“Indeed, death comes to all, but I would like mine to be later rather than sooner.”

- Private Jensen, 12 hours before being executed for cowardice. 

Cara Allen made her way into the living room. Her appearance was a lot more different than when she was back in the cell in District 9. Instead of the prison jumpsuit, she was now in a black uniform standard for all Darkbane Prison personnel. However, this uniform was meant for non-combat personnel, which meant it had a lot less armor and offered a lot more comfort. It also perfectly demonstrated the smooth curves of the young woman. Making things even more impressive was that the uniform on Cara was clearly too small for her, and that was by Cara’s own request. 

As soon as she got the silent order to enter, the young woman pushed the door open and stepped into the living quarter designated to Alexander. There, she found Alexander sitting on a sofa in the middle of the room. 

“My Lord.” She greeted him with a sweet smile.

Alexander stood up from the sofa and gave her a small nod. As his eyes glanced across her figure, Cara could tell Alexander was a little intrigued by what he saw. This made her grin a little, but to her surprise, Alexander didn't make another move. Instead, he started talking about a completely different topic than what Cara expected. 

Before he started, he pointed at a seat in front of the sofa, and Cara hesitantly sat down. Alexander sat back down on his sofa as well. He sat there for a while, as if pondering how to start the conversation, before finally beginning. 

“Cara. I don’t believe I told you how I ended up in prison.”

“No, my Lord.” Cara replied. “You just told me that you are Alexander Wolf, Son of the late Lord Gerard Wolf. Also, you told me that you want to get out of the cells. You never told me how you ended up here...or who put you here, although I have heard a few rumors and had a few guesses of my own.” She scanned Alexander cautiously, wondering where this conversation was going.  

The interesting thing about Cara was that despite her flirty tone and seductive actions, the young woman was anything but a naive whore. As a part of a powerful mafia family, she had been learning about useful skills on the street since she was a child. Observing people was one such skill. Understanding the situation and making moves accordingly was another. 

Even now, she was trying to see what Alexander wanted from this meeting. This obviously wasn’t the social call that she was prepared for.

“Well, in that case, let me explain.” Alexander replied with a cold tone. He would try to be polite, but he was really not in the mood for that. “A number of high-ranking Imperial Nobles betrayed my father. This includes Duke Wells, Countess Amelia Valentine of System S88, and Baron Lamb. All of them worked together to overthrow and assassinate my father. They killed my entire family except for me. As of now, Baron Lamb has been made the Count of Obsidian and the ruler of System A21.”

Cara found herself sitting there with her mouth hanging open, looking both shocked and sympathetic. In reality, most of the shock and all of the sympathy on her face were there on purpose. She was never one to let her surprise show, and it was very difficult for her to pity the death of the man who sentenced countless of her family to death and put her in this prison in the first place. Still, she was talking to the son of said man, and since he had absolute control over her, she had to get on his good side.

If Alexander saw the sympathy from Cara, then he didn't show it as he continued. 

“I will be getting off this island in two weeks. After that, I will return to Valoria where I will claim my vengeance against that traitor Lamb. I will make him pay for what he did with his life.” 

Cara nodded slowly as she processed Alexander’s words. So he was going to assassinate a Count. Great. However, what Alexander said next made her snap up from her chair in true shock. 

“But to have any chance of success, I will need the help of your family, Cara.” The young man said slowly, and his words sent shivers down Cara’s spine. 

Cara was no fool. The environment of Valoria, or even in the Holy Phoenix Empire in general, had always been harsh to criminals. Most of the Imperial Nobles saw their subjects as private properties, and as such, criminal organizations who killed or robbed were essentially stealing from them. Unlike most mid-level bureaucrats and businessmen, Imperial Nobles didn't need mafias or gangs to do their dirty work. No...they had Imperial police officers and soldiers for that. 

As such, most criminal organizations didn't last long. Even the Allen Family, one of the largest mafias in the capital city of Valoria, had been struggling under government crackdowns for years. They were able to survive partially because of the vast population of the city and partially because of the caution of Eric Allen, the patriarch of the Allen Family. Under his rule, the Allen Family mostly stayed off the radar of the CSF, doing their best to operate covertly while the CSF focused on taking down on other, more arrogant crime organizations. 

However, the moment the Allen Family got into serious business, like being involved in the assassination attempt of an Imperial Count, then all gloves would be off. Mafias sounded terrifying to the common populace, but compared to the imperial government that was known for burning entire cities to the ground? They were nothing more than a joke, and the involvement could only end in one brutal way. 

In other words, this was suicide. 

“My Lord!” The young woman snapped up from her seat in protest. “This…” She paused there, frozen in place as she desperately tried to come up with a valid argument of why this was a bad idea. Despite being under the impact of the oath, she was still herself, and her love for her family was still very much present. 

Alexander glanced at her, very aware of what was going on in her head. Honestly, if he had other options, he wouldn’t be sitting here with Cara. Still, the Allen family was at the right position to help him, and it was help that Alexander desperately needed. He had been away from Valoria for two months, and the few people he knew from the old days were either dead or turned traitors. At the very least, he would need to find an opening where he could start converting individuals to his service. 

The Allen family was a great place to begin, and it was also his only choice. 

Drawing a deep breath, Alexander pushed on. 

“I would like to hear everything you know about your family, Cara. Where they meet. How many men at arms they have at their disposal. What connections they have. Everything.” 

“My...my Lord,” Cara gulped. She knew she couldn’t disobey a direct order from Alexander, but that didn't stop her from trying to change his mind. “If I may say something, my Lord.”

“Go ahead.” 

“My Lord, I am afraid my family will be of little help to you!” Cara quickly explained, doing her darn best to convince Alexander. “As far as I am aware, the connections of my family are limited to the very bottom of the hierarchy in Valoria. We have control over a number of civilians and shop owners, as well as some businessmen and police officers, but none of them have any influence regarding any ranking official on the planet! As for men-at-arms...we do have a few hundred gunmen, but even if they all become Disciples of Agony, they will still be no match for the Imperial Military!”

Cara paused, carefully scanning Alexander’s expressions in an attempt to find more about the effects of her words. To her dismay, Alexander’s face was blank. She continued as her heart sank. 

“My Lord, you should know more about the securities of a Count than I do, but there will be a lot of people protecting this traitor.” She emphasized on the word ‘traitor’, hoping to use this to build some common ground between the two of them. Show that they were on the same side. “There will be Marines from Battlefleet Obsidian. There may be agents from intelligence agencies. There will be personal bodyguards, whatever the honor guards of this traitor are called. There will be battalions of the Imperial Army and the Capital Security Forces around him at all times. The common police officers won’t even be able to get near his palace!”

“I am well aware of the difficulties of this assassination.” Alexander replied emotionlessly, unswayed by the argument. “But I have my reasons.”

“Reasons that justify a suicidal operation?” Cara did her best to find the right tone. A tone not rash enough to offend Alexander, but not so soft that Alexander would miss her seriousness. “My Lord, all it takes is one failed attempt, and every Imperial agency on this planet will be looking into this. None of the Disciples can betray you, but it is likely they will be able to find out the truth of what is happening here regardless. Once that happens...we lose everything.” 

Alexander stared into Cara’s eyes, and the young woman stared right back at him. Cara knew very well that he could end her life with a single order, but she stood her ground. 

Finally, the young man spoke up. His tone was as flat as always, but Cara could hear the fury under it. 

“Tell me, Cara...if one day, one of the second-in-commands in your family suddenly usurped your father’s position, what would you do? If that bastard tortured and shot every single one of your family members in front of your eyes, and you couldn’t do a thing the entire time, what would you do? And if that bastard proceeded to tell everyone that your family is a family of liars and traitors, would you still be able to sit back and do nothing while that bastard enjoys all the power and wealth his betrayal brought him?” 

“If the price of action is death, then yes.” The young woman replied. “My Lord, sometimes the wisest thing to do is to take a step back. Is to wait…”

“Wait for what? Wait for Lamb to choke on his wine? Wait for him to walk onto the streets one day without any protection so I can shoot him? Or should I wait for some other fleet to defeat Battlefleet Obsidian and bring Lamb to his knees?” Alexander snapped. For the first time in this conversation, there were clear emotions in his voice. “I can’t wait, Cara! I can’t wait another day, knowing that the traitors are out there, free and victorious! Either I will end their lives myself, or I will die in the process! There is no other option!“

“But there is, my Lord!” Cara raised her voice as well before pointing around the room. “Look around you, my Lord! You have the entire Darkbane Prison under your command! In a few days, everyone around here will serve you! You can live like a king around here! And if you want, you can leave this island and travel across this planet, or even this solar system! As long as you don’t go after this Lamb, then you can live a peaceful and fulfilling life wherever you want!”

Cara took a step forward, closing the distance between her and Alexander. She gave him a warm smile, hoping that would add to the list of arguments why life was better than death. Unfortunately, she had no idea how determined Alexander was. 

“Peaceful? Fulfilling?” He chuckled darkly. “Look, Cara...my chance at a peaceful and fulfilling life ended the night my own mother was shot in the head before my eyes. I will never be able to live a life like that. Not anymore. I have lost everything, Cara. The only thing that can give my life a purpose is vengeance. I want to see Lamb bleed and scream and die. I want to cut off Valentine’s fingers one by one and watch her beg for mercy. I want to make the traitors suffer, and if that is the last thing I do, then so be it.” 

He stared into Cara’s eyes in close proximity. He could see the tempting curves on the woman’s body, and he could smell the scents from Cara. Someone clearly put on perfume before coming here. The pleading look on her face only made her more attractive. Still, his mind was made. Right now, all he had in mind was the hideous face of Count Lamb, and that was quite a turnoff. 

“I’m sorry, Cara.” He whispered before giving voice to another order. “But I need to know this information, and you are going to tell me.”