As the sun rose past the horizon and loomed over the skyline of the great City of Hatlynshire Henry found himself to be dazed but also in awe. He had been called to accompany one of the other members of the Great Houses on a ‘diplomatic’ trip to Great Borough. Henry himself wasn’t too enthusiastic about it. He was dazed due to not being able to get enough sleep. Something he hid quite well on the outside but felt quite deeply on the inside. Whatever part of him that was not stuck in this drowsy state was rather preoccupied with thought of his own Borough.

“I should be sending letters to my Nobles. We should start fortifying the Hamlets immediately” he thought as his driver drove him straight to the Town hall of Great Borough. Henry, like most Great House members, drove in a black car with a silver accents and silver grill with two large ball shaped lights on either side. His car’s license plate read TRIDENT-001 which corresponded with the symbol of his house. Henry himself at first glance didn’t seem like much of regal figure. He was in early forties, he had jet black hair and brown eyes. He was clean shaven and wore a black suit with an overlapping collar. Underneath it he wore a white and grey checkered waistcoat. In his coat he carried a golden pocket watch connected with a golden chain and on his finger was a ring studded with diamonds. On his head he wore a black top hat and on his waistcoat, hidden by his coat, he wore a golden pin with his family’s crest imprinted on it. The pin was the only thing that gave him away as a Circulion, hence why he hid it. But without it, he looked perfectly human.

The car drove passed the empty streets of the waking city. Henry knew it was best to travel early in the morning when there was less people. It was less suspicious and it meant less attention. As Henry looked out the window he saw a few people walking around. Most were working men on their way to their occupation.

“Well, there is a certain innocence to humans. They are of course just like us. At least, when their not committing heinous sins” Henry thought. And with that thought he let out a shudder. He remembered a recent incident that had occurred a few days ago. This incident was part of the reason they were going to Great Borough in the first place. It had happened in Bernstein Borough, a group of Hunter had figured out how to access one of the Hamlets through a secret door. They had snuck in and tried to set fire to it at night, luckily they were caught and killed before they could set the entire Hamlet alight. But before they were killed they had succeeded in setting fire to that Hamlet’s orphanage. Whether they had known it was an orphanage or not Henry didn’t know. But no one could put out the fire and from the stories he had heard, almost a hundred residents had burned to death. Henry still vividly remembered the descriptions his men had given him. And the sheer grotesque detail made him want to hurl.

After some time the car finally reached a stop outside the entrance of a building. The driver got out of the car and opened the back door so Henry could step out. Henry gave a nod to the driver and the driver nodded back. The driver then went back to the driver’s seat. Henry looked up at the building in front of him. It was a massive three story tall structure that stretched nearly a hundred meters in both directions. The entrance was grand having a large staircase leading up to an overhanging roof held up by five pillars topped with angels and adorned with banners with the flag of Hatlynshire. The roof face itself was decorated with sculptures of men with the symbol of the Order of Man carved in the center. The building was mostly white and grey with hints of gold embedded into the sculptures. It also had a massive domed roof that reached high into the skyline. In front of the building, across the road, was a massive flat land which was the largest park in all of Hatlynshire.

Henry was standing in front of the only piece of the Order of Man that the public knew about. At least, what they thought they knew. He was standing in front of the City Hall.

As Henry gazed up onto the massive symbol of the Circle’s greatest foe another car pulled up behind his. The driver of that car got out and opened the backdoor. And from that back door walked out an older gentlemen in his sixties. He had a white beard and wore the same top hat Henry did. He wore a light grey coat with an overlapping collar but he also wore a large light grey overcoat over it. He had no ring on his finger. For he was a widower. He too like Henry gazed at the massive structure in front of him.

“Well Ulysses, looks like we’ve arrived” said Henry.

“Yes, I can see that Henry. It looks just as atrocious as it did the last time I was here” said Ulysses. Henry grinned and together he and Ulysses ascended the steps. When they reached the top they were immediately greeted by a very old copper statue of the city’s ‘founder’, a man who went by the name of George Montgomery. Henry had always wanted to spit on that statue every time he saw it. Knowing that, unlike the revisionist story of how he built this city from nothing he in fact built it from the dead corpses of thousands of Circulions.

“Perhaps this statue is greatest insult the Order ever did to us” said Ulysses as they passed the statue and went towards the front door.

“They keep him front of their building as a glorified hero, while lying to the public about his deeds”

“Well, on the day we finally bring these wretches down. I’ll be sure you leave a rope for you so we can pull down that statue together” said Henry with a smile and Ulysses smiled as well since both men knew that it was unlikely that the Order would be brought down in either of their lifetimes.

They walked through the front door of the City Hall. There was no guard at the front, a fact that Henry always taught as an oversight by the Order. He’d assumed the reason for it was that the Order never thought the Circle would dare attack them in the day. Which was a reasonable assumption.

As they entered the lobby a wave of caution washed over Henry. It was an instinctive response sine knew that now that they were inside, they were in the most danger. The lobby was a large room. Intricately decorated with lavish designs. It was a whitish grey but the walls were adorned with portraits and paintings, the real meanings of which only certain people knew. There was people walking around all over the place and nothing seemed that out of the ordinary. But Henry knew. He could see that gazes that followed them around. He knew that Hunters roamed this building in disguise. But nonetheless, he and Ulysses pressed on forward and blended into the crowd so as not to arouse suspicion.

Henry followed Ulysses passed the lobby and then a left turn through a hallway and then through a corridor to the door at the very end. Ulysses followed these steps precisely with a single second guess which only confirmed to Henry that Ulysses had been to this place often.

Finally, through the door at the end of the corridor they entered a spacious room with walls made of polished wood. The room was decorated with portraits on every wall and it was lit a large and lavish chandelier which hug from the domed ceiling.

It the room was a waiting area and next to it was a table which had a lamp, a stack of papers and a typewriter. In the chair behind this table sat a lady in a thin suit. She was typing something, her hands moved along the typewriter’s keyboard like lightning as she gave it her absolute focus. A focus that was only interrupted when she heard the sound of the door open. She lifted her head over the typewriter and looked at Henry and Ulysses.

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“Well…uh. Do you have an appointment, Sir?” She asked with a soft tone and a smile.

Ulysses walked up to the lady while Henry stayed back. He leaned over to her desk and reached into his overcoat.

“Why yes we do, miss” he said opening part of his overcoat revealing the golden pin he kept underneath. “Is the Mayor occupied?”

The lady blinked and paused for a moment as though in shock. “Uh… no! You may go in” she stuttered in an almost frightened tone. Ulysses nodded, gave her a smile and tipped his hat. He and Henry then made their way passed the lady and through the door that laid next to her.

This time they entered a somewhat smaller room. Smaller but much more grand. The ceiling was about two stories tall with another golden chandelier over it. One of the walls had a large window that overlooked the part in front of City Hall. Another wall was completely taken by a massive bookcase. And in the middle of the room was a large semicircular table with a chair on either side. There was a red carpet on the floor and a fireplace too. The walls looked brand new and there was even a Hunting rifle mounted on the mantle under a large portrait of the first mayor of Hatlynshire.

On the other of the tale was the mayor. A man who both slightly fatter and older than Henry. He wore an open black coat over a silvery waistcoat and he had a golden monocle on his left eye which was a complimented by his straight and thin black and grey moustache and sharp eyes. He had been preoccupied with something as they walked in but he dropped it immediately and stared directly at Henry and Ulysses as they entered. A grin then appeared on his face.

“Well, well, well. What a pleasant surprise! Two Circulion industrialist swine walk right into my office! A rare sight indeed!” he said in cheerful tone. A tone that neither Henry nor Ulysses found amusing. Ulysses then took the seat of the other side of the table while Henry stood by the door. Henry kept one arm close to the gun he hid under his waistcoat. Just in case.

The Mayor leaned over Ulysses. “So what do I owe the pleasure, Mr. Everton?”

Ulysses said calm. “I think you know why, Victor”

Victor Del Mir reclined on his chair. The grin still in his face. “This isn’t about that fire now is it? Your men killed my men. Your revenge is served. You have no business coming to me!”

Ulysses gave a light chuckle. Something that made Victor flinch. “You flatter yourself, Victor. I think you why we’re really here”

Victor’s grin disappeared. He leaned over to Ulysses once more and spoke in a darker voice. “Well Mr. Everton, it appears that I don’t. Care to enlighten me?”

Ulysses nodded. Henry was told why they had come here but this was not he expected things to happen. But then again he knew not keep assumption of the future, unless he was a Morrow.

“While the fire is one reason our REAL reason is something much larger” said Ulysses.

“And that real reason is?”

Ulysses’ expression darkened. “That real reason is that ever since your ‘election’ you have plunged your Hunters deep within our territory. You’ve intentional started a minor conflict on the streets. And we want it to end”

Victor raised his eyebrows as though Ulysses had told him some shocking revelation. And then began laughing audibly while leaned on his chair. Ulysses looked at him with disgust and so did Henry. After he was done laughing he looked Ulysses as though he had said some marvelous joke.

“You cannot be serious! I take it that you didn’t consult with your dear friends the Morrows about this. Because if you did those foreseeing wretched would have told you that you can’t waltz here into MY OFFICE AND EXPECT ME TO THE BEND THE KNEE TO YOU CIRCULION SWINE!” he ended his sentence in a bout of rage yet Ulysses still stayed calm on the outside.

“We are not asking you to bend the knee, we know you are too prideful for that” he said calmly.

“Oh good! So what makes you think I’ll comply with you ‘request’?” a reply to which Ulysses grinned.

“I doubt your superiors would want to go to all out with the Circle. I doubt even the Grand Overseer himself would want that. Seeing as it would cripple the city with an already overwhelming population”

Victor raised his eyebrow. He thought Ulysses was bluffing.

“You wouldn’t! The Circle would not just go to war again over such minor of an issue as some street aggression!”

“Well…” said Ulysses. “War is only a last resort since we know that if we allow you to continue in your activities, they will only get worse. But as a means of ending this before it escalates to major conflict we offer you a price”

“A price?” asked the now intrigued Victor.

“One million Sorasy. In cash.” said Ulysses. “We pay you to pull back your troops. If you agree, you walk away with a hefty fortune. If you don’t well, you know what happens to a Mayor in a conflict”

Ulysses then reached into his coat and pulled out a set of old newspaper articles from the city newspaper, The Hatlynshire Herald. He then put them on the table for Victor to see. Henry could read some of the headlines. One said in large bold letters, ‘MAYOR KILLED IN CAR ACCIDENT!’ another said, ‘CITY MAYOR DIES IN HOUSE FIRE! ARE GANGS TO BLAME?’ while another read, ‘OLD MAYOR MURDERED IN STREET SHOOTING! PERPETRATORS STILL ON THE LOOSE!’

Victor looked through every headline. He then looked at Ulysses with a furious glare. His cheeks turned a shade of red like he was a volcano that was about to erupt.

“You dare threaten me? IN MY OWN OFFICE?”

“I was merely alerting you to the consequences. So what will it be, Mr. Del Mir?” asked Ulysses.

Victor calmed down a little. He then bought he hands together and smiled at Ulysses. Henry was not expecting that.

“One million Sorasy…a year” he said in calm and confident tone.

“Excuse me?” said Ulysses who was obviously not expecting that answer.

“You hear me, Mr. Everton. If you wish for me to comply I would need one million Sorasy every single year. Those are my terms and they are nonnegotiable” said Victor. He then stood up from his chair and gave a grim glare to both Ulysses and Henry. Henry then tightened his grip on his gun.

“Because if you think you can buy me with a pathetic sum like the one you offer then you ARE MISTAKEN, YOU WRETCHED SCUM. YOU THINK YOU CAN ENTER MY OFFICE AND THREATEN ME? WELL THEN YOU WILL SOON FIND ME TO BE MUCH MORE CAPABLE THAT MY PREDECESSORS I PROMISE YOU THAT!”

He then straightened himself and sat back in his chair before giving Ulysses and Henry a grin. “So yes, those are my demands. If you cannot meet them I quite happily ask you to withdraw from my office and the City Hall. And I have a feeling that the Grand Overseer Montgomery will want to hear of this conversation”

Ulysses stood up and stared at Victor blankly. “I think we are done here. I thank you for your time… Mr. Mayor” Ulysses then tipped his hat to which Victor nodded agreeably. Ulysses then swiftly turned around and he and Henry promptly left the office shutting the door behind them. Henry then followed Ulysses as they made their way out of the building.

“Well, it appears that the Mayor is unwilling to work with us” said Henry. He had come here knowing that the likelihood of a peaceful solution was unimaginably slim given how brazen and determined Victor’s actions were. But still part of him had hoped no to turn to conflict for it was both financially costly and costly when it came to lives as well.

“Well I expected as much. I told the Morrows that a peaceful resolution was futile yet they convince me to try it anyway. Well, now there is no resolving this peacefully Henry” said Ulysses.

They made their way down the steps past the statue. By the time they had exited the building the sun had well passed the city's skyline and was slowly inching its way to the center of the sky. Henry’s driver was waiting for him and opened his car door for him. Henry nodded at the driver and then turned to Ulysses before he could get into his own vehicle.

“Are you sure this would work, Ulysses? Are you certain that your plans can succeed?” he said before getting into his car.

“Not to worry, my dear Henry. I know by the end of this this city will be a safer, cleaner place. And If I were to die, I would die while getting my long awaited vengeance upon those who massacred my family”

Henry went silent. He the waved Ulysses goodbye and go in his car. His mind was full of doubts as they drove out of Great Borough. But he had known Ulysses his whole life, he had been a sort of mentor figure to both him and some of the other Great House members. Henry understood his pain and he was confident in his plans. But still…

“But what if it all fails?” he couldn’t help but wonder. What if Ulysses had underestimated the Mayor and Montgomery?

“Then we’ll all be in danger.”