(Corvo POV)
"Sighhhhhh."
A big sigh leaves my mouth as I sit on the side of a building connected to the tower.
Looking down I see a fat hand held in my grip, one if the sources of my negative emotions.
The most obvious one being… finally having archived my revenge. My vendetta against disgusting people who see people as no more than insects, peoples whoses lives can be controlled all Willy nilly.
Don't get me wrong, I do not regret anything. In fact, I feel great! Relived even that no one will have to deal with them ever again.
But in doing so I have corrupted myself. My rage, one I was able to keep supressed for so long took over apart of my mind and twisted it, turning my once solid morality into something more…. Grey, yeah… grey is the right way to describe it.
Since the start as you can call it I have been able to take a life. Many lives without hesitation. But I would still feel the weight of what I has done even when I made it near instant, to not prolong their pain anymore than necessary.
After all, they weren't my enemies where they?
But that constant weight, constant understanding that although what I have done wasnt right slowly started to leave me. A weight that I thought would stick to me forever and was prepared for it slowly turned lighter before u didn't feel it anymore.
And that alone…. It scared me. One of the reasons I stopped killing for a bit. I tried to hold back, tried to hold on what really made me still human. To grip onto the straps of what made me, well me. Not because that isnt who I am, merely a part of me.
But now? I have completed lost it. My regard for human life has disintegrated to the point that the only people I really 'see' are Emily and Callista.
So I sit here, mourning for a part of myself that was so brutally ripped away that it took more than that aspect. Leaving only parts of corvo left to try and mend the gaps in my mind.
"Well… I suppose I shouldn't keep Samuel waiting any longer. So, let's get this whole show over and done with."
I pull myself up for the ledge dangling over into the see and throw away the servered hand.
It's useless to me now after all.
And with a mighty leap, I follow after the body part, diving into the ice cold ocean.
….
…
..
.
Walking into the houndpitts pub I'm met with the whole staff managing the building, as well as the loyalists. Everyone gathered and drinking alcohol in celebration of a goal being achieved.
Trevor Pendleton is the first to make it over to me, handing me a glass of strong smelling spirits with a smirk all over his face.
"Damn me, he's done it. Word is spreading all over the city. The tyranny is over. By this time tomorrow Emily will be on the throne. After that, we'll clear your name and put everything we've got into rebuilding the city."
Clear my name? Yeah right. I know what's in this drink you pompous fuck, if you think I will be fooled when already knowing who you are then you would be an idiot.
Havelock as always grabs tbe attention straight after, if only to give his one piece of uselessness.
"I wish there were more of a city to rule. Most of Dunwall is rats and corpses."
And that is true. It seems as if like in the game chaos spreads through more killing.
Well I mean that is how the plague spreads. But since I have been destroying most of the corpses I have made, I don't seem to be in a 'high chaos' root, but one inbetween. This is real life after all, not a rigid system.
But my thoughts are interrupted by Pendleton .
"The Admiral's right, I'm afraid. Corvo, you did your job while the rest of us sat on our asses. Our work starts tomorrow."
Well… at least they know. But I suppose that makes it even worse though dosent it. Working me like a dog, like their personal servant- haaaaah no calm down, no need to get riled up.
Though inwardly I'm fuming, my face dosent reflect any of that. Remaining as stiff as a board like usual and only managing a thin smile of politeness.
Yeah, fuck it. As soon as they all start celebrating I'm grabbing Emily and dipping out of here. Callista will be fine on her own, she's quite a resourceful women after all.
"Tonight, rest easy. Tomorrow, we crown an Empress."
Havelock raises his glass up high, a rare smirk tugging at rhe corner of his lips abd shouts out loud to all present.
"To corvo! The man who served to change the course of history.
To Emily Kaldwin! And the dawn for Dunwall and the empire!"
Everyone brings their glasses to their mouths, chugging the whole drink in one go I celebration of the recent events.
… well everyone besides me. I'm not stupid enough to drink from a poisoned drink, am I?
But as all the loyalists stare at me as I go to out my drink down and collect Emily, my body is brought to a halt- a frigid cold crawling all up my spine.
What the hell?
I try to move my body, but it's as if any input I put into my brain is forcefully cancelled. Like a controller being disconnected from its consol, restring access to the player.
But it's not tha my body is brought to a halt but my mind as I'm stuck watching through 'my' ow eyes as my body brings the poisoned alcohol to his lips and gulp it all down in one shot.
Again. What in the actual fuck is happening.
It feels as if like when I first descended into corvos body. In the part of this life that I have referred to as the tutorial and the wort part of my life. In a time when someone else had full control of the body, a time when I was just a ghost possessing some one else's body.
But even after my body's control system betraying me I'm still not given back access. My body walking around and socialising with people just how I usually would. In a way that dosent form any suspicious that it is really me in controll or not.
Stuck inside my 'own' body like a prisoner.
And it's goes on for more tha an hour. Trapped inside forces to watch and feel thigs happen while my mind is in a state of suspended animation before it finally ends.
Well, not ends. But my body starts to bring itself upstairs. Heading straight for my room while taking the long route.
Though as 'we' travel up, a shaky feeling starts to appear inside the body and it in turn starts to wobble dangerously, nearly falling over multiple times and laughing to itself.
As we make it to my room, we fall just before reaching the bed. Faceplanting on the floor right before.
My body groans and turns, rubbing its nose in irritation as it looks across the room and catches sight of its own reflection.
It's there when 'our' eyes meet.
Eyes of hetrochromeatic colours. One my usually colour, a deep hazel that has followed me in both my lives… an the other a light amber colour, so deep and rich that it looks like the gemstone itself, a colour that for some reason causes dread to crawl up my spine as if a dangerous beast is right in front of my- as if I were an ordinary human.
The chill increasing many fold as the eye colour slowly grains back to hazel… but my face having a smile that splits across its cheeks, straight at me-.
…
..
.
"Samuel, you move like you've been drinking! Did the poison work it's magic? Is he dead?"
I awaken to the sound of a snobbish voice blaring above me, clear who it belongs to.
But my mind remains trapped in my prison if a body. Though this time I can tell it is not the same phenomena as before but due to the poison putting me in a state of simulates death, kind of like what happend in Romeo and Juliet if u rembered correctly.
"… it better have worked! It cost me the fortune of a months profit."
"Yessir, I believe Corvo has breathed his last, just as you wanted."
My mind to seems to be affected by the poison as I can barely recognise the conversation, nor string together a proper thought and not slip back into unconsciousness.
"You have done a fine job then."
"Remember, we need the body. If we come forward with the corpse of the man who murdered the Empress, we'll be greeted as heroes."
"Yes, it'll grant us legitimacy. We'll be the men who rescued Emily and brought down the Lord Regent and his assassin. You'll see to the body, won't you?"
From the corner of my eye, all I see is Samuel rhe boatman and the one who poisoned me staring into my eyes, a conflict of emotion clouding his eyes but they can mostly be translated to guilt.
The rest though only spare a single glance. Perhaps due to the arrogance of thinking they have done me in, or perhaps due to stupidity. And knowing the lot of them, both as an outsider and someone on the inside… its probably both.
"Yes, sir!"
With that the loyalists start to leave, dumping the duty of getting rid of my body fully onto him. No remorse of 'killing' me nor grateful of what I have done with them. Just pure apathy towards my existence.
But as my emotions start to rise I'm once more grabbed by unconsciousness.
..
.
"I'm sorry something terrible, Corvo. But I only gave you half the poison. They were watching me and it was all I could think to do. I think you're strong enough to survive that.
I'll put you on a raft and then I've got to ship out, myself, before they find out l've gone against their wishes. Snakes. They'll want to do the same to me once I outlive my uses.
Hopefully, you wake up and find your way out of this cursed city."
——-
Word count: 1,746
A/N; chapter might be a bit sloppy today as It's late and I can't be assed to edit anything😫.
The chapter should start to get a bit longer for the Dina stretch of the arc, but don't hold your breath.
Anyway, Merry Christmas everyone!!