The Timeservers

Chapter 81

New York City, New York

The Spire

Commissioner Floor

December 23, 227 P.F.E

1400 hours

Leo was brought to the top floor by three standards. Two of them flank him on either side and the third pushes him forward from behind. Once he got to the top floor he was joined by two spectres; Sprite and Tigress. Both of them tried to keep their faces blank, but they betray themselves every few moments. Their eyebrows move together. They avoid looking at him and have a pronounced and uncharacteristic slouch.
They lead him into the commissioner's chamber where several people stand. The other spectres stand at attention off to the side. Via stands in the middle of the chamber, guarded by one standard and flanked by Wasp and Viper. The latter have smug looks on and they don't even try to hide it.
Hound doesn't stand with the other spectres. Instead, he stands beside the commissioners and at ease.
The high governor sits on a large chair in the middle of the commissioners, their personal elite surrounding them. They created the last revolutionizing invention two years ago before claiming the position. Some weapons used on the front. They are a harsh featured person; everything is sharp and almost black and white. They have pale white skin; pitch-black hair, and grey eyes. They twirl their short hair on one bony finger as they stare at the two people on trial. She tilts her head a little, lips pinched.
"All of the spectres and standards leave now, we do not need you to guard those on trial anymore," the high governor orders.
The guards hesitate for a moment before the first heads for the exit. The rest follow slowly, some of them looking over their shoulders, others anxious to leave. Once each one of them is gone the high governor speaks again.
"I'm sure you already know who I am, but I would like to introduce myself. I am Eloise Florence, High Governor of New America. Are you wondering why I'm here?"
"War is the only reason why you would be here," Leo answers.
The commissioners reel. The high governor hadn't given permission for him to speak.
She smiles tightly and the twisting of her hair gets faster. "I've heard about you, Mythos. I heard that you have a tendency to shuck the rules. That doesn't fit with New America. That's been valuable to this point." The High Governor stands, moving closer to Leo.
"That isn't advisable. He's quite dangerous," Commissioner Gray warns.
"Oh, I like dangerous things." Eloise starts to circle him, walking her fingers over his shoulders. "Tell me, should I go to war?"
Leo turns to face her. "No. War would be stupid. Somehow I don't think you want to look stupid."
"I suppose you're right. I'm not the one who started it though. You and your little friends did that. Phoenix, Evanesce. They've been colluding to destroy New America. Isn't that right, Evanesce?"
Via doesn't respond, staying firmly at attention.
"Oh, I forgot. You're the good one." Eloise puts one hand on Via's shoulder and one on Leo's. "That must get boring." She laughs, doubling over.
"She's not responsible for any of this. She was just following orders. She's still in training," Leo argues, tearing Eloise's hand off of Via. Her elites step forward but she stops them by lifting a hand.
"You're defending her, how quaint. We know she's just too good to have done this. There's no fight in her perfect little brain-washed mind. She's a drone." Eloise pokes Via in the head. "We aren't after her. She'll just be retrained. We're after you. You're the one who trained her, after all. You're the Historian. What better way to hide being a Historian spy than by being a Historian spy for the other side? Oh, that brain of yours! Conniving! The fun we can have when we bring you back. I'm thinking I might just have to make you a shadow. What do you think, Commissioner of Shadows? Feel free to speak."
"I think that once we clear out the Historian for good that would be an excellent idea," Hound says. "Maybe we can even have him recover his fellow spies, the ones we knew as the Barkleys."
"Ugh, them! I'm so disappointed in you all. They got away because you miscalibrated a tear? We're supposed to be geniuses here!"
Leo laughs, smirking. "Geniuses? That's really what you think you are? I mean total offence in this, your 'country' freaking sucks. It's being run by idiots who think that they're smart. You, you stole that invention that you supposedly made. Everyone knows it. You know what the Historians call someone like you; a fascist. You're a dictator. You think you're supreme, a genius, you're like Hitler or Stalin. Gosh, I wish you guys knew history."
"Watch it!" Hound growls.
"You pretend that your government is made up of good people, but they just draw within the lines of the law. Sociopaths can do that. Serial killers who are sociopaths do that with the exception of the killing. No offence to you, Via. You are the exception. To being a sociopath and that other bad stuff I mean. New America, with its chancellors and its glitzy innovations, is just trying to cover up everything fundamentally and drastically wrong with it. Your 'good leaders' are being ravaged from the inside out by the pressures you put on them. Your citizens are rebelling. Your Guardians are corrupt. You literally have child soldiers. I am a child soldier. You ordered this child soldier," Leo points to Via, "to assassinate someone. Do you realize how messed up that is? Your country is crumbling at the foundation and you're all too busy thinking that you're smart and invincible, and too good for it to happen."
"Stop," Hound steps forward.
"Here's the thing; if you bothered to learn history at all, you would know just how many empires felt that way. Each fell by their own doing. Each was too proud and spread themselves too thin. They fell away and became history. Each went down in flames and we laughed at their stupidity while learning about them. We thought we wouldn't be the same. If we just stepped back a little, we would see the cracks forming in our own country though. They're built right in. We learn history so we can see the cracks. Those who see them, who want to fix them, aren't given the chance though. Your empire will fall. I will pull out the foundation myself if I have to. Your choice is to watch it fall in a blazing mess that the Historians will cheer to, or you can rip it out yourself and spare lives, hopes, and minds." Leo stares into the High Governor's eyes, only a few inches from her shocked face. Only now that his venting is over does he realize that her elite had come closer and pulled out their weapons to aim at him. "'Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.' Do you want to know what you're destined for?" Leo growls.
"Mythos, stop!"
Leo's shoulders slump at the voice. He turns around slowly, rolling his eyes. "Seriously, I am done with all the twists. Can't you just tell us if you're evil or not?"
Sophia stands beside Hound, a hand reaching out towards Leo. Her hand falls at his words and she straightens her shoulders. "I'm not evil."
"Yeah, by your standards or by basically anyone else's who isn't in a position of power in this room? Also, where's your brother at? I want to say hey to him too." Leo backs away from Eloise, brushing past her elite. He starts moving toward Sophia and she stands her ground.
"My brother was a fool; caught by a trap set by the shadows that he was all too eager to fall into. He got on that train with one of us. He will be recovered by our agents soon enough." Sophia approaches them, looking from Via to Leo. She finally settles in front of Via. "Sorry, it didn't work out between you two. I tried to give you a little bit of a chance. I guess he won't be keeping his promise."
Via starts shaking and finally breaks her steady gaze to focus on Sophia for a moment.
"Go ahead; break the rules, talk. Can't? You really should have been left at that school."
Via doesn't break.
"If you had been left at that school you wouldn't have saved Phoenix. He wouldn't have betrayed New America or be getting his memories wiped. I look forward to turning him against you when he comes back without his memories."
Via finally cracks and keeps her raging eyes trained on Sophia. "How could you? Your own brother!" Via raises her arms in exasperation and Sophia misinterprets it as a threat, shoving Via down and keeping her there with an elbow to the sternum.
"I am loyal to my country first! He was not. He betrayed this country. He deserves it."
"He is loyal to you."
"Evanesce, stand down," Commissioner Gray yells, standing.
"He didn't want to go. He went for you. You made your brother a traitor," Via says.
Sophia's hair is down and slips over her shoulder, hiding her and Via's faces temporarily. After a moment, and what Leo suspects to be a few threats, Sophia pushes up, stalking back to the side of the room and pulling her hair into a ponytail.
"The Timeless thing, was that a lie too?" Leo demands as he helps Via up.
"I am New."
"So, you're a sadistic and manipulative back-stabber bent on the future and caring little for other people as you further your own agenda? Sorry," Leo holds up a hand, lowering his head apologetically, "I forgot to throw in sociopathic. You missed that part of my speech earlier."
Sophia smirks. "All you have at your defence is empty words. You insult me and are angry because you lost to me. I will always be two steps ahead. The sooner you realize that the better," Sophia counters.
"Enough! We have seen enough! It is time we sentence him!" Commissioner Gray pushes. Two of the elite step forward, forcing Leo down onto his knees. They bind his hands behind his back with magnetic cuffs before returning to protect their leader.
"I agree," the High Governor growls, reclaiming her place of honor. "I vote for maximum punishment."
"Agreed. I vote for immediate wiping and that this time we not tell him what he is." Commissioner Gray gives Hound a side-eye. "He's a deep cover operative that we managed to recover after he was forced into a tear by Historians. The flecks are from his years of service there. He was born New, parents died in an attack by Historian spies. What do the rest of you say?"
Each commissioner agrees, some faster than others. The last to agree is Hound. "He may still have use. His Historian heritage can still benefit us. As the Historian threat increases, we will need his knowledge." Hound steps toward Leo. "I will give you one last chance. If you answer incorrectly I will vote for you to be wiped. If you answer well, I will personally oversee your retraining so that you will be loyal to the right side."
"How many guesses do I get?" Leo smirks.
Hound scowls. "Who are you?"
"I'm Jason Bourne, spy for the CIA."
Hound folds his arms. "Try again."
"I'm Matt Damon, epic histrionic."
Hound raises an eyebrow.
"Okay, histrionic was the wrong word given the context. I'm Douglas Quaid, and Carl Hauser; spy, defector, and member of the Rebellion." This still doesn't fly. "I'm Arnold Schwarzenegger or Colin Farrell, depending on which thespian or rendition you prefer."
"This is your last chance. If you do not say that you are Mythos and that you are a loyal New, your life will be replaced."
Leo lowers his head, trying to take in all the life he knows. He looks over at Via, still standing at attention. Charlotte robbed of her life. He looks at Sophia, so consumed by blind loyalty to her country that she would betray everyone she's supposed to love. He thinks of Kelly, who will soon find out everything and be destroyed, then forget it ever happened. All of the Historians trying to make a life here that can barely be called that, or fighting so they can keep learning. All of the bad stuff can be forgotten in a moment.
He glances up at Hound and suddenly understands The Matrix. Taking the red pill won't save him though. It will break him till there's no free will left. George Orwell had it right.
The pocket watch is peeking out between two buttons on his shirt. The thing that gave him a name in the few hours before it didn't matter.
He raises his head, looking past Hound to the entire Board of Commissioners. He takes a deep, trembling breath. "My name is Galileo Emery Daniels," he looks over to Sophia, "and I'm Timeless."