Means the Heart is speaking...

Emily screamed, but not in pain. She screamed because Axton, who was behind her only mere seconds before, was now in front of her. Taking a bullet to the shoulder for her, and now he was staggering backwards and falling.

"Axton!" She cried as she ran to him. He hit the ground and groaned. She fell to her knees beside him. "Axton! You better be alright! You better be alright! Please be alright! You promised not to leave me ever again! You promised!"

She starts sobbing, tears wreaking her body as she stared at him with blurry eyes. Axton groans, turns his head to Emily and extends a gloved hand towards her and wiped a tear from her cheek with his thumb.

"It's alright Emily, I am okay." He says gently. She grabs his hand and smiles through her tears. Corvo took a step closer with his sword still drawn. Emily flings herself onto Axton causing him to yelp in pain.

"Ack! Okay! Less okay! Less okay!" He mumbled, as Emily yelled. "NO! NO ONE ELSE HURT AXTON! IF YOU DO I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"

Corvo took a step back and stared at Emily with shock. "Emily-"

"NO! NO ONE CAN HURT HIM!"

"Emily... they are the ones who killed your mother! For all I know, he could be the one who drove his blade into her gut-"

"No, I was the one who kept you suspended and kidnapped Emily."

Corvo turned to Axton and glared at him. "That doesn't help. That just makes me want to kill you more-"

"Well don't! If you do, I won't speak to you ever again! I won't draw you pictures-"

"It's fine, Emily." Axton muttered as he slowly began to sit up. He winced at the pain in his shoulder. He then gets his legs under him, but has to move his arm back to the ground to brace himself. Black dots formed in his vision as his shoulder screamed for him to stop moving. 

"Axton, please don't strain yourself!" Emily exclaims as she tries to pull him back down to sit.

"I'll be fine, I've been through worse, trust me."

He then pushed himself upwards with a grunt of effort and pain. He stumbled back slightly but caught his balance. He propped his back against the wall of the workshop behind him and clutched his wound again.

"Do whatever you want with me. Torture me, fight me, try and kill me. I don't give a damn. Emily is safe, that's all that matters. I will still remain loyal to the Whalers, but I'm pretty sure that I won't be going back any time soon. I joined so I can have a family, and hopefully do some good while I'm at it. I told myself constantly that everyone I have killed had done something wrong in their lives that deserved punishment. That everyone's death was justified. But I never signed up to take away a family. To make a child and orphan like me-" He looks at Emily. "Or ruin a good man's life." He then glanced at Corvo, then looked away. "And above all, I didn't sign up to kill an Empress. Daud, the leader, had promised me something I hadn't had living on the streets. Living in a factory where we where nearly starved to death or in an orphanage with a corrupted mistress. Hope. Hope of a family and to one day find my own. My actual family, and I have. But the price was steep, the price of the loss of one parent, and perhaps even the other. If they won't have me."

"Sad story." Admiral Havelock muttered. "But that doesn't explain why we shouldn't kill you right here and now."

"Like I said, do what you will with me, I don't care." He replied, but he was watching Corvo's face the whole time. The man had a confused look to his face. One that showed on his own face when he is trying to decipher a code, or perhaps piece together a puzzle. Good.

"Perhaps I can sympathize with you through family, or perhaps kids. I was born the 19th of the Month of Darkness, 1818." He said, still watching Corvo.

That seemed to have been exactly what the ex-Royal Protector needed. For his eyes widened slightly and his blade lowered slightly. Yes! He got the hidden message!

"Psh! What is that going to do?" Martin asked. "Even if you did happen to share a birthday-"

"I say we give him a chance." Corvo interrupted as he folded his blade back up and placed it to his belt. Emily glanced up at him with hope in her eyes. 

"Really Corvo? You will?" She asked.

He came up to her and extended his hand to brush her cheek affectionately. 

"Of course sweety." He said, his eyes softening as he stared at her. "For now, how about letting Callista come and show you to your room?"

"You won't hurt Axton, would you?" She asked, glancing between Corvo and Axton.

"No."

"Promise?"

He hesitated, glancing up at the Whaler who was watching with calm, calculating eyes. Though none could really see them though the mask.

"Promise." He decided, looking Emily back in the eyes as he said so. She smiled and hugged him. 

"Thank you." He glanced down at her and smiled. 

"You're welcome." He then pulled away and turned to the people who where now around them. Every loyalist was there, watching. He spotted Callista and motioned for her to come forward. She eyed Axton warily as she came closer. She then turned her attention to Emily and bowed. "Young Lady Emily. I'm Callista," she said, even though Emily knew who she was, she still felt she needed to formally introduce herself. She then stood and leaned over so her eyes where parallel to Emily's. "I'll be caring for you and schooling you while you're with us."

"Pleased to meet you." She said with a small bow, smiling at her slightly.

"As am I, would you like to see your room, in the tower?"

"Can I see it?"

Callista immediately straightened. "Yes, you may. You'll get to see it all, the entirety of the Hound Pits." She motioned around her to emphasize the place they where in.

"Good. I think I'll like it here..."

She turned to Axton who nodded at her. She then smiled and grabbed Callista's hand and the two walked away. When they disappeared, Axton turned to Corvo. "Thank you, for making sure she wasn't here to see you finish the job."

"No, I'm not going to kill you... at least not yet anyways..."

"Well I'm not sleeping in the same building as a Whaler." Trevor Pendleton muttered as he put his gun away. Martin and Havelock agreed as they too holstered their guns. 

"Love you guys too." Axton snapped back, then turned to Pendleton. "And thanks for the reminder on why I just love nobles." He motioned to his wound.

Lord Pendleton scoffs and stalks after the other two, leaving only Corvo, the servants, and Piero with Axton. Then the servants made up excuses to leave and they too left, leaving them three alone. Piero turned to Axton, no fear in his expression as he took a few steps forward. 

"Let me have a look at your wound. I'll extract that bullet and patch you up before you even know it." He said as he helped brace Axton against him. They limp towards the inside of the workshop, Corvo following behind. He placed Axton on the stairs and turned to Corvo, "Do you mind getting a bucket of boiling water? If I had to guess, you can find one in the kitchen somewhere."

"Sure." Corvo replied, leaving the two alone.

Piero squinted at the wound and made some faces. 

"Can you move your arm at all?"

"Yeah, without excruciating pain is a different story." Axton mumbled.

"Well, at least you can, which means that the bullet should have not severed anything too important. Allow me to get my tools and sterilize them, that should give Corvo enough time to return with the water so I can clean your wound."

He turned around and started shifting through his tools, picking out a pair of pliers. He then lit a candle and placed the metal over the flames until it was glowing orange. he then moved the candle closer to Axton and waited for a few minutes before Corvo returned. 

"Good, set the bucket right here." He said, patting a spot next to him. Corvo did as he said and Piero plunged the hot metal into the water, pulled it out, then dabbed a cloth into the water and started to clean Axton's wound. He winced but never made any sound of discomfort, much to Corvo's curiosity.

"Doesn't it hurt?" He asked when Piero was done cleaning it, setting down the cloth and picking up the pliers. 

 "Only as bad as my pride." He said as the pliers dug into Axton's shoulder and fished out the bullet.

"There we go. Now, for the painful part..."

He then grabbed a large metal stick and held it over the candle's fire. "The wound will scar anyways, and I find burning it is better than stitches, especially of we don't have any stitches."

"Ah yes, in that case it is much better." Axton replied. Corvo bit his cheek to prevent from smiling, or laughing at that matter. The straight faces as Piero and Axton threw sarcasm at one another was quite humorous.

"Now, be still..."

He then placed the hot metal on Axton's wound, causing him to wince again, but he didn't move too much nor screamed. After a few minutes, Piero pulled the tick away and analyzed the wound one more time.

"Yep, you are good now Axton." 

"Thanks Piero."

"You are most certainly welcome. Now I think there is a matter that you two wish to discuss in private, isn't there?" He asked, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow. "You can stay in here or go back to your room, I'll just be reading or writing notes." And with that said, Piero turned and started climbing up the stairs.

When he was gone, Axton turned to Corvo and whispered. "How did he find out?"

"The Outsider speaks to him in his dreams." Was his response, mumbled and kinda absently.

Axton raised an eyebrow under his mask. "Okay, how do you know that?"

Corvo just waved off the question and started walking pas Axton and up the stairs."Come, we'll talk in my room."

They made their way onto the roof of the workshop and into the window ta lead to the attic room of the Hound Pits Pub. Corvo continued walking as Axton stopped. He took in the place and gulped. 

"This was the place I was marked, all those years ago..." He commented as he slowly started moving again. He placed a hand on the door-frame that led into the room, and to the bed which was still in the same spot, but cleaner. 

"How.... how old where you?" Corvo Asked, sitting on his bed as he stared up at Axton. 

"Four, a few months after my birthday." He replied, leaning against the wooden pillar with his arms crossed. They where silent for a while, an awkward one, neither father nor son knowing what exactly to say to one another. 

Then finally, Corvo asked. "How did you find out?"

Axton didn't say anything, instead, he pulled out a journal and tossed it onto the bed. Corvo grabbed it and opened it, seeing who it belonged to. He glared up at the boy who was watching his reaction. "You had no right-"

"Psh, don't mean to sound insensitive, but she's dead. It was kinda my signature anyways. Taking the journal of those I killed or helped kill. And you should be grateful. Imagine what your enemies would have done if they got their hands on that? Learning who Emily's true father is and knowing that another royal bastard is possibly floating around somewhere? So instead of chastising me like a juvenile delinquent, perhaps you should thank me."

"You are a juvenile delinquent."

"Eh, I'm worse actually, I'm an assassin."

Corvo rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I get that. Anyways, why take the journals of those you killed?"

Axton turned away. "I... I was searching... for my parents."

Corvo leaned forward and raised an eyebrow. "In the journals of those you killed?"

"Yeah, stupid, I know. B- a person in the Whalers who was like a sister to me said the same exact thing. I guess I was hoping for clues, signs, perhaps even a birthday. I wanted to find them and see why they abandoned me. I was hoping that someone would have heard, would have known-"

"Well no one knew, only-"

"I know, the maid who took care of me for two years, the black market doctor who ended up dying by the plague, you, and mo- and the Empress. Or princess at the time?" He just shrugged, wincing slightly at the action. "I don't know, but it doesn't change the fact. I had helped kill her, and now she's dead. You're branded as the most wanted man in the empire next to Daud, Emily is in danger, and it's all my fault."

He sighed then turned back to the bed. "This is the place I also met Daud... right after my marking. Where you marked here too?"

Corvo glanced down at his left hand, staring at the black mark. "Yeah."

"You should cover it, wrap it or something. So the Overseers don't start preaching about heresy or whatever those fanatics talk about. Abby or someone?"

Corvo chuckled slightly at that. "Yeah, your probably right... Isn't that uncomfortable? Wearing your mask all day?"

Axton shrugged. "You get used to it after a while."

"Can you take it off? I like to see the eyes of those I talk to." He said, though the hidden meaning behind them was clear. Take it off so I can see if you really are my son.

Axton sighed, this was the moment of truth. He pulled off his hood and took off his mask, running a hand through his hair to brush it to it's normal place. He then met Corvo's eyes.

His eyes widened as he beheld Axton, he couldn't believe them. He stood and grabbed Axton's face gently, "Impossible... you look-"

A shatter was heard from the entrance to the room. "Oh! Please forgive me!" A woman's voice called as the two assassins turned. It was Callista, she had dropped a trey of tea and cookies, the plates shattered and a cup shipped. The pot still surprisingly intact.

"I was..." she tucked a strand of her auburn hair behind her ear as she continued. "I was just bringing Lady Emily some tea... and... wow, is he your younger brother?"

"No." Corvo said, turning back to Axton. "Son apparently."

"S-son? You had a son?" She asked with shock, glancing between Corvo and Axton like trying to process the information. "You... you look nearly identical, well, despite the age difference, and the hair color. But even the style.... By the Void... I... I need to get more plates and cookies and clean this mess up. Excuse me."

She quickly knelt to get the stuff off the ground, Axton coming over silently and helping her. Once all the pieces were on the platter, she mumbled a quick thank you and hurried off. He turned to Corvo and raised an eyebrow. "How long do you think it will take before all the loyalists learn that you have a son?"

Corvo shrugged. "I give it an hour at most."

"Same. Anyways, I guess I need to find a place to sleep, since everyone refuses to sleep in the same building as a Whaler. Please excuse me." He then vanished, leaving Corvo to process this shocking revelation on his own.

~☆~

Axton returned to tell Corvo that he was going to sleep in an abandoned apartment near the Hound Pits Pub, but didn't quite state which one. He then left again and is now standing on top of Emily's tower, hand on the spire at the top as he gazed off at the sunset. Corvo watched him from his room, he knew Axton was telling the truth, he looked like Corvo and even had the name the Empress and him had agreed on! But he still wanted to be certain, it was just too good to be true. They searched so long, yet now he literally fell right into his lap. Granted, he's a Whaler, and yes, he assisted in Jessamine's murder, but he's still right there. Breathing, living, and there. He grabbed the heart, the Heart of a Living Thing, and pointed it towards Axton.

"Poor little Axton." The Heart started. "Always searching for his place in this world, searching for the family he's never had. And he's found it, at a steep cost."

"Who, who are they? Is he right? Is he truly the son I had lost so long ago?" Corvo asked it.

"He is your's, and the Empress." It said.

That was all he wanted to hear, but the Heart wasn't done.

"He looks up to the man who killed the Empress, his loyalties will never change, but they can be added onto."

"He is full of regret, loneliness, and despair. But he hides it all behind a mask of prickly sarcasm and sass."

"His childhood is full of so much darkness and pain. Scars litter his body but none can be seen, except one."

"One day he will crack, and use your shoulder to cry on."

"Stop, I just wanted the one thing confirmed." He hissed at the heart, and it fell silent. He didn't know that tears where collecting on the corners of his eyes until he felt one start sliding down his cheek. He immediately wiped it away and glanced back up at his son again. The sun had set and Axton stepped away from the spire, and vanished.