SPOILERS ABOUND
I am Corvo Attano of the Isle of Serkonos.
In my role as Lord Protector of the Empress Jessamine Kaldwin I was tasked to seek aid from our nations in regards to the infestation of rats and the deadly Plague that they carry. It made me uneasy to leave her side for so long, yet the mission was of utmost importance.
Finally though, I made my return. As the boat slowly approached the castle, I felt impatient, wishing it would reach its destination in a speedier fashion.
Hoisted into the dock, I was finally able to disembark.
Emily. The young daughter of my Empress, and a little friend of mine greeted me with joy. I admit, I was happy to see her too after so long. She wished to play a game with me, yet I explained that I must speak to her mother first.
I was then greeted by High Overseer Thaddeus Campbell, who was posing for a portrait. Emily ran ahead.
I caught up with the young girl to find her mother speaking with the Royal Spymaster Hiram Burrows. I stood back for a moment, allowing them to finish their conversation.
Before he took his leave, he too greeted me. I politely reciprocated, but really desired to see the Empress as soon as possible.
Finally, I came to her and gave her my letter. I was pleased to see her and I can only imagine she felt the same.
Emily suddenly saw something that I, to my shame, may have missed.
Assassins were poised to attack, and once I had them in my sights, they came upon us.
I fought them off, a number falling to my blade, yet I was outflanked and my Empress was the price of my failure.
The killer fled and left me holding my old friend in my arms as she died. There was nothing I could do as they ran with the poor girl Emily in their captivity.
Once again, my absorption in the Empress made me miss what was happening around me. I was surrounded. Guards flanking the Overseer and Spymaster had me at their mercy as I was accused of the slaughter of the woman in my arms.
I was escorted to jail, until I could prove my innocence.
Six Months Later
I was sat in the interrogation chair once again as the Overseer and Spymaster attempted to pry a confession from me.
Whether I confessed or not, the fact remained the same. I was due for execution. They would frame me if I denied or out me if I lied and said I had done what they said. There was no sense in me confessing to a crime that I already knew they had masterminded, yet I was helpless to do anything about my impending death.
Dissatisfied that I was not playing into their game, they threw me back to my cell for one last night before I would lose my head.
Curiously, not long after being locked away, a guard approached me and informed me that I had been delivered a meal from ‘a friend’.
The cryptic message had me curious indeed. I took the bread and beneath it were a key and message.
An escape? It was of course risky, but my only other option would be to sit in my cell and await death. If I wished for any chance of getting back at those who had murdered my Empress, I had to take this opportunity.
Essentially, I had no reason to stay and every cause to go.
I snuck across the hall and grabbed the sword that had been left for my use. I hoped it would not be needed against the prison guards. I had no idea which of these men were loyal to the Empress or who were involved in the plot against her. I would not want to put to death anyone who was by rights an ally.
I quietly put to sleep the first guard I came by, but in my haste I was spotted by a second on a gangway. He called others to attackme and I was forced to defend myself.
I managed to find a pistol as I continued my so far, not to plan, escape, which again, I hoped I would not make use of.
It certainly seemed that I was out of practice in the art of stealth.
I passed through the hated interrogation room and found a note regarding me.
It would seem that a number of staff were not entirely aware of the Overseer and the now Lord Regent Burrow’s plans.
I continued and found the safe in which were hidden the explosives I was required to use.
I carried them through to the exit I was to destroy and placed them ready to detonate. I took cover in a nearby garbage disposal as the bomb blew.
The explosion attracted much attention from the prison watch and I had no choice but to make a dash for the exit.
I dived into the water below. A few officers attempted to follow, yet did not survive the drop.
I swam for the relative safety of the sewers and dashed inside.
I would have to pass through these and find my way out. Along the walls was much graffiti.
I found another note that had been left for me.
Finding this stash would undoubtedly be useful for my escape.
I met a locked door, so climbed onto the barred room to travel across it. I could hear guards speaking of how they intended to capture me. I knew I would have to continue being cautious if the sewers were manned with those looking for me.
As I walked along the top of the bars, the guards entered the room.
In a moment a swarm of filthy rats were upon them and were tearing them to shreds.
It was a grossly unpleasant sight.
More ominous graffiti was sprawled on walls.
I came down a corridor and as I emerged into another sewer stream I spied another group of rats devouring a corpse.
I had no intention of sharing the fate of those guards, so kept myself hidden from sight.
I decided my only route past the rodents was to dive into the foul looking ‘water’ drifting through the room.
Sickening as it was, it potentially saved my life. I swam through unnoticed by the little beasts and surfaced further along in another room.
I found the corpses of a pair of lovers. A sad sight indeed.
Along with the diary of the man.
I continued on and found a man slumped over a wheel which controlled the mechanism that opened the door. Perhaps he had used his last breath to shut out the plague ridden rodents that had forced him down here. Or maybe to protect him from the City Watch. Who knows.
I lay him down and opened the door to allow my exit.
I pondered carrying him with me in case I needed some bait to use if I came across any more rats, but decided to allow his body to rest in one piece.
As I had thought would happen, I entered another room that housed a number of rats.
As I came in, two bodies dropped from the ceiling. I heard voices of guards above saying they expected them to become rat food.
The rats were dangerously close to the wheel I needed to turn in order to open the escape route. They were in the process of eating an unfortunate man, yet I imagined it would not be enough to distract them from my presence.
I snuck about the room unnoticed and made my way to the centre platform.
I took no pleasure in using a dead body in this way, but needs must. I took hold of one and threw it to the floor where the rats could get to it.
They did not take the bait. Perhaps I had thrown it too far away for them to notice.
With that, I took the body of a second man and again chucked it, though this time in a place more in sight for the animals.
Luckily this time, they took notice. As they rushed to their new meal, I dashed to the wheel and began to turn as fast as I could. My hand slipped and the door fell closed again, but in seconds I had it again and turned for my life.
Without a second look behind me I ran for the open door and jumped some debris.
I had made it out. My escape route seemed clear now.
No such luck. The grate was blocked, though I had found some more tunnels to travel.
To the right I saw a passage set with a tripwire. I decided whatever was down there could wait while I went on to find my stash.
The stairs too were booby trapped.
I attempted a leap over the wire, though inadvertently set it off, causing something to explode in my face. Fortunately, the damage to my person was minimal so I continued on.
I reached the hidden stash, watched over by yet another corpse.
A new blade and a crossbow with a two different types of bolt. Quite lovely.
Moving on, I found another note, though this time it was not for me.
Just by it was a toppled safe. It was clear to me that it contained some kind of loot and I should easily be able to find the combination due to some other oaf’s poor memory.
Look to the whiskey it said. So I did. The answer was more obvious than I thought it would be.
I opened the safe and helped myself to its contents.
As I walked through the tunnels I heard an announcement warning that I had escaped imprisonment and had used lethal force. Guilt overcame me at the deaths of these men and the thought that should I make it outside, I may not be greeted so favourably by those I wished to protect.
Moving on I came to an opening that I would have to drop through. At the bottom I could hear a number of guards talking.
Using my new equipment, I fired a sleeping dart into the guard I could see. His fall alerted no one nearby, so I felt it safe to enter.
I kept to cover and learned that there were three more men patrolling the room. I spotted that the best route would be to go above their heads.
I crept silently through the room until I found that the pipes could carry me no further. I would have to dispatch of one of the guards.
Silently, I dropped behind him and put him to sleep. Rather than drag his resting body into the shadows, I dropped him and ran.
His prone body attracted the attention of his companions, but by that time I had already got out of sight and out of reach.
It wasn’t much further to the exit, where Samuel was waiting for me.
He was to take me to the Loyalist group who had arranged my escape and hoped to put right what had been done by the villains Burrows and Campbell.
The Hound Pits was the main base of operations for the Loyalists. Samuel guided me there and waited outside while I entered.
I was introduced to Farley Havelock and Lord Treavor Pendleton.
They explained who they were and why they helped me. They then advised me to meet with their inventor friend Piero Joplin before taking my leave to bed.
I did so and after helping him mend his machine, he presented me with a mask in order to hide my identity in public.
After he informed me that he would be able to provide me with new items and improve them he advised that I get some rest. I agreed that this would be wise. It had been an eventful night.
The next day
I woke in my room. It was not much to look at but it was a great deal better than my cell.
I had an odd feeling as I approached my door and thought to be cautious as I exited. I checked the keyhole.
A blue glow? Missing walls? I was confused but felt safe enough to step out.
It was enormously strange out here. Floating chunks of land wandered through the air with no explanation.
Below the rock I was stood upon seemed to shine the sun.
I walked upstairs to what I suppose was the summit of the building. There a strange looking young man met me.
He called himself the Outsider. He put his mark upon me..
.. and told me that I had been chosen to become greater than other men. His mark imbued me with a magical power he referred to as ‘blinking’. A blink would pull me from one position to another some distance away in the flash of an eye.
He told me to use the ability to find him elsewhere.
I was expected to use the power to leap bottomless chasms.
The first place I landed had me next to the body of the Empress..
She had a note..
The jumps became a little more challenging, though the power was quite easy to get a grasp of.
The next scene showed me a frozen image of two men who resembled Pendleton grabbing poor Emily.
She too had a message for me.
I moved on to find more frozen images
Finally I met the Outsider again. He presented me with another gift.
This heart would lead me to runes which I could use to further increase my magical abilities and learn yet more powers. He instructed me to test it and find one which he had hidden for me.
I followed the sound of the heartbeat, while a voice from the object told me that this place was the end of all things. It led me directly to the rune.
I took hold of it and was able to immediately learn how to see through walls. I hoped this would help me fare better when I required stealth in future.
A moment later, I woke up again.
The mark was still on my hand, the heart in my pocket. It had not been a dream.
I came downstairs to speak to Admiral Havelock who was waiting for me.
He informed me that my first task was regarding the Overseer. He believed that the Overseer carried a journal which held the location of where Emily was being kept. I was to gain entry to his office and take the journal. While there I should also rescue an ally, Martin, from imprisonment.
I accepted the task, though eager to get straight to killing the Overseer. Perhaps Havelock had a better plan in mind. I would put my trust in him for now, even though it seemed too early to be drinking.
Before boarding Samuel’s boat once more though, I thought I should test the heart once more. It immediately pointed me in the direction of another rune. I started towards it when I heard a woman call my name.
I greeted her.
Her name was Callista. She told me that her uncle was a Captain in the City Watch, but a good man. He was intending to poison the Overseer today, but she feared that he would be caught. She asked me to make sure he was safe.
I told her I would do what I could. However in my own mind I could not be certain that I would have any opportunity to make good.
She left me, so I continued hunting my rune.
I found it quickly, though a toothed fish almost cut my journey short. Using my Blink ability, I safely retrieved the artifact and stowed it for later use.
Now, it was time to head out and begin my quest for justice….
