1837

The large metal ship had sailed in the direction of the setting sun burning bright orange over the horizon. The crew had all but died down to settle in for the coming night, only few still stood on deck; the ship would be trusted in the hands of the academy trained Helmsman to take them to Dunwall. This lack in activity gave Corvo the chance to catch fresh air, and to be by himself to contemplate like he usually did. So now he stood out near one of the front corners of the ship, hands dug into his navy blue coat as he stared out at the pleasant sight of orange.

Months ago, he had received a paper copy of an order from the Empress, Jessamine. As she had sent him out on this diplomatic mission without a choice, it would be great that she explained herself, in which she did. Corvo would have been discontent with her words, but what he had read left his mind at ease, and a smile took him instead with her ending statements.

'Corvo, if only there was someone else I trusted to send so that you could remain near, but there is no one else, and the Spymaster was right to insist that I send you.

The Plague has taken so many, and we must find a cure.

When you are near, my heart is at peace. Emily and I will count the days until you return.

Hurry home, my love, and bring good news.'

"Steady hand!" A guard captain called out, as he stood over the edge of a longboat being lowered by rope into the Wrenhaven River, as it was to depart from the large ship it was part of. "Watch it! Good, that's it!"

"Cast off!" A fainter voice had yelled from the deck of the ship.

"Cast off line!" The captain repeated, and the longboat was disconnected from the ropes and splashed gently into the water. "We're away." The Captain turned and went over to the back of the longboat, where the comfortable seats are, yet he sat in none. Corvo had endured the long process of departure, and they were near the tower where he would find Jessamine; he couldn't wait any longer, not after months of being away to the other islands. The Guard talked to the longboat driver on the left; "Take us straight to Dunwall tower, Lord Attano has news for the Empress and we've come a long way."

"A long way to bring bad news," the driver in the pickle helmet and uniform had said, almost sarcastically. "The sailors say there's a curse on us, y'know…black magic."

The Captain swiped his hand in front of him as to dismiss the claim; "It's all just superstition. For all we know, Sokolov has found a cure by now."

"Possibly," the driver said. "These are strange times…I mean, sending the Empress' bodyguard away for several months? That is quite unusual." Corvo, listening to this all, couldn't agree with the statement more. Their boat was driven to the front of the gates to the large tower, where the doors screeched its metal open, and the boat had entered into a darker area. Once they stopped complete in the center of it, the Captain stepped up and used his hand to project his voice to the men who had manned the top side. "We're going up!"

"Ready," a voice had called back, and an alarm had gone off, repeated signals of machinery beginning to do its work. Corvo heard the rush of what would be a waterfall, or a raging flood plain. Two large industrial wheels began to turn, and then, as Corvo predicted, water began to rage out of four opening and fall down. This had allowed water the rise, and with it the boat, and this went on until they reached the top. A short bridge had creaked down onto the boat for passage of its occupants.

"The Empress will be waiting for your news Corvo," The Captain said, as he and Corvo began to step off past the railing and onto solid ground. They walked side by side "It's been a pleasure riding with you, sir."

"Likewise, Captain Curnow," Corvo replied, and nodded.

With his hands behind his back, Curnow made talk as they walked over to an opening, past a deactivated wall of light; "I'm just glad I get to see my niece, Callista, she's getting more beautiful by the day." Corvo, however, avoided talk as Curnow would say a few things to him without response; this was when they separated when they came to a short bridge. Corvo stopped in his tracks when he saw the figure of a little girl in white nobles clothing and a band to hold her black hair back elegantly. He watched as her face lit up when her eyes caught sight of him, and he knew exactly who she was. How could they forget each other?

His daughter; or rather the daughter that doesn't know he's her real father. She'd be ten years old now, and Corvo had been proud to have watched her grow up so young and beautiful.

"Corvo!" she called out, excitedly, and she sprinted towards him with a big smile plastered on her face. The same smile had been copied on his, and he knelt down to her level with open arms and received her in a tight hug with full force. "You're back, finally!"

"Yes, Emily, I'm back," he said. The little girl kissed him on the cheek.

"Tell me about your trip! Did you see any whales?"

"More than I could count."

"What about sea monsters?"

"Eh, no…" he said, and he lifted her up in his arm to carry her. "I wasn't far enough out at sea. We should go see your mother now, where is she?"

"She's up there," Emily pointed to a large stone chiseled pavilion, columned and bannered in the blues of the Empire. A carved stairway would lead up to the pavilion, where it was structured at the edge of a drop, but not without safeties. "But she's talking to that nasty old Spymaster…" Her tone turned to malice at the mention of him.

As Corvo began to walk, he replied: "He sure is nasty, isn't he?"

"At least mother will be happy, she missed you."

Going up the steps, he passed several guards standing at attention, and at some point along the way to the side was a flat surface where he saw a large bald man in a red Overseer's uniform posing arms crossed and strong for a portrait of him, painted by a man with a grimaced face and a long beard, dressed in subtle colors.

"Welcome home Lord Protector," the man in red had called to him. "Two days early it seems." Corvo nodded to him.

"Yes, yes," the bearded man said. "Welcome back, from wherever you have been. Now stop moving Campbell." The man, Campbell, had gone back to his pose and the painter continued on brushing the canvas with the oils.

"I'm not too sure that looks like Campbell…" Emily said, giggling slightly, bringing a smile once again to Corvo's face on her sly remark on the ability of the painter.

"They sent him all over the Isles to beg for aid," Campbell said.

"It's a waste of time," the painter said. "My elixir should banish the plague from this city; now keep still a moment, High Overseer Campbell."

Corvo continued on until he reached a metal gate that has been open, with a guard standing just by.

"The Empress will see you at once," he said, and Corvo nodded. He went further up until he reached the top, where he and Emily saw the Empress, the woman in black with black hair knotted up looking out to the Wrenhaven River. She was flanked by a man, bald and old with wrinkles and scarred complexion on his face; menacing to make a summary of it. He had on nearly black like she did, but with more definition of red as a shirt underneath a collared coat with an opening to shape like a diamond. He also had a gold medallion just around his neck. It seemed like the Royal Spymaster and the Empress were in an argument, and she was having none of his 'crap'.

"They're sick people, not criminals!" She exclaimed.

"We have gone far beyond that question, your majesty!" He exclaimed back. "They're-"

"They're my citizens," she interrupted, making her word final. "And we will save them from the plague if we can." It was clear to Corvo, just by the nature of this, he understood the divide. Jessamine, in her good heart, believed she shouldn't enforce new laws to better control the plague. Naïve, yet good hearted; she dedicated her rule to be kind and gracious, and she refused to treat her subjects like cattle. The Royal Spymaster, Hiram Burrows on the other hand, believed that direct action was necessary and strict executive actions must be taken in order to contain the spread of the plague; this included heavily guarded quarantine zones, and mass deportation of non-infected citizens to newer areas. It was honestly something that Corvo could understand more, given the mindset he had when he served under the Duke of Serkonos, but being reasonable was much more understanding.

"We will not speak of this again," she said.

"Very well."

At this point, Corvo had put Emily down and she ran to the pavilion where her mother had heard her footsteps and turned to see her.

"Mother, Corvo is back!" the little girl said.

"Thank you Emily," the Empress looked to the Spymaster. "Leave us, please."

Bowing, Burrows said: "As you wish, your majesty." He then turned and walked in slow strides, hands behind his back and face evident of displeasure. He came by Corvo and stopped.

"Corvo!" he greeted. "Two days early? Full of surprises…as usual." He continued walking on, his face going back to the expression of dissatisfaction, the stupid old fool. Corvo only acknowledged him with a nod, but he showed no sign of happiness in seeing him, only malice; he never liked the Spymaster.

The Lord Protector went on and stepped into the pavilion, where Jessamine drew a smile on her face in delight that he was home. But with the news that Corvo had brought, it would be hard for him to show the same; it was like he failed in his duty.

"It's a fair wind that brings you home to me, Corvo," she said. "What news have you brought?"

Corvo answered by looking down with a mad look and reaching into his coat and pulling out a paper, handing it to her. She took it, turned back to the view of the river and read its contents. She too grew the same expression the Lord Protector had, and she dropped the paper, putting her hands behind her.

"I had hoped one of the other cities had dealt with this before…" she said. "This news is very bad, and we're at the breaking point. Cowards…they're going to blockade us, to see if this city turns into a graveyard."

"Would this risk a civil war?" Corvo asked.

"It would risk our death, that's what I can say."

"Are you okay, mother?" came the sweet concerned voice of Emily, in which had calmed the nerves of both of them. "You seem sad…"

Jessamine gave a reassuring smile, and cupped her daughter's cheek. "Yes, don't worry darling; mother's fine." But immediately, her expression told Corvo that she sensed something was wrong, and she had been looking to either side frantically. "Wait…where are the guards?" Corvo searched just like she did and found she was right in her question; the guards weren't anywhere to be seen.

"Mother, look," Emily said, pointing to the direction of the front entrance of the tower. "What are they doing on the roof top?" Corvo squinted and saw, not guards, but men fully covered in strange hoods and gas masks, and appearing and disappearing out of thin air. Corvo and Jessamine both recognized them; Whalers! Assassins they were. Corvo held a tight grip on the sword in his sheathe and the pistol in his coat, readying for them to come, and he thought, how dare they! How dare they show their presence here! I'll make them pay!

In panic, Jessamine brought Emily close to her, "Emily, get behind me!" Then suddenly one of the Whalers in the scary gas mask appeared just in front of them, running with sword drawn. Corvo pulled his pistol and fired into the Assassin's center mass, his body flying back with the force and then vanishing before he could hit the ground. Then another appeared swung his sword, but Corvo with his had countered him and slashed across his throat, blood spewing onto his face and the assassin's body vanishing as well.

Then there was a hesitant advance of the other assassins, only until another appeared to their left this time, charging toward them. Just in time had Corvo loaded another bullet into his pistol and fired with the same effect as the first one he had killed, and then the last one vanished.

Now all seemed to have calmed, and the whalers appeared to have given up, or have been defeated. The first thought that ran through the Lord Protector's mind was the safety of his lover and daughter. He shot around to see if they are okay, and with tears in her eyes, Emily rushed into his arms for safety.

"Corvo!" Jessamine said, as she too went into his embrace.

"Is everyone okay?"

"If you haven't been here…" she sighed, and they each pulled out of their hugs to further calm themselves. But that calm soon went to waste as the sound of another Whaler caught them by surprise. The Empress gasped, and Corvo leapt to intercept, but this one had…powers. The Whaler lifted his hands and from it came a green aura of power that overcame the Lord Protector, and his feet were no longer touching the ground; he had been lifted up by the black magic that has gripped him. His arms and legs were spread apart, and in no way could he move as he watched helplessly when a man appeared just before the Empress, in a red coat and greased black hair. In his hand was a long sword, and he grabbed at the Empress.

"Jessamine!" Corvo cried. He watched the Empress try to fight back, but the man had separated the mother and daughter and violently back handed her.

"Mommy!" Emily called.

"Corvo!" Jessamine pleaded, in a hopeless attempt for his help in which he was powerless to provide in the curse of the black magic that held him away. The Assassin in the red coat grabbed her by the neck and shoved her against one of the pillars. "No-" and she was silenced with the sword pummeled through her abdomen. She choked, eyes twitching, and blood beginning to seep out her lips. The sword came out and she fell to her knees, then her full body hit the floor, her curling in despair to find comfort of her wound as a puddle of blood began to form around her.

"Jessamine! No!" Corvo had yelled, but then out the corner of his eye he could see his daughter being snatched up by another Whaler. "Emily!"

"Corvo!" she reached out her hand to him, but then she and her kidnapper disappeared in a blink. He was then released from his imprisonment and he dropped to the ground, looking up to see the red coat assassin begin to walk away, but not without taking a good look at Corvo first. They saw each other's eyes, and the hopeless man noted his features; not only the greased back black hair, but olive skin, and a very scarred face that has slightly disfigured his form. His expression was one of a scowl, but upon eyeing Corvo, his eyebrows raised slightly and his face turned more sympathetic, which was odd.

But nevertheless, this assassin had killed the Empress; he broke his eye contact with Corvo, moving on and disappearing like the rest of the others, nowhere to be seen. Immediately Corvo quickly crawled over to Jessamine's dying form and he held her in his arms.

She coughed; "Corvo…" more blood came out and stained her collar.

"Shh-Jessamine," Corvo whispered, as he himself had become sorrowful, and tears reddened his eyes.

"Corvo…our daughter…"

"Please, stay with me-"

"It's all coming apart," she coughed again. "Our daughter…your promise…"

"Don't die on me," Corvo gritted his teeth as he put his hand over the wound on her stomach.

"Do you…remember your promise to me…all those years ago?"

"Yes, I vowed to protect our daughter no matter what…"

"My love…" with what little strength she had left, she lifted her hand and cupped his cheek. "Don't forget…your promise; save her." He lifted his hand and held hers tighter to his, feeling them begin to turn cold.

"Don't leave me…" he whispered, but without sound.

"I'll be waiting for you, my love…" she gave her last words as a final blessing, and then she closed her eyes and her body went limp. Corvo slowly shook his head and disbelief, tears welling up into his reddened eyes before he began to let all the sadness out. He pulled her cold body up close to him, her head hanging back and her arms outstretched; he shoved his face into her chest and cried, allowing sounds to muffle into her, and his tears to soak up in her bloodstained top.