Transitory Recollections
Chapter I – Childhood, Closure
My childhood was largely unremarkable. I was by no means the only orphan wandering the streets of Bowerstone's Old Town. As a matter of fact there where quite a few of us. Quite a few indeed. Most children formed groups or bands of some kind, seeking safety in numbers. I didn't. I stayed with my sister, Rose. I can't tell you about my parents, because I haven't any memory of them, save for a half-glimpsed smile that might as well be the leering memory of a deceitful dream. But Rose was always there.
We spent our days trying to survive, masking our desperation with happiness that was as much forced as it was needed to cover up the reality. I didn't realize this then, at least not on a conscious level. I'm sure Rose knew it, but for my sake kept it secret. We stole, worked for and always needed food. Food was often the first and last thought of the day.
Hunger was a familiar companion there. It was always with you, always kept you company. It woke you up in the morning and sang you to sleep in the evening. We often wnet for long periods without enough food, but somehow Rose managed to find some coin, often just after a particularly hard times. She said that she found a lost purse or that her begging was very successful, and I saw no reason to think otherwise. Butt now, older and more experienced, I have my theories. None of them are comfortable.
That chapter, or rather prologue, of my life ended on a very particular day. A traveling merchant by the name of Murgo had once more come to town, eager to exchange his "magical" contraptions for solid gold. A chain of events began when Murgo held up a musical box.
"Fashioned by the ancients," the trader said, his eyes gleaming. "It will grant you one wish." While my eyes widened, my sister's narrowed.
"There's no such thing as magic," she said scornfully. At this a woman clad in robes, whom I'd never seen before, turned to us.
"We live in grim times indeed if the young are too world-weary to believe in magic," she said, sealing my fate. At her urging my sister and I set about gathering enough gold to buy the box. It didn't take long. Everything was very easy, unsettlingly, auspiciously easy. We bought the box and ran off to our little spot which granted a beautiful view of Castle Fairfax.
We wound up the musical box and before our very eyes it spun around and vanished in a dazzling flash. My sister was, understandably, dismayed, her wish of living in Castle Fairfax denied to her. We soon returned to our little shacks, my sister fuming and ranting about the injustices of the world and stupid magical boxes. At our home a dog was waiting for us. I recoqnized him. We'd met him during the day, being hurt by some of the older kids. Despite her mood Rose let the dog stay at our home. It was late, and we let sleep take us away from this harsh reality.
We were harshly woken up in the darkest hour by the dog's barking. I was inclined to return to sleep, until a man's voice spoke up, trying to calm the dog down. They were Lord Lucien's men, come to take us to Castle Fairfax. My sister was overjoyed and we immediately got up and followed the guards.
After what seemed like an eternity of wandering through hallways and climbing up stairs our escort finally came to halt at a large oak door. A man dressed in fineries typical of his social status was there to receive us. It wasn't Lord Lucien himself yet.
"Evening, Jeeves. These are the children, as Lord Lucien requested," the guard said. Jeeves greeted us with a warm smile that seemed, while friendly and welcoming, thoroughly practiced.
"Hello, young masters." Then Jeeves dismissed the guard and beckoned us to follow him to Lord Lucien. As we walked through another seemingly endless hallway, Jeeves and Rose spoke. I looked around, and my gaze lingered on a dark man who passed us wordlessly ("Garth. A man of few words", commented Jeeves.) Rose was making an idiot of herself, jamming every sentence full of compliments about the castle and Lord Lucien.
"Where's the grand dining hall?" Rose asked.
"On the other side of the castle," Jeeves said, casting a hand in the general direction. "Lord Lucien hasn't been there since… Since the tragic deaths of Lady Fairfax and little Amelia." Rose's cheery demeanor faltered.
"We heard about that. It must've been awful." Jeeves was silent for a moment.
"Yes. He misses them terribly." He quickly moved away from the topic. "Nowadays Lord Lucien takes most of his meals in his study. He's in there at all hours, doing research."
"What does he research?" Rose asked, once again overflowing with curiousty.
"History, mostly. He's particularly interested in things relating to the Old Kingdom," Jeeves explained, prompting Rose to tell about our day. Jeeves commented politely on what she said, but ultimately was visibly uninterested.
After what seemed like forever we reached the end of the hallway, once again before a pair of mighty oak doors. Jeeves went over some basic protocol for speaking with Lord Lucien, then sent us in.
Lord Lucien was hunched over a table covered in books, maps and other documents. I looked around the circular room. Full bookshelves covered almost every inch of wall space. Directly opposite of the door was a large, beautiful stained glass window, and before it was an old stone pedestal. Finally Lord Lucien left his work and turned to us. He was the ideal nobleman: handsome, and he carried himself in a way that spoke of a civilized upbringing. There was something strange about his eyes that bothered me.
"Children!" he said in a tone of someone who expected obedience but understood the value of using his power in moderation. "It has come to my attention that you have procured a certain musical box. May I see it?" He addressed Rose, as she was the elder one.
"Well, we don't have it anymore, m'lord. We… lost it."
"Lost it?"
"Yes, m'lord. We made a wish and it vanished."
"Ah. I see. Well, what did you wish for?" Despite the straightforward question Rose's cheeks turned a bright crimson and she bowed her head and muttered something.
"Well? Speak up. What did you wish for?`" Lord Lucien demanded.
"Well, we wished to live in a castle. Like this one."
"I see. Maybe that could be arranged." For a moment Lord Lucien was lost in thought, but quickly resumed speaking. "The box itself is of no interest to me. What is remarkable is that you were able to use it.
I'm working to rebuild-" Lord Lucien paused and reconsidered his words. "I'm working on something wonderful. And I need people with exceptional talents to help me. I want to find out if you have those talents." He gestured towards the stone pedestal. "Please, step onto the pedestal." With unsure steps Rose and I got on the pedestal. Almost immediately it lit up with a bright, blue light. Lord Lucien's mouth opened and closed in astonishment.
"It's true. You're Heroes."
"Heroes? You mean, like in the old stories?" Rose saked, bewildered. Lord Lucien didn't answer. He took a few careful steps towards the pedestal and reached out with his hand. As soon as his hand entered the blue light, the light flared red and Lord Lucien cried out. He took a few steps back, clutching his hand. He wore a strange expression.
"What are you?" he asked in a surprisingly frightened tone. He turned to the paper-covered table. He pored over the documents and kept muttering to himself.
"You're none of the Three… One of you is the Fourth." For a moment more he was turned to his notes, but suddenly he faced us again. He had a pistol in his hand. Rose and I were horrified beyond words. There was a strange, frightening fire behind Lord Lucien's eyes.
"I'm sorry, but I can't allow you to interfere." Lord Lucien raised his gun and aimed at us. From Rose erupted a flood of words. She begged, cried, threatened and pleaded for our lives. It was all for nothing. In cold blood, Lord Lucien shot my sister. Without so much as a moment's consideration or regret he turned to me.
"I can't be stopped now." The last thing I remember is being shot and falling through the darkness.
***
There was a silence between the two men. The younger man once again shifted uncomfortably.
"Do you think the box was magical?" the old man asked suddenly.
"What do you mean? Of course not. Your sister didn't get to live in a castle."
"I know. But what bothers me is the dog."
"The dog."
"Yes. How did he know to be at our home? I keep thinking, maybe somehow I made a wish that resulted in the dog appearing at our shack."
"That's ridiculous. The box was rubbish."
"Oh, I don't know about that. But ever since I thought of it, the question of the dog has bothered me."
There was another long silence.
"Do you expect me to forgive you just because you lost Rose as a child?"
"No, I don't. I merely hoped."
"Get on with your story, old man."
A/N: So, Chapter one finally up. I originally planned to include the first bit of the actual game in this chapter, but scrapped that plan and came up with this. Hopefully Chapter Two will get out faster.
A note on the dialogue: I'm copying some lines, paraphrasing others and inventing a few. I think that bits based on cutscenes will have the most game-adherent dialogue. Otherwise I'll probably make a great deal up.