by Glenn » Fri Apr 26, 2013 2:02 pm
Steady, poised. It had taken some time for the Governor to give this newcomer his attention but now it was given and once given, it had to be accepted in full. Cool eyes held the man's frame, every tick, every mannerism, every movement, every single breath. And once again, Burnie smiled. "Stand. The chair's not very comfortable anyway," he admitted honestly enough. "It keeps the movement of the day brisk, I've found."
Kind, he said. Really kind. Myrken. To a refugee. With a sword. Of course. "It's our way, Mr. Eddington. Brusque. Rough. Rude. Believe it or not, we weren't raised poorly, those of us who were raised at all, you understand. It is necessity. Day in and day out. Necessity." The smile was steady, constant but warm, hardly unnerving like it may have been a few years ago. "We've tried the alternative. It doesn't end well.
"I tell you this, Tomias," an end to formality, because as he said, briskness was a necessity, "not to unnerve you or run you from my walls. I tell you this so that you know what you are getting into. No, I do not hire Constables. Delegation is, unfortunately, my lifeblood. That said, if I say you're a Constable, barring any glaring blemish upon your character, you'll be a Constable. There's a cost to that, like anything else. No, best go through the proper channels. You can read. You have need for employment. You have need for a home. You can use a sword. You have the will. I'd be remiss in my duties not to write you a letter of introduction, not to send you along to the Constabulary. You are a tick in a column, a resource, a tool, a brave soul, a stout man of skill, talent and experience. All this and more or less."
Here he raised a hand. There were so many words here, an unfortunate symptom one was afflicted by when speaking with the Governor, to be awash in them. The hand was to halt any attempt to speak back until he was done, which was to be shortly enough. "I tell you the nature of our land to be fair to you, Tomias Eddington, because I promise, if you accept this post, if you put your body and blade between Myrken's people and it dangers, it will be the last fair thing you encounter. If you still wish to more forward with this, I will, of course, be glad and suitably grateful to speed you on your way." The hand sunk to the table and slowly reached for his writing implement.