The steamship chugs along at a steady pace, its burning heart pushing massive screws that propel it through the sky. I sit with one leg crossed over the other in a chair on the bridge of the ship. I am not in the captain's seat, that is not my role. I look out the window to see the two other ships joining us on this job. One is a Royal Godiva class, inside of it is Godiva herself, Blake, and Sertean along with some other royal guard. The other two ships contain thirty Frontiersmen soldiers, all of whom are loyal directly to me through the Stella Coyote or through Henna's influence. I look back down at the intelligence report gathered for me.

Duke Hasslerouge did a good job of making up some false information that is difficult to disprove. This guy is practically the devil himself according to what the Duke created. The man is Viscount Keegan Strasser, someone who at one point was the actual prime minister of the kingdom, second only to the king, but he stepped down for an unknown reason years ago. He remains the King's most trusted ally, even over the loyal major houses. His fief is rather small, just a little town with his mansion sitting on the hill above it. Duke Hasslerouge wants him dead to remove the last non-major supporter of the royal family, thus solidifying his power behind the scenes. At least that is the idea.

As I read more about the Viscount, it seems like he is considered the perfect citizen, and he is incredibly faithful. His claim to fame is his conversion of slaves, but through this, he frees the most slaves of any owner. I consider it a double-edged sword, on one hand, he is freeing the most slaves, on the other, it's forcible conversion, and while I have no proof of his actions, the temple of Serena doesn't shy away from torture in order to convert slaves. I'll give him some slack since most freed slaves come out of it normal... -ish...

The mission is to "bring him to justice", but that's only what Blake and Godiva know. My mission is to kill him before he can testify anywhere. This won't be hard to do, the guy is in his sixties and all descriptions say he is quite dumpy. The strategy for this attack is simple, he uses Frontiersman mercenaries as guards along with the few knights he has under his employ. The forces at my disposal are 60 Frontiersmen, all capable warriors, and 10 royal guards, all of whom are considered very powerful mages and fighters. Then there is Blake, Godiva, and Sertean who are considered forces of nature more than they are considered people when in combat.

We easily outnumber the garrison and we also have better warriors and firepower. I don't plan to fire a single cannon due to the steep cost of ammunition. I can justify this since this attack has not been made public, this means we can hit them before they even raise their swords. I'm going to target the Viscount along with a few trusted warriors, while the others can play with the garrison. The airships will stay close in order to give fire support just in case shit hits the fan.

I can see the manor in the distance, its tall visage visible in the full moonlight. I start checking my weapons and equipment a final time, making sure I am ready. I somehow managed to repair my armor made of Silus, it's not perfect but it's mostly good to go. Due to the damage sustained, I never redid the runes, but this job shouldn't require them, but because I am paranoid I have three single-shot pistols. If a fights fair, it means you aren't trying hard enough. I sadly no longer have my father's spear, instead, I now am equipped with my normal single-edged sword and a small handaxe with a hooked blade for catching my enemy's weapons. I touch the bear charm I have hooked on my belt without thinking and feel a pang of sadness for a second before I am pulled back into reality by the captain announcing,

"Sir. We have arrived."

I nod and thank the man, I put my helmet on as the ship begins to lower itself onto the ground. I leave the bridge and head into the cargo area where the 30 warriors have finished their preparations. As the ship gently sets down two crewmates open the large doors and extend the ramp. We carefully disembark down the steep ramp and wait for the other ships to deploy. Once all troops have been deployed the ships lift off of the ground in order to circle the manor. I approach the mass of royal guards and meet with Godiva and the others.

Godiva stares at the manor with a hard look, she is wearing a full set of gold-colored armor. She says to me,

"I cant believe Viscount Strasser would betray us like this...I guess it really is the ones you least expect."

No one responds to her, we stand there in quiet contemplation before Godiva looks at me and asks,

"Isa, what is the plan?"

I shrug and reply,

"Let's keep it simple. We will approach the manor and try to enter peacefully, if they resist we will do what is needed. All reports show they don't have anything impressive when it comes to security. Nothing we can't handle."

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I give her a smile before remembering my face is covered by my helmet. She gives me a thin smile and responds,

"Then let's not wait."

There is no stealth as we approach. We simply march to the front and back doors. I take the backdoor as it will allow me to work without interruption. The door is locked, but with the application of a boot against the bolt, it swings open with the splintering of wood and a loud crash. Alongside my men, we pour into the kitchen located at the backdoor. We startle a maid along with two guards, both of the guards are Frontiersmen, most likely from one of the shark cultures judging by their sharpened teeth. They don't have time to react as we are upon them, they die before even getting to their feet. I hear the front door burst open and combat start with those watching the entryway.

I never got a map or floorplan of this mansion, but it's safe to assume the bedrooms are on the upper floors. I find a servants stairwell in the kitchen and ascend the stairs, I leave most of my men behind and order a perimeter be formed around the mansion. Over sixty soldiers would be cumbersome in this building. The stairwell leads to a long hallway where the few guards and knights living in the mansion are rushing toward the main stairwell to fight Godiva, Blake, and their forces.

I only exit the stairwell once I am sure most of the guards have left this floor. I then begin checking every single door. The Viscount doesn't have a wife or any kids so I don't have to worry too much about them, especially the kids. Each room is a guest quarter and nothing more, then I reach the most decorative door. This has to be the master bedroom. I try the door gently and find it locked from the other side. I order one of my soldiers to unlock the door. I had brought a locksmith along with me, he is of the Stella Coyote as well so I trust him in a fight on top of his work skills. He works on the keyhole for less than a minute and the door is unlocked I shove it open expecting to find the Viscount cowering in the corner.

Instead, I find a bookshelf swung open like a door, leading to a secret stairwell. I let out a loud string of swears and follow the stairs down into the darkness below. I take note of some engraved text above the stairwell,

"Abandon All Hope Ye Who Enters..."

A very grave warning, I stay on my guard.

The stone steps spiral down inside the walls of the house. Through the thin wood, I can hear fighting on the other side, a sword goes through the wall a few feet away from my face before being retracted back into the fight. I stay low as I follow the hidden passage. Luckily no random weapons come through the wall and impale me. Then the passage leads down into a basement, a smell hits me coming from the basement, something foul, something sinister.

I creep down the final set of stairs trying to breathe the stench as little as possible. Ahead I can see the flickering glow of an oil lamp and hear the sound of keys jingling. I enter the basement to find a long row of wooden cell doors. Clearly a holding area for slaves or prisoners. The man I assume is the Viscount is messing with a ring of keys as he creeps past the cells. I follow him as silently as possible, holding onto the weapons of my belt to keep them from jingling.

In the glow of his lamp I can see the corridor ends with a small room that contains a single table covered in glass bottles, and at the far end is a final cell door. I can't hear any sounds from the cells and I can't make out any shapes inside through the darkness. I slowly figure out the smell as being a mix of blood and human filth, whoever is being held here has been left in the most awful of conditions. I plan on opening these cells on my way out, I understand all too well what it is like to be in this situation.

The Viscount begins opening the far door as I approach him, I draw my sword silently preparing to strike when the edge of my hip bumps the table. This causes the glass bottles to fall off and shatter, the glass sounds like a gunshot in the relative silence. The Viscount whips around quickly and is shocked to see five armed men who all managed to nearly creep up on him. He shouts in fear barely managing to hold onto his lamp and keys. He's an older man, someone who radiates grandpa energy, white hair, soft eyes, and wrinkled all over.

I am about to run him through when I hear from behind me,

"Isa! You found that snake!"

I put the brakes on my attack in an instant and turn on my heel. I turn just in time to see Godiva, Blake, and Sertean descend the main stairs into the basement. I sheathe my sword and respond,

"Yep! We found him trying to do something down here. Found a secret passage in his room, this might be a final escape route."

She approaches with her entourage and glares at the Viscount. She then states,

"You should be ashamed of yourself, betraying my father who loved you like an uncle. You will answer to him directly."

I groan internally seeing my job may have just gotten a little more confusing. I approach the Viscount and take the keys from his hands. I push him into the arms of my men as he tries to stammer a defense. I turn back to that last door and decide to see what he was after. If it's an escape route or something it may prove useful, maybe a place to plant false evidence.

I unlock the door and step into the dark room beyond. It smells of old blood, human waste, and the distinct smells of perfumes trying to cover it all. It's too dark to see so I feel around me, my hand reaches a table that is covered in metal tools it feels like, and some glass bottles as well that fall over thanks to my clumsy searching.

One of my men brings a lamp into the room revealing a terrible dungeon, and chained to a wall is a very emaciated woman. She is naked and has been abused beyond what a human should be able to take. Tendons cut, burns, scars, and all healed with potions it seems. I approach her as she sits there staring at the ground. I kneel down to comfort her and I lift her long hair out of her face. We meet eyes....

My heart rate increases...

My blood runs cold...

I piss myself...

I scream...