The Mortal Instruments

Jenny's pov:



'I don't think the Clave would welcome the interference of a vampire, any vampire' "Vampires have there ways, you just have to find a good one", she said with a smile. 'The Mortal Cup was stolen by one that has access to magic' Warlock, fairy or demon in other words. This gave her somewhere to start. Maybe this was a inside job. That would explain some of what was going on. 'If the person doesn't come forward soon, the Clave will visit wrath upon the Downworlders' That was not going to happen, there would be sooner the demons come and rule the would then that happen. She took the paper and looked at it. It was somewhat odd that Brianne did not ask her what she knew. Another time perhaps. She watched them disappear, ah a barrier rune. She knew it well, you will want to be carful with who you use that on, she thought to herself. If she needed Brianne she knew right where to go. Now was the time to track down some magic users and she had a idea where to start. She headed off to the unknown.

Adam's pov:



The phone went off and he jumped. A worried look crossed his face. No one ever called, like ever. 'Adam you should get going.' "But.." 'No buts, you will be late for school.' He walked out the door and stood by it 'Adam' the phone call was about him? He made his way back to school. What was he going to do, he did not know. Something was up and he was going to find out what. What ever the case was, he need answers.


Lilly's pov:



She stood around with Adam. The lunch was good and it was time for him to go back to school. The phone went off and she picked it up after Adam was gone. "Yes ok, what, Adam, yes." It was time to get going. Some time later she found out about the Mortal Cup. Do not question how or why, but she found out somehow. If anyone was going to know about the Mortal Cup it would be Alarick. She pulled out the phone looking through the contacts. He was not in there. She thought that after all this time the world would be a better place. She guessed not. She had no clue where to look for Alarick, but she would find him.

 

Hendrick walked down the long hallway of the Institute, following Roxanne around at his own slower pace, having told Roxanne to just go on ahead he'd catch up and was relieved to see Brianne in one piece. Roxanne was already with her and he had lagged behind but that was hardly a surprise to him since despite feeling better he still was slower when walking. He felt it would be better if he were there to back Roxanne up a little if things got out of hand. He got himself over to Brianne and Roxanne, standing behind and to the left of Roxanne, he gave Brianne a nod and said "Welcome back, I assume everything went well?" He had seen the vampire that was now held in one of the side rooms, but had been too far away to actually hear his name or get a good look at the person.

 

Valister may not have doubted Brianne, actually hearing her tell him what she knew was a completely different story. It reinforced that notion that she knew little on what was currently going on. He waited patiently while she handed Jennifer her number before followed behind her past the barrier rune.

Valister was briefly introduced to a girl named Roxanne, though she only spoke to Brianne before going off somewhere. Having been lead to the guest room of sorts, Valister walked in and looked around. It did look comfortable, that was clear. "My pleasure." Once Brianne had left, he took a seat on the bed and waited.

 

​

Morrigan's heart nearly stopped as Ash picked up the iron. She took a step back, then another, her instincts screaming that she put as much distance as possible between her and that cursed metal. Her eyes flicked from the poker, where it rested, up to Ash's face as she tried to discern his motives.
"A strange question for a warlock to ask." She replied, her voice light and devoid of emotion, though her gaze eventually returned to the iron. It would burn her skin, not with the hot blaze of natural, true fire, but with a chill that would rend her soul.

"There is only one." She continued, wrapping her arms around her waist to fend off invisible scars and toss back the shadows of her mind. "Only one that I've ever heard of. Our Mother. Our Creator." She shrugged. "I doubt she is the Angel the stories make her out to be, but the humans long ago learned to worship her as a deity. Some of our people still send her offerings through the sacred ponds when the day of her rebirth is upon us."

"But to speak her name to one not of the fey, to unleash her secrets even here, in this home..." She paused, eyes glancing up to meet the jet black of Ash's stare. "Would you have me forsake all that I am? All that makes me a fairy? These are secrets that have not left the lips of any of my kind in the presence of a stranger, ever. I know of warlocks that survived the ages long enough to remember our Mother's face, Her name, but even they would not reveal it. Do you even understand what you ask of me?" Adding betrayal and treason of my people to the list isn't so far a leap in logic. I've already broken my vows and the pride of my family name. I've already disobeyed my Queen, and plotted against her. I've betrayed my family and my Queen. All that's left is to betray my people, and commit murder. A discomfiting thought.

​

Brianne sighed as Roxanne ran off, dragging a hand through her hair once more. If she wasn't careful, she would yank it out by the time the week was over. "Well as can be expected. We've got a new friend as well." She replied to Hendrick, her teeth chewing on her lower lip as she thought on her feet. Alarick would be back with Masque soon....this was good news, but also caused a pit in her stomach. The sooner he returned, the sooner she would have to contact the Clave with Alarick to find out their next series of orders regarding the warlock.

She could only remember one other time she had been part of capture mission, and it had ended with the werewolf being sent to the Clave for further questioning. Alarick had promised to oversee that as well, but whenever Brianne had asked for the welfare of the girl, her brother had deftly changed the subject or given her a simple response. It was enough to raise her suspicions, but Alarick would never do anything to harm her, of that she was certain. Her older brother may have his priorities of life a little skewed, but everything he had ever done had been for her benefit, or his own.

The warmth of distant memory turned cold with paranoia as she frowned, before turning back to Hendrick. "I'm glad you both made it back safely. And thank you for retrieving her." She sighed. "I don't think I'm equipped to handle Roxanne. I thought so at one point, but that violence.." She sighed. "I don't know. But if Alarick is truly close to the Institute, then he'll expect me to help him detain Masque. There is also the matter you wish to speak about." She rested a hand on Hendrick's shoulder. She wanted to forgive him, but her mind would not let her forget the sound of his voice as he challenged her orders, questioned her in front of Roxanne, and then ignored her command. Those would not be forgiven, could not be forgiven that easily.

Thinking quickly, Brianne made up her mind. "Text Alarick, tell him to have Nick support him with detaining Masque." She turned way, eyes on the front door of the Institute. "You and I should talk."

​

 

Hendrick was rather surprised to see Roxanne bolt after she had delivered the message. "Roxane.. come back.... please.." He called after her, but she ran. He cursed under his breath. "New friend? Who's that?" Hendrick inquired he looked at Brianne carefully she seemed weary and tired or maybe that was just his own exhaustion projected on her. "Glad to see you're back safely too... And if I may be honest here, I don't think any of us are.... I've got a glimpse of the inner workings, but I don't know.... all I can say is pushing her away will make it even worse.... that violence hell I can't condone it, it's bad but it seems like her way to vent... Oh what the hell am I saying, I hardly know anything about people..." Hendrick rambled on, then caught himself "Sorry 'bout that..."

Brianne then told him they had to talk right now "Wait you're not too busy? Well alright then, give me a moment, do you have Alarick's number? I don't have it." When he got the number he texted Alarick. "Alarick, when you get back to the Institute, have Nick help you in detaining Masque, I got something I need to take care off, Brianne." It took him a bit longer than Roxanne with her fancy phone, but he still made decent speed as he was quite practiced in the art of texting on an old cellphone. When he had hit sent he looked at Brianne "Alright, I take it this is gonna be under four eyes.... so lead the way." Hendrick said, he'd follow her to where ever she'd lead him.

 

​

Morrigan looked down at her hand, dwarfed in comparison's to the warlock's. She gently squeezed his fingers before slipping from his grasp, and turning to the work station. "Tabhair dom maithiúnas le do thoil." She whispered, dashing away the single tear that slipped down her cheek before pulling a piece of paper towards her, a pen as well. Her back to Ash, she slowly wrote down the name of the one that Ash sought.

"None came before her, and none will follow that are more powerful." She whispered, turning around with the paper clenched in her hand. "Ash.." Her plea was silenced as she stared at the floor, recalling his words. "Your life is more important then any vow." And my honor? . She stared at her enclosed fingers. She wouldn't tell him, couldn't tell him what this meant. And she hoped to the Goddess he would never know what this small, almost insignificant word was going to cost her. Stepping closer once more, she blinked away the tears and looked up into his face, her face arraigned into one of calm.

"No one has seen her in nearly a thousand years. I don't even think her own daughter knows where to find her anymore." Morrigan took Ash's hand, pressing the piece of paper into his palm. The paper, held between their two palms, held only one word. Gaia.

​

Brianne turned and strode back up the stairs, heading towards the elevator. "I assume, since I've neither been told about what brought you here, and you haven't told me yourself, that you would like this to remain private." She pressed the button on the elevator, waiting for it to arrive as she folded her arms across her chest, glancing at Hendrick. "And we still need to discuss your lack of respect for my command." The words hurt her more then she let on as the elevator arrived, and she stepped inside the doors, turning to press the button for the top floor.

She remained silent now as they ascended, before stepping out. This hadn't been her most frequented area of the Institute, but through Hendrick's care the plants bloomed still. It had been a dead wasteland when he had arrived, and now flowers were available year round. She would see pots of them around the Institute, the scent filling the halls and rooms with a sweet smell. Her particular favorite was the spicy smell of jasmine, and even now there were some in the right corner. She gravitated to that side of the green house, letting her fingers trail along the green stems as she bent to smell the flowers, the gentle brushing of the petals against her face calming her.

"Let me be clear, and let me get this said. Then you can explain." She turned, her eyes cold and her face solemn. "I expect you, and Roxanne, to follow my order. I was given command of the Institute, and for nearly three years I have managed to keep it from falling apart just fine. Even if my methods aren't likable, they get results. Even if you disagree, I expect to hear about it in private, not in a public place and certainly not in front of others. Should it happen again you'll find yourself going on less missions with my person or any other Shadowhunter."

It wasn't a threat, it was a promise. She couldn't afford to have someone at her back who spent precious minutes questioning her orders when they could be following them. No one had died under her command, no one had been seriously hurt, and while not everything always went according to plan, that was the rule of battle.

"Now then..your explanation." She perched on the edge of the stone that housed the jasmine plants, waiting.

 

Hendrick followed Brianne and nodded as they strode to the elevator "Yeah it isn't my favourite topic of discussion, at first I assumed you were told. After that, I guess I wanted to avoid it." She told him that they needed to discuss his lack of respect for her command. They rode the elevator in silence, he avoided her gaze as they walked through the garden. Towards the jasmine plants, his pride and joy to keep himself occupied when not on missions. "Noted, I was out of line. I am aware of it, but I was worried about your safety that's all. Won't happen again..." Hendrick said his voice trailing off near the end. "The situation is stressful with the Cup gone and all, I'm sorry..." Yielding to someone younger than him was difficult for him, he tried his best.

She asked him to explain what had happened and he sighed "Well let's get this over with... As you might know the name isn't Hendrick but it's Cyrus, no ****ing clue why everyone uses my mundy name but oh well. I went on a mission with my parabatai, Aethelrick, it was Prague, beautiful city, anyways Aethelrick and I were sent in with orders to hold out. Demoninc invasion, we were told that reinforcements were on their way. We went in with full confidence that our back up would arrive. The sands of time started to slip away and well initially resistance was light. But the fighting got fiercer, Phalanx of Moloch demons showed up, Aethelrick and I got seperated and Aethelrick was dragged down by a drevak. But there was one complication, mundies.... I was supposed to choose save my parabatai or save mundies I never knew or didn't care about...." Hendrick swallowed hard "I chose Aethelrick... it was evidently clear reinforcements weren't gonna come so we fought our way out... both of us got out alive, heard later there were several dozen mundie casualties."

Hendrick plucked one of the flowers and smellt it, then playing around with it in his fingers. "As you can understand, Bri, the Clave wasn't amused. I was arrested and got a Trial, that is where I first saw your brother Alarick... He was one of the judges. Since I was the one to make the decision I was the one judged. Initially there was talk of stripping my marks. However in the end I was banned from Idris and seperated from Aethelrick, so such a thing may never happen again. And within a week I was sent here..." Hendrick finished. "Now what the **** whas I supposed to do... let my damn parabatai die? For what? some ****ing mundies that didn't even know Aethelrick or that we are fighting to protect them.... the look on your brother's face, I'll never forget it..... if at all possible I would like to avoid him as much as possible...." Hendrick was being honest there, not wanting to face that man again. "I also learned that the promised reinforcements were never even dispatched.... we were sent in there, without back-up...." He closed his fingers around the small bloom. "Draw your own conclusions from this.... if you got any questions now's the time..." He met her gaze now. Sadness clear in his eyes, he wasn't at all proud of how he had gotten here and even after that year and a half it still hurt to have lost his parabatai.

 

​

Morrigan shut her eyes and leaned her face into Ash's touch, trying to build walls around what was left of her honor as Ash requested one more thing from her. She wished she could say no, but to be honest, she had never tried. None of the fey had tried. It wasn't forbidden, but to spy on the Mother....She tried for a smile, but her lips simply trembled instead. It was fear, and trepidation, and she knew it. Ash would know it. But she would do as he asked. He had risked everything for his dream, and then for her. Now it was on her to return the favor.

"Duit amháin." Taking his hand, gently threading her fingers through his, she let go as she turned away, walking back once more to the work station. This time she grabbed as pare bowl from the counter, the water inside still left over from Rhett's surgeries. It was a little muddied, but clear enough she would be able to see. She whispered a short prayer as she placed either of her hands on the counter, peering into the murky depths. How do you scry someone you've never seen? She wondered, biting her already wounded lip. It reopened the injury she had caused earlier, once again in fear, and Morrigan reached up instinctively as a drop of blood fell from her down-turned face, forcing the water to ripple.

Shapes began to move, and Morrigan lowered her fingers, her nose nearly touching the surface of the liquid as she stared into the depths. She saw lights, colors, faces that were blurred beyond recognition. Her own face blanked as the magic took its hold on her, drawing her deeper and deeper into a strange place. She didn't recognize the lights, nor the people that danced and swayed to inaudible music. They were mere shapes, inconsequential as she focused on the regal form.

She had the face of the Queen, with eyes as sharp as knives. She was gardening, ignoring those around her as she tilted her head, her dark hair falling in natural ringlets. She was the most beautiful thing Morrigan had ever seen. With a practiced hand, the Mother snipped off a rose bud and smelled it, pressing it to her perfect nose, before handing it to someone. When she turned back, her smile was gone, and those eyes. They pierced into Morrigan, looking into her soul, latching onto her with an intensity that caused Morrigan to cry out, trying to pull herself away. I see you. I see your heart. The voice rang through her head, and Morrigan felt like a rabbit caught in the clutches of an eagle. The Mother then nodded, and the fairy felt herself released. Come find me, little one. Come test your courage.

And all at once, Morrigan knew. She sobbed, and dropped to the floor, pressing her hands against the headache that invaded her temples. "Mogadishu. She's in Somalia." she whispered, shutting her eyes and cradling her head as she saw those eyes, staring into her.

​

Brianne watched Hendrick's movements, her eyes never leaving the Shadowhunter as he spoke. She shifted out of the way as he took one of the jasmine flowers, her mind processing the words, the tone, the subject of which he spoke. It....had implications she hadn't imagined. "How does one ask questions after hearing something like that?" She asked with a sigh, getting to her feet. "It gives me much to consider. And..." she hesitated, glancing at the flower that Hendrick had held in his hand. "I can't say that I would have acted any differently."

"But this threatens everything I know. Everything. The honor of the Clave, the vows I took, the mere though that Alarick.." She turned away, frowning as a headache began to pound at her temples. "Alarick would have reasons for what he did. I must ask him. He's my brother." She turned to look back at Hendrick, her gaze almost as pleading as his was. She wanted to understand, truly, but her brother had shared a womb with her, been born with her, grown up with her. If it wasn't forbidden by the Law, they would have become parabati themselves long ago. "I'm sorry. Truly, for what you lost."

She hesitated, gently wrapping a hand around Hendrick's and squeezing it. "And I'm sorry that it's been such a hard path to lead you here."

She opened her mouth to say something else, something she probably shouldn't say, but was saved by the intense throb of a headache. Someone was trying to get through the barrier. Brianne spun on her heel, dropping Hendrick's hand, and narrowed her eyes. "Someone's here." She dashed out of the room, not bothering to take her time with the elevator as she vaulted over the banister.

Nearly snapping her ankles in two, she bit back a groan as she strode down the stairs and quickly made her way to the door of the Institute. Opening it, stele drawn, she sighed, and relaxed against the intricate woodwork for a moment before carving a Rune into the air, lowering the barrier so that Rhett could come in.

"How did you sneak out of the house without Ash dragging you back?" Brianne asked the werewolf, sitting down on the steps to massage her ankles. It kept her eyes off of his painful stance. Judging by the way he was hunched over, she would guess that the wounds had barely healed, if at all. "And what.....what are you carrying?" She asked, straightening up as she pushed herself back to her feet, a small smile on her lips. Despite his current condition, she was happy to see that Rhett lived, that she had something to show for her arguments and frustration.

 

Nick blinked in surprise and looked at the card "...Ryan Reynolds?" he muttered "Uh... I suppose that's the least I can do..." Nick stated, this was not how he expected things to go, but he was glad they did. After nervously waving to the man, he got back in the car and hurriedly drove away "Uh... Sorry about that. Let's just get back"

Masque considered the man's words "I... I don't want to use my real name. Too many bad memories attached to that" Masque stuttered in response "...You can call me... the name I used when dealing with humans... Max" the warlock stated. For a moment he sat there staring at nothing "What did you think? About my most recent work?"

Doctor Bishop frowned, and gestured for one of the black clad soldiers to punch the werewolf in the face. "You will submit, soon enough" the doctor then pushed the needle into Grayson's arm and began to pump a silvery liquid into the werewolf "Full Moon Serum, we've dubbed it. It'll force a transformation" Immediately after the doctor had injected Grayson, they wheeled him away into a cell and shut the door. From the narrow slit, Doctor Bishop gazed into the cell with interest, as the man's transformation was about to begin.

 

​

Alarick glanced back at Mas-er, Max. "The werewolves?" Alarick sighed as Nick got back in the car, deciding to ignore the younger Shadowhunter for now. They had taken long enough, and in his haste he had decided to make it take longer. "Max, I can't pretend that it wasn't disturbing. I was brought up to...." What had he been brought up to do? It wasn't as though his actions, since joining the Clave, had been anything indicative of his beliefs. He hadn't treated life as though it were sacred, and he hadn't treated everyone the same. Brianne would not be pleased, if she ever found out.

"I'm more of a fan of things that capture life, without capturing life. Like what you're drawing." He gestured towards the pad that Max held. "That way, you don't have to worry about forgetting, or hurting someone." He straightened with a sigh as his phone vibrated. A strange number had left him a message, and as he read the contents, his brow furrowed. "Nick, change of plans. You're helping me contact the Clave and getting Max set up. Sien, it' possible you're going to be needed at the Institute, if you're up for it." he reached around for his bo staff.

"You should, as I believe they say, 'Step on it'. And please, don't hit anyone else."

~Minor Time-skip to catch them up to Everyone Else~

As they pulled up to the Institute, Alarick had Nick pull around to the back entrance. He didn't want to take Max through the entirety of the building to reach the safety of the detainment room. He got out of the car, bo staff still drawn as he helped Max out before escorting him inside, assuming that Nick and Sien were following. The barrier surrounding the Institute had been taken down, presumably by Brianne. That she had left it down was either worrying...or gratifying. Either way, it made his job easier, and he hauled Max inside, taking him to a white walled room that had a couch, a bed, and a small nightstand.

"Right." He placed barrier runes around the room, keeping them all in as well as any eaves droppers out, before pulling out a small mirror. This one was a replica to the one that was placed upstairs in the library, and Alarick traced the runes over it, the surface wavering before revealing the face of Old Man Yorick. "I take it your mission has gone well?" his voice was crackly, the reception of the spell not nearly as good on a smaller surface area, but still useable.

​

Morrigan shivered, then stilled under Ash's attention. Her mind kept racing back to those piercing eyes, the stare....What have I done? And yet there was no backing out. The Mother of Fairies had seen Morrigan, just as surely as Morrigan had seen her. If she did not seek the Great Queen out, it would only be a matter of time before she herself was sought. And whatever Ash promised would disappear.

She waited until Ash pulled his hand away, before speaking. "I don't think we should meet the Mother of my race dressed in blood stained clothes and..." She patted her hair with her hand, a little self conscious before lowering her arm. "We should clean up. And then.." She hesitated, unused to having her opinion matter, but it needed to be said.

"We can't do this alone. We need assistance. Or we'll never find her." She looked up at Ash, begging him to understand, to think about it or at least consider, for a second, that they needed friends. Her intuition railed against her mind that the Mother should be kept only to the fey. Some part of her knew that they needed to show strength, and unity, or they would not return.

"Do you have a shower?" She asked after a moment, letting her gaze slip to the floor. She would need to search the house for better attire, as well.

​

Brianne couldn't help but smile. Rhett had always been endearing, ever since he and Ash had stumbled into her life. He was the warmth and light to the cold and dark that Ash embodied, the yin to the yang. Despite his words, she couldn't ever imagine Rhett leaving Ash's side.

"I'm no Angel, only a descendant. And some Nephilim have allergies, but I'm blessed enough not to be one of them." She gently took the flowers from Rhett before outright laughing. "Peppers are fine, Rhett, and you could have called, you know. Sit down before you wreck Ash's hard work." One hand around the...bouquet, she patted the stone next to her with the other. It was such a contrast from the conversation she had just carried with Hendrick, she found her mind in a little bit of a whirlwind. Out here in the sun and the wind on her face, it almost felt as though that conversation had only been a bad dream. But it hadn't.

"Just don't take on another Alpha without backup, next time. Not everyone is as honorable as you are." She looked down at the random assortment of flowers with amusement and gratitude. They hadn't been the first she had received, but in such a way? Definitely.

​

"Doc, when you say it like that, you make me go weak in the knees." Grayson gritted his teeth as the needle was plunged into his skin, the muscles rippling and contracting painfully. He didn't bother to stop the screams this time as he was wheeled into the room, the door shut. Changing had never been so painful, but it was as if his body carried the same desires as his mind, to resist the doctor at every turn. But did it have to be so painful? Screams turned to howls as his body slowly gave in to the serum, forcing him into his animalistic state. He snarled at the door, trying to get his feet underneath him as his nails scrabbled on the tiles.

 

Brianne didn't know how to ask any questions and she told him she would have done the same. A good thing the Clave didn't have eyes and ears here. She was doubting everything. "I don't expect you to believe everything you just heard... Then please listen to my advice and be wary of who your friends are..." Hendrick said, his tone solemn. The gaze she met his with made it look like she felt the same way about this all. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't let my own experiences test your loyalty of the Clave.... After the incident however, I couldn't bring myself to trust them anymore. Look at the evidence for yourself, get your brother's side of the story and make your own decision. Let me know about it when you made your decision, hell leave a note in my room if I'm out at that point."

He felt her fingers brush his at first and then she wrapped her hand around his and squeezed softly. "It's fine, it wasn't your fault.... While I have made my peace with it, it still stings... to be betrayed like that...but I guess I could have ended up in worse places than here." He said, she opened her mouth as if to say something, but then took off like a fighter jet. Leaving Hendrick wondering what she was gonna say. However he quickly dropped it and went after her after all there was no telling if that person was friendly, however unlike Brianne he did take the elevator as to not injure himself further. In the elevator he thought about what they had said just after the wolves, about needing someone to watch their backs, he was uncertain that after telling her all this she'd still trust him to watch her back, the uncertainty broken when the elevator dinged.

After the elevator he went for the front door, going as fast as he could, with his Seraphim blade in his hand. He eventually caught up to Brianne, he remained standing in the doorway. Leaning against the doorway he put his blade away when he saw that it was Rhett who came for a visit. He gave Rhett the nod only to realise that the wolf probably hadn't seen him wounded after their hunt for Masque. Hendrick had arrived at such a point he hadn't heard anything that had been said between the two. "Good to see you in one piece, Rhett." He said, given what he saw he doubted he was welcome to stick around and given it had been a long day for him he would retreat towards his quarters, the promise of nice warm covers and a soft pillow sounded like a gift from the Angel himself right now.

 

Corvo Eismauer tapped his steering wheel impatiently as he waited in the endless New York traffic. The only good thing about this situation was that it wasn't raining. He flicked the air conditioning on in the car and relaxed back into the chair, sighing. He hummed along to Muse's Black Holes and Revelations album as he waited for the traffic to move again. There was one good thing to be said for humans - They made good music. Halfway through Assassin, the lights changed again and he took off the handbreak, flicked the gearstick up into first and drove along. It was one of the precautions he had taken when deciding a car to drive in the human world. A lot of humans in this country couldn't drive 'stick', which would be enough to deter most thieves as far as he was concerned. There was a lucky break in the traffic and he was able to turn off the jammed up street down to a side road. He looked at his GPS. He was nearly at the hotel he was staying at whilst he was here in this city. He decided that he was not overly fond of New York. He could have simply gone to the institute in the city, however he wasn't ready to do that. Not yet. That would reveal his position, too early for his liking. Right now, he wanted to keep incognito, otherwise his prey might not show up as he wanted. That, and Cyrus Tiberius might go to ground. He would have no love for him.

The Inquisitor parked up and checked into his hotel, pulling his suitcase behind him. He reached his room and placed the case on his bed. He opened it up and picked up a case which took up a quarter of the space. He unlocked the clasps and lifted the lid, revealing his Thompson Contender inside as well as the ammunition for it. Corvo Eismauer loaded one of the bullets into the weapon and strapped the rest of his ammunition to him underneath his coat. He was ready to head out on the hunt. The Inquisitor left the hotel and walked to the area of the city where the Institute was found. That was his best chance for finding a lead. ​