Where Nobody Knows Your Name(Mint, Karlsen)

While exploring the room Mint, not just once, but several times turns her back entirely to Karlsen although never at less than a couple paces distance. She pays equal and scrupulous attention to all corners save the living area which gets only a cursory examination.

Finally she comes to the chairs and takes one opposite Karlsen.

"Not bad. Ah can't place everything, but what Ah can looks high quality and well maintained."

"You mentioned continuing our conversation? Ah recall we left off with you ducking a question."

He sinks back into the comfortable chair. His stogie lighting his face demonicly as he takes a deep drag. "Is that what you really want to know?"

"Ducking."

Then Mint shrugs.

"Ah want to know everything, but from you what interests me the most is what do you think of the other royals? You have an inside perspective, but not too inside."

Karlsen laughs. "You are new at this. I still can't get the hang of it myself. That's why I try to keep out of it. I know when I am out of my league, they play very deep games up there and you would be wise to be aware of that when you go up there. I'll give you the easy ones and if you want more you'll have to answer a couple questions of mine."

"My father, Gerard, is a great guy. Fun to be around. No one better in a bar brawl and solid and as loyal to Amber as anyone alive. If something needs doing for Amber he is the first to get to it."

"His full brother Caine is similar at the core, but applies it differently. He is loyal to Amber but uses guile and misdirection to pursue what he feels is best. Anything he asks about, does, or doesn't do will further several plots he has working."

"His other full brother Julian watches over the forest of Arden and spends most of his time there. He is a stoic man but thoughtful and fair, almost to a fault. I am certain he has schemes and plans, but what they are I can't fathom."

"Now for my questions. Who's daughter do you think you are and why?"

"You certainly don't mess around. You want that one it will cost you. Ah want your promise that you won't tell the family about me before ah have the chance to do it mahself. Give me at least a week. That and your opinion of mah father."

Mint is very serious.

He laughs again. "Oh certainly. Though I recomend you talk with my father before that. I think we can get him to come by on some pretext if you don't want me telling him why."

Seeing how serious she is he sobers up a bit. He stands and says, "I don't know know how you give promises in your shadow but this is how I give mine." He takes out the cigar and holds it in his left hand. "I promise not to tell anyone about you without your permission for one week, unless King Random directly asks me specifically about you by name or you show yourself to be an enemy of Amber. Understand I have given my word to him already and as my King (you can hear the capital) that must come first." He then holds out his right hand for her to shake.

Mint shakes his hand. Her grip is strong and firm. She clearly has more than human Strength. (Amber+)

With that promise the mask of Mint's face collapses and Karlsen can see that she is perhaps as young as she appears. She is clearly frightened, although less of Karlsen himself than something else left as yet unspoken. She is also deeply proud, confused, angry, grieving, and possibly feeling despair as well.

Mint leans back, her posture curved and self-protective with her hands in her lap.

With that cocktail of powerful emotions clear upon her face and in her voice she says, "Ah only gave you a nickname befowah. Ah am Mintabillia Brandsdotor. Mah father raised me from the day ah was born until some months past mah eighth birthday when ah saw him last. Ah understand he's dead and..."

Mint's voice breaks and she seems unable to finish the sentence. Tears well up in her eyes.

Karlsen matches her strength with a large rough hand. The thick calusses show that he works with his hands all the time.

Suddenly all the pieces fall into place. "Ah." He tennatively puts a hand on her shoulder and pats it reasuringly if a bit awkwardly. More to himself, "We'll need father sooner than I thought. She'll need a patron." He will go and get a glass of water for each of them. He sets hers on the table and resumes his seat.

When she seems to have pulled herself together a bit he says. "We'll get you through this. Now, this is very important. Who else have you talked to in Amber. Remember what I said about deep games? You will certainly upset a few just by existing. How did you find out about me?"

In a minute or two Mint composes herself.

"Ah haven't gone anyweah near the Castle. Ah've asked questions at a few other bars. Ah found you because your bar is next to a clockwork factory and ah grew up with clockworks. The barman suggested ah talk with you. Ah almost didn't, but..."

Mint smiles a bit.

"...well, you do honest work with yer hands. And ah figured if ah have ta meet someone in the family sooner or later ah oughtta pick someone ah can probably outfight if ah haveta. Ah don't want ta try my luck with any of the Uncles. Ah never could beat Uncle Bleys."

"You won't tell yer father about me will you? You did promise."

"And you haven't told me what you think of my father."

He draws deeply on the cigar. “I will keep my word. But I think you will tell him yourself. Give me a minute to think.”

He ponders his options. We probably have a day or two before her inquires move up enough to people who can put 2 and 2 together. Will they make the connection? Probably not, but better to not take the chance. Tomorrow.
“Ok are you ready for a dose of hard truth?” Assuming she assents he continues. “Your father pursued personal power and knowledge to some very disturbing ends. Nobody wants to talk about it. But just by what they refused to teach me and hindsight of things they omitted that I learned on my own I can guess.”

“There has been a lot of speculation about him. I hate speculating, I prefer to investigate and I never had a reason to investigate him. I never met him, I arrived here after Patternfall. You asked so I will say what I know from reliable sources. He was involved in a plot to take the throne of Amber when Oberon was absent. His side lost and he attempted something that brought the entire family against him, including his allies in the plot. He didn’t survive Patternfall and evidentially was the reason that Aunt Deirdre died. If you want to know more you will have to talk to someone who was there.”

“Now to the hard truth about your situation today. You have about a day or two before your questions will reach ears who might put your questions and look together. By then we need to have you presented to King Random with a patron. Someone to help guide you along like my father does for me. I don’t suppose you like forests?”

Mint assents.

"You do have trouble with questions don't you? You have told me what you know oah think you know of mah father and it is every bit as bayud as ah suspected, but you have not told me your Opinion of mah father. Ah'm ready for the worst. Tell me."

Although the rest of what Karlsen said clearly troubles her, Mint ignores it for the moment to focus entirely on this.

[OOC-Damn you are being tough. Well here goes.]

Karlsen puffs on his cigar and looks at Mint a bit. "What I think I know puts it best. I know all my sources of information are horribly biased. I never met the man. Wish I had. Would have liked to ask him a few questions over a few pints. That is why I don't like the idea of giving an opinion about him." He shrugs, "It isn't in my nature to speculate. I prefer to look at a person, shake his or her hand, have a few drinks with them over a good meal before I decide what kind of person they are. I never had a chance to do that with him. But that won't satisfy you."

He seems to mull over it a bit. "I think that he was a decent guy, for an Amberite, up to the disappearance of King Oberon. After that he changed and became a very intense man who pursued what he wanted and damn the consequences. Then something happened and he changed again and he stopped being an Amberite as we know it. Did he go insane? Did some experiment go wrong and warp him? Did the forces of Chaos do something to him? I frankly don’t know. I just know that after that he was not the man he was before.”

“The Brand before King Oberon left wouldn’t have let Dierdre die. The being at the end of the story did.”

“If you can I would like to hear your side of him. I don’t think anyone here ever would have dreamed of him as a father. I think your story will change my opinions greatly because you will show me such a different perspective of him.”

"Fairly done. Thank you."

Mint relaxes and smiles a bit.

"Father was first and foremost a maker. He was a genius of course, but not of the head in the clouds theoretical sort. He would endlessly transform the world with his eyes and his hands. Although he could find anything in Shadow he seldom used his power in that way. 'The thing that you build with your own hands you can trust.' That was a favourite saying of his. He carved, drew, and painted Trumps, wove spells, enchanted objects and built clockworks. He always had projects going. Every single day I knew him he made something... something wonderful."

Mint sips at her water.

"To an endlessly curious child he was a patient teacher. He answered every single question I ever asked. As a child I thought he knew everything. As an adult I think that he came damnably close to it. Even now I know an amazing number of odd bits of lore just from things I learned at his knee. Everything I know about art and science and craft I learned from him. 'Don't just make something. Make something beautiful.' That I heard from him many times as well."

Mint wrinkles her nose.

"He wasn't perfect of course. No father is. Some days he had dark moods and I learned to leave him alone at those times. He spoke seldom of his family and often complained when he did. He said some very uncomplimentary things about his brothers and father. He believed that no one in Amber save his brother Bleys, his sister Fiona, and his teacher Dworkin came close to understanding him and that even they only came close. He sometimes spoke of all of reality as if it were broken and in need of repair."

Mint sips again.

"Dad had quite a sense of humour. He loved clever puzzles and plays on words. He cherished his little jokes even if they went over the head of everyone else in the room. On the rare occasion that he could not immediately solve a puzzle or answer a question, he would pursue it obsessively until he could find the answer. He wanted to know everything and he came oh so damnably close. The few times he left me as I grew he did so because he had some burning question that he needed to answer that very instant."

Mint sheds a single tear.

"He disappeared and things got bad for a while. Eventually Fiona and Bleys came to me. They told me that father had gone mad. That he was not himself. I wanted to see him anyway, but they refused me. They said it wasn't safe. I could see the fear etched on their faces. I never saw him again. Well, I don't think I did. I had a nightmare once, but it was only my imagination. It was only my imagination."

Mint dabs at her eyes with a bit of cloth.

"And now I have found the land he loved and learned of his death. It seems so unfair that a man who lived so long and so well should be remembered only for how he died. And now my family will see me as a threat? Me?"

Mint seems to find that idea faintly ridiculous.

"What am I going to do?"

Karlsen looks at her. "You are going to prove them wrong." He hesitates here, knowing she is in a horribly vulnerable state. Where he the type he could easily twist her any way he wanted to. In fact with the last statement he may have.

"You should find your own way of doing that, unfortunately that takes time. Time we may not have. My advice at this point is that tomorrow you meet with my father and you tell him your story. Then get you in front of King Random. The third is the hardest for me, assuming you agree that the idea is a good one, I have to try to get Uncle Julian to take you on in his Rangers."

"My reasoning is this, if you are in Arden you will be under his protection in his realm of power. That is probably as safe as anywhere for you. You can then take your time to learn of Amber and her ways, you will be close enough to come for official functions if you wish. You won't have to drill people about their opinions and be disappointed when they answer with answers that don't answer the question." He smirks a bit at this. "You might even learn to do it yourself."

He looks a bit mischivious, "Of course if you would rather become a courtesan I think Llewela might be convinced to do the same in Remba. ..."

"Ah'm not opposed to the idea of maybe meeting yoah father. He's scary, but all of them are. And ah know ah have gotta meet up with his highness eventually. Probably sooner than ah would like, but Julian. Ah could just disappeah in that forest of his and who would say anything."

Mint thinks for a moment.

"Who's the most respected member of oah dad's generation? Respected by the othahs I mean? Ah think ah know the answer but ah would like to heah what you think."

(Occ - ok some more thought on it and this radically changed. Sorry for the mulligan. But I think this is better.)

"He is scary because you don't know him. But fair enough. I still don't know if I can get him here so fast."

"That is a difficult question. They will all keep their word, or break it if need arises, say for the security of Amber. If you notice I put that into my promise. I would say most would keep the letter of their word, but the spirit might go wanting with some. But respect is a different thing, and a very personal subjective thing. So I will tell you who I respect and why."

"It is still a toss up between my father and King Random. My father wins out a little bit because, well he is my father and I like him." "Seriously though he is well known for his open and honest way. He had the opportunity to take and hold the throne for years when the armies of Amber were in Chaos, but when King Random came back he easily gave the kingdom back to him. Very few people I know could let loose that kind of power with no more effort than it takes to write a declaration. I respect that."

"Everyone respects King Random. He has grown immensely in his role as monarch. My father has commented that he has more of Oberon in him than he ever guessed. All of our relatives bend knee to him. Your father would not have seen this side of him any more than we could have seen what your father was like to you."

He gets a bit thoughtful, "Actually I should add one other before Random, though she is not of Amber's blood. Queen Vialle. If she gives her word it WILL be done. And whoever does it will be happy they did it for her. She has a way about her. People respect Random because of his office and the job he does in it. People respect Queen Vialle because she..." He becomes flustered and a bit lost. He seems unable to express it. He waves his hand vaguely, "she draws it out of the good part of you, no matter how small and neglected it is." If Mint has much experience she will see that Karlsen is a bit infatuated with the Queen but keeps his feelings in a tiny tightly guarded place because he knows it is highly inappropriate on many levels.

"Next would be Benedict. The reason he doesn't come before the others is because they fear him. Let me be honest, I fear him. He reminds me of a clock with the watch spring wound too tight. He is so dangerous that if that spring pops there would be no stopping him. He makes the hairs on my neck prickle every time he is around. I feel my fear interferes with my respect, so others probably would answer that differently." He shudders a bit and draws on the cigar again, finds it gone to a stub. He uses the excuse of lighting a new one to recover a bit.

"The next would be Bleys, Fiona and Caine in no particular order. They are all people who are powerful, experts in many things and capable of doing what they feel necessary no matter what it is. If I had a problem they would help out, though I might owe them a favor later. I already owe each of them somewhat because of what they taught me."

"Next would be Julian. He maintains the borders of the realm and people respect that. I have eaten and drunk with him at the Castle and while he is a bit too controlled around me too call him a friend, I do like him." His eyes light up, "One time I remember when Uncle Caine timed a joke perfectly and Julian laughed so abruptly his drink went into his nose. Instead of getting angry as I expected he cracked a joke about smelling the wonderful wine all night instead of the dead fish cologne that Caine was wearing. With a total deadpan that set us all laughing again."

"After that there are a bunch with kind of a general respect for any elder. Corwin, Flora, Llewella, Sand and Delwin. Most are just names to me or a polite hello.”

"And ah don't know if ahm ready to meet him so fast."

"No offense to yoah father, but unless things have changed from mah father's day I would guess he is more liked and trusted than respected."

"The King may well have the respect due his office, but has the man won respect yet. Ah heard some cock and bull story how the Unicorn picked him. Ah'd more likely believe the all sat down and cut cards for the throne. From what you say respect for him sounds pretty fragile anyway."

"Ah never even heard of his Queen."

"Llewella is too isolated. Same thing with Julian."

"Fiona and Bleys would trust me, but then ah would be seen as just one a the redheads and nobody else would trust me."

"Caine is right out."

"Ah thought that Sand and Delwin were dead or at least missing so long as to make everyone suspect the worst. Have they turned up?"

Mint wrinkles her nose with obvious dislike at the next name.

"Didn't Corwin lead an army against Amber? Ah certainly don't want to be associated with anything like that."

"Ah don't think that prep school gave me the social graces to deal with Florimel on a daily basis. Ah suspect that a little of her goes a long way."

"Benedict has potential. Yeah he's scary, but every one of them is scary. If ahm under his eye the othahs won't worry about me. Ah suspect that he won't do me any favours, but ah can probably count on him to be scrupulously fair. Ah need that right now."

"So, ah guess ah need ta convince Random not ta have me killed and then enlist in the army under Benedict. He'll probably want me to start at the bottom and work mah way up. In fact ah will ask for that. It shows willing. Ah see a lot of potato peeling in mah future."

(occ - could have sworn I did this earlier. For some reason it didn't work.)

Karlsen is a bit miffed that his advice has been so casually tossed aside. "Sounds like you have decided everything then. Care to share when you are going to do this? I would like to be a fly on the wall when you do. Don't worry I will keep my word and not say a word. I have some things to take up there anyway."

"Also some last advice. That story about The Unicorn" she can hear the capitals in his tone, "is true. All the elders who were there swear to it. From what I know of the period after Oberon's dissappearance and his return that is the only reason that they would all fall behind King Random. If you don't believe me just keep your opinion to yourself until you can ask one of the elders who was there. Ask Princess Fiona she was there."

"Do ah sound like ah have decided everything? It doesn't sound that way in mah own head. Maybe ah just sound confident because Ahm trying to convince mahself. Part of me still wants tah go running away into Shadow regardless of the risk."

Mint shudders. She seems almost more afraid of Shadow than her family.

"Wait a minute. Yoah telling me the Unicorn is real? And it picked Random as King. Ah thought that was just a rumour foah the peasants. Ah know small 'u' unicorns exist in Shadow, but ah thought that the Unicorn was just a myth. Gosh."

Karlsen softens a bit. "Yes, I have heard The Unicorn exists from enough people I trust that I am reasonably certain it exists even though I have not seen it for myself. And I am an acknowledged skeptic who usually only believes what he observes. Again ask someone who was there, that is as close to personal observation as you can get in this case."

"Perhaps I am approching the problem from the wrong angle, my own, and need to understand your angle. What is it you want to do here? Why do you want to come to Amber now?"

"Ah'll ask Aunt FI when Ah get the chance. Ah don't think anyone could fool her about somethin like that. Well, ah don't think anyone alive could fool her."

"If ah knew what ah wanted to do ah would have already done it. Ah want to learn the truth about mah father, or at least as much as ah can find out. Ah want to make peace with mah family, or at least get to the point where ahm more valuable to em alive than dead. Ah want to grow up without turning into mah father. Whatever happened to him could happen to me someday. We're a lot alike. I can't help that. He's my dad. He was my dad."

Mint refuses to cry again. She holds back the tears of grief through sheer force of will.

"Ah didn't want to come to Amber now. Ah came because ah had to. Ah was chased. Ah wasn't gonna lead them to mah home, so Amber was the only othah place ah might find allies. Ah haven't seen mah pursuer since ah hit the Golden Circle, but ah can't be sure."

And it becomes clear that this is what has Mint scared.

(Occ - Sorry about the delay, I didn't want to rush this one. And I have the Chap 2 stuff that has to take priority.)

Karlsen thinks for a bit. "Well the plan you outlined should accomplish what you are setting out to do. How you go about doing it will determine how successful you are at it.”

“Unless you represent a danger to Amber King Random is very unlikely to have you killed. But some of the things your father worked on do fall under that category, so that makes your position trickier. The King will ask you very pointed questions about how much your father taught you. You have to be ready for those questions with answers that will assure him you are aren’t a threat. Also volunteering for the army under Benedict would put you under a trusted eye and that is a strong move for to take.”

“The King welcomes peace and has worked very hard to maintain it. Hence why the other elders respect him. I think that making peace with us will not be that hard but for one large thing.” He pauses here. “This is difficult.” He obviously is struggling about how much and what to tell.

“What do you know of what happened at Patternfall? And how do you want to learn about your father’s end? I wasn’t there, I only know what I was told, again that biased observer thing. The people we trust for an accurate account weren’t there. My father was here, Benedict was directing troops elsewhere. Gerard felt certain enough about it to pass it on as truth to me, but I’m not as sure he was told everything, your comment of him being more liked than respected is a reasonable comment. You said you wanted the truth and I don’t know if what I know is the truth. I will tell you what I know if you wish, or you can ask someone who was there.”

(OOC-These things happen.)

"Ah will answer his questions. Ah would like it if he answered mine as well, but if he won't ah'll live. He is the King after all."

"What do ya mean Patternfall? Ah haven't heard that term before. Ah thought Amber won? Amber did win right? So why would anyone call it Patternfall?"

"Ah don't know a lot, just the basics. Dad fought the whole family. He killed Dierdre. Caine killed him, with an arrow ah think. Most folks don't seem ta know much more than that."

"Ah wouldn't mind hearing the official line from you, but sooner or later ah'm gonna want ta talk to as many primary sources as ah can get ta talk with me. Every story has more than one side and ah can't ask dad his."

Karlsen sighs a bit when she reveals that she knows the basics. He was afraid he would be breaking the news that one of her uncles had killed him. "Patternfall is what the family has taken to calling the time after King Oberon did something to the Pattern to remove the Black Road. I ams specifically talking about the battle before the Courts of Chaos."

Karlsen then gives Mint the version of events given to him by Gerard. (Occ - If this is important we can have David post it in a flashback form, Karlsen will tell it the way he was told. But I don't think it really will add much.) "Please ask and confirm this. If you find any discrepencies I would be most interested to hear them."

Karsen gets a bit thoughtful.... "Wellllll..... that might not be quite true. Have you heard of Tir-na Nog'th? The things there are always a bit twisted and changed, but it is possible to meet people who are dead here, but not dead there. Some of the elders go there when they have something particularly pressing to consider. If for some reason that point of view is necessary that is a possible way to attempt to resolve it. Not one I have ever attempted, or even know much about, but possible." (Occ - Present an Engineer with a problem and ... )

"The name Patternfall still doesn't seem to make sense. If you don't know the reason, you can't help that."

Mint listens attentively to Karlsen's recounting and asks clarifying questions most of which Karlsen can't answer. Then she grows thoughtful, moody and silent for a time. She leaves his suggestion of Tir uncommented upon.