eyes, transversals feel so unnatural…

Ow! Wall…Brick wall…

I cursed under my breath in Serkonan. By the Outsider, I am…so dizzy…

And now my entire body hurts…even worse…than before…

"Arissa, you're still alive?" Master Daud said, genuinely surprised. "Where in the Void did you come from?"

"I did it, Master," I whispered. "I survived…the Shrieking Pass…"

I felt my eyes roll into the back of my head, and darkness suddenly clouded my vision.

Before I even knew what had happened, I was out cold.

The darkness had taken me into its warm embrace.