Proactive Measures for Dangerous Amnesiacs

[Glenn]

What did Governor Glenn Burnie bring to the position that none of his immediate predecessors came even close to? He learned. He paid attention. He kept records and had people to analyze them. Basically, you couldn't get him or Myrken, the same way twice. There were very few people in the province who made a habit of asking questions. No, in Myrken, either someone would assume or else they'd keep their head own and assume anyway, just in private, later on. Burnie and his Inquisitory asked, recovered, discovered connections and made plans.

So when an amnesiac Altias Bromn walked back into Myrken blind in multiple ways, Glenn Burnie was not about to sit upon his hands and wait. Best chance, he would stumble in, make an ass of himself, and then stumble right back out. Worst case? Well, the worst case involved cultists and dark nature entities that the former mapmaker had spent years preparing for or even worse than that. It had been no surprise when Burnie met Bromn in the Dagger. Past one... unfortunate question, it had been a measured encounter, one that had Myrken's safety in mind, but not necessarily at the cost of Altias' well being, so long, of course, as one would admit that Glenn knew what was best for the lost man.

The erstwhile baker had been left with an offer, an offer which was not immediately accepted. A second, more direct offer was sent then. The system of messenger urchins around the town were quite skilled at their job. This one had memorized the message (writing it down would do little good if Bromn was currently blind, after all), and had been tasked with finding the former Governor. Upon reaching him, the 9 year old, redhaired boy would cough and begin. "Governor Burnie requests your ...uh esteemed attendance, at your earliest convenience. I can lead you to him." Was there something else? Something that belonged in the middle. The boy coughed. "That is the Gov'nor wants to see you, in order to figure out answers .... and, oh yeah, to help you consider your options moving forward." Then with a firmer nod, the urchin would finish. This was his favorite bit of the message. "Past or future, he says, he does. Past or future, Your choice."

[Altias_Bromn]

Altias would follow along with the messenger. He was dubious of this new Governor, but curious as well. So he went with the boy, to learn just what it was this Glenn Burnie required of him.

"Past or future, he says, he does. Past or future, Your choice."

There is no past for Altias Bromn, only the future. The same can not be said for Myrken. To hear Burnie tell it Altias had left quite a mess when last he left this place. Broken hearts, and broken bodies to hear the tales. The face he had no memory of this would likely not matter to those he had harmed. He would hear what Burnie had to propose. It was not as if he had many other options.

They would arrive at the office of the Governor and Altias would be left to wait as the boy ran off to fetch his Master. He would wait and wonder, if this was to be the beginning of something new, or the end off all that he was.

[Glenn]

Myrken had a past, yes, but increasingly a future as well. It was a particular one, perhaps not the one that many of its denizens had once envisioned, but the Governor had his own vision and it was a monolithic thing, despite all of the openness he proclaimed and collaborative input that he requested. Then again, Vision and Action were two very different things.

The chair that Altias was brought to was not entirely comfortable. The office was nice enough, or at least it would have been were it not for the papers and clutter and books and everything else. When Burnie arrived, a few minutes later, it was with a smile. He bypassed Bromn completely and sat at his desk, across from him. "I wasn't entirely sure when to expect you so I was taking care some matters of state. I'm glad you decided to come."

The Governor was somewhere between twenty and twenty five by appearances. He was an athletic young man with eyes that would stare and pierce and not hold his smile nearly as much as his lips. His clothes were of earth-tones and quite well made though hardly encumbering. He would not give up mobility for fashion's sake. In general, his features were fairly plain. There may be just a glimpse of some black ink upon his collarbone depending how he moved, but only a hint of it, and really, certainly not for Altias unless his vision would shift back suddenly. Glenn's voice had the tiniest rasp to it but otherwise it was young and strong and confident. "Past or future. That was my query and I mean it. I'm not going to lay upon you your past deeds and misdeeds like so many bricks, though depending on what you want, I will tell you enough to prepare for the expectations of others. And," The smile faded just a little. "We'll have to take a few precautions in general, of which I would be glad to give you a bit of background. We've had some rough times as of late and you raise a few questions immediately. For instance," a hand raised, like those questions, to forestall Altias long enough for Glenn to make a point. "Your eyes. One or both had been mailed to myrken a few years ago. I hear from good authority that it was certainly YOUR eye. Now, healing is not unheard of here, but ... well, you see the concern?"

[Altias_Bromn]

"How can you be sure these eyes were mine?"

Certainly the Governor has said he had it on good authority, but that did not mean they were sure. Altias had both of his eyes. They did not function, of course, but he had them. He could feel them in his face, even though he could not see.

The office felt somehow comfortable to him, with the scents of books and papers. Of charcoal and inks. The comfort of the chair was unimportant to him. What is comfort after all, when one has slept in a bramble thicket for two weeks? What mattered to him was that it was all so unfamiliar to him. Had he not been Governor once? Should this not stir some sort of memory? Prod some sort of envy or anger that this other man now possessed what was once his? It did not, and this was troubling to him.

"What is it you want of me, Governor Burnie?" He continued. Wishing he could look into this man's eyes to see the desires that lay within them. He had been very good at that once. Another random memory, that again served no real purpose. "How does it serve you to help me?" It might be very clear that Altias did not mean Myrken, he meant Glenn Burnie himself.

[Glenn]

"Let me put it this way, and you can take it how you will when it comes to just who you were and what sort of life you led: There is far more chance that those eyes were yours than they were not." Which was a complete inversion of logic and common sense, not that he had to spell THAT bit out. What then, did that say about Altias Bromn?

To be fair this was a different meeting house. The old one had been destroyed by Kerrak and only rebuilt during the Calomel reign, but really, it was more of a symbolic thing, no? "We'll have to make sure you're not a demon. Just a bit of holy water on your hand, should suffice. Apologies but we've had such a problem with them as of late, including the impersonation of certain missing people, that even my own subordinate tossed some on me in passing." Or spit. From a flask. And got sent to deal with Jirai because of it.

"Looking for my self interest." Glenn Burnie tsked the former governor, outright. "So jaded. You've been aware of things for what, a week? Two? Surely not more than a month and already you're taking so unpleasant a view of your fellow man. But, fine, this is a dark world in which we live. Let us run through the possible reasons to alleviate your worries." Burnie would tick off fingers, one after the next, even if Altias couldn't see them. "I could be worried about my people and whatever threat you, unwittingly might hold for them. I may be doing this due to some old connection from your past, a favor to yourself or someone who held you in regard. I may take umbridge over your past as a victim, upon those who would do you wrong; I have heard that once upon a time you were a good, well-meaning man, and I have been both wronged and lost once or twice in my life. I may feel sympathy."

Then his eyes darkened slightly, not that the man would know it and his fist went to the table with a muffled thud. "Or I may find the idea of some force playing with anyone in my lands reprehensible, that some magical force toys with humanity because we are powerless and weak, with only our wits and our brains and our arms to defend us. This I will not stand for and if I see it in you? Well, then I shall act. This land is mine. These are my people and we are trying to pull ourselves out of the hole that the forces that have inhabited and cursed this land have been stuffing us down into for generations. Here in Myrken, if you fight the monster, you so often become it." He smiled, almost despite himself. "If you charge angry and enraged at it, it will consume you. So I sit here, behind my desk, and I talk to you, and I watch you, and I try to figure out just what i must fight and what I must do.

"So I have many reasons I might be helping you, manipulating you into some sort of trap, only one of them. Still, I have the most means, the most knowledge, and the most ability to provide you with succor and opportunity moving forward. It is not a risk you have to take, but I say I make it in good enough faith, if not perfect faith, and I would have us work together to unravel what happened and to forge you a path without some of your previous, unfortunate, pitfalls."

[Altias_Bromn]

A chill passed over him as Burnie spoke. Something familiar afterall. A man passionate about his people, or so it would seem. If nothing else he was an excellent talker. Altias had to give him credit, the man could most likely talk circles around him, and that was saying something.

"So if I am understanding you correctly, Governor, you think that the eyes in question were mine because there were more than enough people who would see me dead? If that is indeed the case, then why would I come back here unless of course I was not doing so of my own free will? Which addresses a few of your other points. If it is true that you might feel something of yourself in my current plight and you feel sympathy for me, then why approach this in such a formal setting? And more to the point, why help me regain any knowledge at all, if I am now less of a threat than that other man ever was?"

He would lean slightly forward in his chair, as if looking more closely at the Governor, even though that was a ridiculous idea. Slender hands would unfold and brush long bi-colored locks behind his ears.

"I want to move forward, Governor. Although, you of all people should understand, why I might be distrusting of offers of help. Especially from one who so boldly calls me out for the monster I once was. To hear you speak, I have done things that would make demons blush. I should be burned at the stake, not brought to the Governor's office. Thrown in gaol perhaps. Run out of Myrken before I can do any more damage. "

"Instead there is an offer to help me. To show me the error of my ways and assist me in not making those same errors in this attempt at my life. Is that correct?"

A broad smile then, one not usual for this mild creature. A hand is extended toward the Governor.

"Let us say I am curious enough to begin the conversation. First, let us lay one of your fears to rest. Test me, Glenn Burnie. I am no demon."

[Glenn]

And, really... all of it, all of it is enough to make Glenn Burnie laugh. It's not a cruel laughter, not necessarily, but it is certainly an amused one. Really now, Altias? Taking it THAT way? Well, that was rather the point then, and he would regain his composure and speak on, though not necessarily kindly. "First, it's because you have had such a weird, macabre, and twisted life that I felt that way about your eyes. Learn well where we reside. It's more likely that some magic curse has befallen you than that those eyes are someone else's. Think on THAT. That is what logic and history tells me. Every time you've come back, you've been somehow changed. Why would this be any different?" Why would he act in any other way.

"As for who you were, you misunderstand, and this is my fault." Then with just a hint of disdain. "Altias Bromn wasn't even a very good swordsman, not nearly as good as he thought he was. No, his main dangerous qualities were neglect and delusions of grandeur. Terribly good intentions. Terrible times following through on them. Wretched combination, really." And here his smile was honest. "This is Myrken Wood, my good lost soul. If the only threat you posed was one of hurt hearts and broken dreams, I'd have some harsh words for you and send you on your way."

The smile finally faded, though perhaps there was some amusement left in the young Governor's eyes. It was a shame that Bromn couldn't appreciate it. "No, the damage you caused was as a pawn, as a catspaw, belonging to others. You come as a herald, a harbinger, a sign that trouble is about to knock upon our doors. Once you returned to Myrken Wood with no memory of who you truly were. Instead you thought yourself Okulari, and HE, served a dark power indeed. In fact, it's almost a relief to see you back here as Altias Bromn, because otherwise, I might have had to put you in chains. Instead, we just have a mystery to unravel, you and I."

The governor would take that hand, would take it and pull out a small vial. Precious fluids, these. Best not to use them without cause. "It was only a few months ago that we struck a man down only to have his head remove itself from his dead body and crawl away. Dark times, though we fight back." Dark times meant certain things, like consolidating power, like damning a few innocents for the sake of the whole, like tearing down the wreckage of what stood in order to create a new, better Myrken. Glenn Burnie was made for dark times, even if he claims, and may even mean, to push Myrken Wood ever closer to the light. Regardless, he would let a few drops of the liquid fall upon that hand.

"As for the rest, you have the way of it. This is a land of second chances. You, however, after all you've been through... well, I'd see you have a first honest chance, and if it means that we scour away every god that has ever touched or taken hold of you, so be it." Was it hubris or just maddened determination? Terribly hard to say. "It's a hobby of mine, really." Who the gods destroy, they would first make mad? Isn't that right, Altias Bromn? Oh if you had but seen the Governor just a year and a half ago. If you could just see him with your own two eyes now. There were things far worse than madness. Far, far worse. You knew that as well, didn't you?

[Altias_Bromn]

"Oh he thinks himself clever does he, this Governor?"

Deep within her lair she watched through those eyes. Watched as Burnie poured holy water on the hand of Altias Bromn. Watched as he waited for Altias to dance and scream and feel the pain of the water of their One God. Well, dear Governor, that only works if the person you are testing is an actual Demon themselves, or perhaps if that demon lives within that body. Neither of which was the case here. No, Altias was his own man. Free to do as he wished, for the most part. Free to do anything and everything he wanted, so long as She saw no harm in it. Just as it was with this meeting. No, if anything it could be very educational. It was allowed and it amused her.

As the water is dropped on his hand Altias is momentarily tempted to pretend there is a reaction. Tempted to hop about and scream in pain. However, somehow he doubted that the Governor would see the humor in it, so he refrained. The water touched his flesh and rolled off, as it would on any other human, for that is what he was.

"My apologies for my questions, and perhaps accusations, Governor. Surely you understand that a man in my position must be as cautious as a man in yours. You have years of history to protect here with your people. I have already lost mine. You have memories of the terrible men and creatures who have come before. I have no memories, of anyone, but myself. Even those are hazy and can not be trusted. I am wary of you, for much the same reasons that you are wary of me. Your own reputation is not without flaw."

"If I have been a harbinger, I can understand why my appearance would trouble you. Sadly, I can not even assure you that this is not the same. If it is, all I can offer you is my sincere promise that I am not aware of any impending doom. Now, perhaps we could get about the business of what messes I may need to clean up, and who I may need to arm myself against, hmm? I would hate to have my past come back to me, only to have it run me through with steel."

[Glenn]

"Excellent. I won't have to burn you. Today. We've had too much of that sort of thing lately." A joke, of course. The governor was smiling. A little. Slightly. Certainly a joke? No? Maybe not.

He would put the holy water away once again and look straight at Bromn. He spoke freely, and reasonably as well. Maybe having no memory was an improvement. No, it almost certainly was. When you knew nothing, you could feel little shame, but also little pride. It was a good look for the foppish former Governor. "The difference between you and I, Altias, is that I have far more responsibility on my shoulders. The life of everyone here. You just have your own. Perhaps your family if you wished to explore that route, but your brother can more than handle himself in martial matters." Personal knowledge tossed out as if it was nothing at all.

"But please, be careful. Take what I have told you as a warning. Trust no one, yourself least of all. You know my interest when it comes to you. Trust logic. Trust reason. We've been over this. Working with me is a risk, but it is a calculated one. As for my reputation? I do what I think is best for my people. Often times that's not at all what they want and all of the time, SOMEONE loses. I try to maximize the benefits for all, but in any decision there are winners and losers."

That said, ALL that said, Burnie would sit back in his chair. "Can we begin with practical matters? How have you been eating, sleeping, affording clothes and other necessities?"

[Altias_Bromn]

"I understand, Governor, that your responsibilities far outweigh my own. I never meant to imply otherwise. Even if I do not remember what that weight feels like, I can understand it. Of course you must make difficult choices, and not everyone can be served by those choices every time. That is life. There will always be someone who disagrees with you, and damns the choices you have made. This is only part of the price of power and responsibility."

There is a moments pause as he considers the words spoken.

"I have a brother, Garrison Bromn. I also have a sister, Tessa. My Father is dead and Garrison is now Duke of Xanth Grange. My Mother died when I was 8. My Teacher, mentor and eventually lover was Nathaniel Darve. Now dead as well. These things I remember but they hold no meaning, if that makes sense. They are like words on a page. I know them, I understand them, but I do not feel them. How then can I trust them, you see? Feeling things is what makes them real."

After he speaks he pause for a long breath. The recollection of such things seemed to tire him. It was strange the way the man would look at the Governor, as if he was still a sighted man.

"I am sleeping, and eating. At least for now. A strange woman paid my room and board for 2 weeks a few days ago. She was strange and cryptic. She had an accent, and a limp. She would not give me her name, and her charity almost felt like a punishment. A package was left for me a few days ago. Containing new clothes. I have several skirts and nice shirts, and a new cloak besides. However I do not have trousers, or a sword. What I will do after these two weeks, I do not know. I have no real options at this moment."

[Glenn]

"I never wished to be Governor. From the moment I chose to stay here, from the moment I began to care about those here, I always wished to have power." A bit of himself for the man who knew so little. How kind. "Myrken is ... cruel, but I have been to other cruel places before. I had watched powerless as those I cared about were hurt, so I gave up what freedom I possessed and chained myself to the rock of government. The chain became shorter and shorter as the years went on, and here I am. It means that there is no line I will not cross for this land. No line, but never do I forget WHY I do what I do. That, Altias, is a quandary that I assure you never crossed your mind while you were in power, yet that was never far from the minds of some of those who victimized you. So I understand your care even if you may not."

"It is telling," and here the young Governor's voice would grow so cold, "that you can remember all of them but not Ariane. Willful neglect or something else? Salvation being held from you." Then, however, a wry grin, full of ironic hubris. "If it is the latter, then someone's information is sorely out of date. The form of salvation here in Myrken has shifted, you see."

Finally a raise of his hand. The blind man was trying to look so the former mapmaker would humor him. "Charity is dangerous for a man in your position. I will give you something better. I will see to your temporary employment. Of your," and here a small pause, "varied skills, one of the foremost, believe it or not, is baking. I will see to your employment in a bakery in town, which will provide you with the means to survive without becoming dependent on anyone else. Consider it a stopgag while we continue to delve back to what has happened and forward to what is next. Even with your impediment, I think that you will be surprised just how useful you can be in this vocation."

[Altias_Bromn]

"You can remember all of them but not Ariane"

The name almost startled him this time. Burnie had mentioned it before, but now, after the dreams. So it was, he assumed, that it was Ariane that had paid for his room. Now, with this new information, it made even less sense than it had before.

"Baking? I was a baker."

There is some small laughter then. Governor, turned baker, turned harbinger of evil. It really was very funny when one looked at it in such a way. Still, working to pay his way certainly seemed like a much better idea than hoping for the best.

"He'll have you serve, like some underling. Like a dog begging for scraps at his table. You make me sick Altias Bromn. You had a spine once, if very little else. You had pride. And now look at you, at the mercy of someone like ...this. "

"I Do not see how I could be much good around something so delicate as baking. And the hot ovens I might get someone killed."

There is a slight quiver in him, as if chilled. His words are spoken in a slightly halting cadence. His breath suddenly reeks of rose water and smoke.

"Unless of course that would be your intention, Governor. To have me responsible for a death so that you could easily put me away and be done with all of this. What games do you truly play at Glenn Burnie? What do you intend to do with h...me?"

The bizarre crimson eyes have shifted. No longer a reflection of the blood that has been spilled at his hands over so many years, but black, from lid to pale lid, as ebony as a starless sky.

[Glenn]

"Altias," There was that cool voice again, and a cool, almost impatient stare to go along with it. Glenn Burnie was not amused. This was hardly the time for such a temper tantrum. "Think, once again, use logic. If I wanted to incriminate you, I could knock you out now and you'd wake up next to a dead teahouse girl in an alley, wearing her dress and covered in her blood." Somehow, that didn't quite seem like a joke. "Maybe I'd even have the word 'believe written a half dozen times around the pair of you in blood. I think public opinion would turn pretty quickly.

"A blind man causing an accident in a bakery? Kind of pales in comparison. Juts a little bit. A smidge. Tiny, tiny.." A shrug. An exhale. Even a yawn. "Well, you get the idea. If I wanted you more firmly under my thumb, I could suggest you help out in this office or some other government office. I don't owe the bakery, I just patronize it as a customer and I know that they would respect your talents and what you might be able to offer them, even if unconventional, but if you truly wish to be a blind beggar with potential enemies just giving you everything you need, so be it."

Glenn Burnie was one to look at people's eyes, to look deeply. He was outright staring now. "Of course, you have a reputation of laziness, of neglect, of being a upper-crust fop who shares nothing in common with the people who walk these streets and toil everyday. I can find office work for you, Bromn. I just thought something a bit more personal. We've been over this, logically, my self interest and so on. Worst case, I'm the devil you know, and I'd be damned please to end this entire affair as your angel as well. Think, man, think."

[Altias_Bromn]

Altias, of course, would have found all of this perfectly reasonable, though he may have bristled a bit at the term fop. He might even have gotten a good laugh out of the tea house girl idea. It was certainly a grand idea and would have worked famously. Sadly, Altias was not hearing a word of it. That was how it worked, you see. He was not possessed, more like a portal. She watched through his eyes when it pleased her, and he was his own man otherwise. Now, of course, that someone else was taking an interest in moving him around like a pawn, it pleased her to be involved.

"You speak to him as if he is a child. An idiot perhaps, but not a child. Why do you want to help him, Governor? You give long winded sermons and give many reasons why it is is important to Myrken and all that rot, but why do YOU really want to help him? Perhaps to get back at him for the wounds he caused your teacher, hmm? "

Bromn would sit back in that chair then, and simply wait, cold ebon watching him, seeing him.

[Glenn]

Oh. Oh. Oh. Well look at this. The Governor, so cold and persistent, so logical and unyielding shifted in a moment. An almost ravenous grin came to his face. Was it his birthday? He outright laughed. "I want to help him to get back at him? That's rather twisted logic. Perhaps I'll build him up," there was excitement in his voice now, outright excitement. "brick by brick, stone by stone, but only I will know where the keystone is and at the last moment, when Altias Bromn is a tower amongst men again, perhaps even for the first time, I'll yank it out and watch him tumble? All at my hand?"

Another burst of laughter, almost manic. "Is that what you want me to say? No, no, I think not. Imagine this, scrunch that beauty blessed face up if you can manage it, and imagine this. What if MEAN what I said? Madness, no? What if I think the rich little fop," there was that word again, "with the big heart and good intentions, and embarrassing lack of fortitude deserves a true, honest chance to become a real boy? To grow into who he could be, right here. What if that's what I offer everyone in Myrken. Jump through my hoops, follow my path, and I'll get you your soul back, metaphorical or otherwise. Dance to my tune and I will teach you how to dance to your own. It's not that high a cost, is it? A little hit to the pride for the good of all, but then if you're facing me, across this table, you likely did something to deserve it, all on your own." Was there a twinkle in his eye, a hungry, brilliant twinkle. "I just want the very best for everyone, poor Altias included." It just so happened that Glenn Burnie, who studied, who trained, who had suffered so, KNEW what was best for his Myrken.

The near-manic laughter was gone, but his eyes continued to simmer. His tongue, ever so slightly, ran across his bottom lip before he pulled it back in with increasing control. "I told you true, now it's your turn. Who am I dealing with? Okulari? Renne? I assure you that you can not surprise me with your answer, but please, try."