CH SUMMARY:

amnesia (n) [ am·ne·sia | \ am-ˈnē-zhə \ ]
1) loss of memory due usually to brain injury, shock, fatigue, repression, or illness
2) a gap in one's memory
3) the selective overlooking or ignoring of events or acts that are not favorable or useful to one's purpose or position

Erik cannot repent for a crime he has no memory of committing.

"No matter what kind of therapy you attempt, any of his memories forgotten through amnestics will not reappear," Liaison Paulias insists yet again. Their voice has gotten more frustrated. T'Challa watches as Shuri ignores them and continues to watch the screen blinking data at her.

The liaison had objected to running tests on Erik all the way on the walk from the throne room to Shuri's lab. Their initial explanation had made enough sense; once employment with the Foundation ended, almost all personnel were dosed with something called "amnestics" to hide all trace of the Foundation from their minds, maintaining the Foundation's secrecy. Erik had been the same, having been amnesticized when he left the Foundation for the CIA. But the follow up insistence that only the Foundation could restore those memories had made Shuri scoff and immediately declare it to be her next project, and Liaison Paulias would not stop claiming that it was impossible.

"I don't understand you people," Shuri sighs. "Why is everything so impossible to you? Impossible for things that exist to exist, impossible for anyone to restore memories that can't be recalled-"

"It is impossible because the Foundation creates amnestics to prevent anyone but the Foundation from restoring those memories!" Liaison Paulias exclaims. "Your Highness, I mean no insult to your intelligence or the technology of Wakanda, but the point of these amnestics is that nobody else can undo them. They are not created through conventional means, and to synthesize the appropriate mnestic for them would take far too much time. If your Majesty would allow a Foundation doctor to come to Wakanda and administer the proper mnsestic, this process would require no further effort."

"I actually think I'd rather have Princess over here figure out how to unfuck my brain," Erik pipes up, sitting surprisingly patiently as the medical machinery whirrs around his head. It may have something to do with the cuffs on his wrists, and the knowledge that Okoye is standing right outside the doors of the lab. "And she's been trying to figure out how to kill me."

T'Challa sends a sharp look to Erik, and then to Shuri; Erik shouldn't be talking about Shuri that way, especially to strangers, but T'Challa knows that Shuri has absolutely been partly responsible for Erik's claims of attempts on his life. Liaison Paulias isn't impressed, either.

"Your Highness," they repeat, and this time the words seem to stumble a bit out of their mouth. "Administering a mnestic is only a matter of injecting it into your bloodstream. If you truly do not remember your involvement with the theft of the object, then-"

"You're pretty insistent I stole it, but you don't know for sure, do you?" Erik asks. "Fuck that shit. Whatever happened to 'innocent until proven guilty' 'n all that?"

"And if you were uninvolved with the theft, that could also be determined through the use of mnestics," Liaison Paulias replies, their voice now more of a grind.

"You're trying to make me feel guilty over something I can't remember. Something that I might not have even done at all. I ain't gonna apologize over anything I don't remember doing, or even know if I did."

"That isn't my intention, your Highness. I am saying that all of this trouble is completely avoidable, and all it will require is King T'Challa's permission to send for a Foundation doctor and a dosage of mnestics."

"Exactly what are the side effects of these mnestics? The success rate of their use? You continue to insist on them as the only method, yet you offer no explanation beyond insisting that they are more effective. I realize that my cousin is currently being investigated as a suspect, but that does not allow endangering his safety or health," T'Challa says. That makes the liaison deflate somewhat, at least.

"Side effects include sedation after the injection, minor headaches, and temporary vertigo," Liaison Paulias replies in exasperation. "Prince Erik had no ill reactions to the amnestic, and the reverse should also be true barring a minor possibility of severe reactions."

"How minor?" Erik asks.

"Less than a tenth of a percent, your Highness."

"I still don't trust that."

Liaison Paulias gets a look on their face suggesting that they'd either like to put their head through a wall, or throttle Erik.

T'Challa is loathe to approve of the Foundation-made mnestic. He believes that they do have a method of reversing the memory loss, but whether or not that is actually what will happen is the question. A betrayal of trust is too easy, and Erik's own refusal pushes T'Challa further away from being comfortable with the whole ordeal. Shuri had worked too hard on saving Erik's life for him to be killed or kidnapped by an unknown entity, and Erik had only just begun recovering from... everything. T'Challa couldn't let anything happen to his cousin now, not after all that had happened. N'Jadaka had already been failed once by T'Challa's father, and T'Challa would not let the same mistake happen again.

"The longer we wait in retrieving Prince Erik's memories, the longer the object remains out of containment," Liaison Paulias reminds them for the millionth time. "This is a dangerous object that may or may not be controllable. It may be simply lost, or it may have been handed off to another individual or organization. There is no telling what has happened to it, and waiting only increases the potential for further harm."

"Liaison Paulias, we have already begun a search through the country based on the information on the object you provided us," T'Challa reminds them in return. "My cousin's memory on the matter may aid us and he may be guilty of the theft, but we are working on the most dire issue at hand at the moment."

Liaison Paulias falls silent, although they do shake their head. After a long pause, they speak up again.

"Prince Erik was granted use of an amnestic which is stronger than the standard amnestic used for personnel leaving the Foundation," they say. "This is not a simple matter. Personnel are usually administered high dosages of Class B amnestics, because they are effective in blocking out long-term memory and have minimal risk of overdose. Prince Erik was administered Class D amnestics. They hold a risk of overdose, have a lower effectiveness and higher likelihood of multiple uses needed for proper amnesticization, and carry a higher risk of permanent side effects. By some grace of god, his Highness suffered none of the ill effects and was properly amnesticized after one use. Attempting to undo the effects of such a powerful amnestic is unwise without the use of the corresponding mnestic, and if his response to the amnestic was positive it is unlikely that the corresponding mnestic would cause any severe issues. I am insisting on this for his Highness's own well-being."

The liaison doesn't look at any one of the three as they speak. They're busy looking down at the copy of Erik's file in their hands, turned to the last page.

"Why would that be used on him?" Shuri asks. Her hands have stopped skimming across the screen interface in front of her.

"Sometimes, when personnel leave the Foundation, they want to be completely certain that they won't remember anything that they saw."

Liaison Paulias's face is blank. They look back up at Erik.

"Your Highness, I understand your hesitation in trusting the Foundation. But the process of amnesticization you went through was harsher than necessary. The process of remembering can be... traumatic, especially when presented without context. No matter whether or not you are guilty of the theft of the anomalous object, you are going to remember things that you risked brain damage to forget. These memories are buried under amnestics and subconscious suppression. Remembering through the use of mnestics will be less stressful on both your mind and body than forcing these memories out."

Erik stares down the liaison, and they sigh in response to the silent answer.

"The council has agreed on your stay for the duration of the investigation, Liaison Paulias," T'Challa says, attempting to shift the attention off of Erik. He can see his cousin's patience wearing thin. "We have arranged a room for you, and for your convenience we also have a set of kimoyo beads you may utilize during your stay."

"I see. Thank you, your Majesty," Liaison Paulias replies. "I will contact the Foundation on the status of the investigation, and on your thoughts of a partnership between Wakanda and the Foundation. I thank you for your time and your hospitality, your Majesty."

The liaison is not stupid, and can very clearly tell that they're being told to leave. They start toward the door-

"Wait."

Erik is looking toward Liaison Paulias, and for a moment T'Challa sees buried confusion under his expression. It slips away quickly, replaced by the usual cocky grin.

"I wanna talk with you, just casual shit. None of this Foundation nonsense. They don't let me out of the palace, and I'm gettin' bored as hell only talking to goody-goody cousin and smarty-pants cousin." Erik is absolutely not interested in a casual conversation, and why he's putting on fake airs when every single person in the room can tell is beyond T'Challa. Maybe at this point it's an automatic response he has, a need to cover up his intentions no matter how innocuous or unthreatening they are.

The liaison looks toward T'Challa, waiting for his permission. T'Challa just gestures to Erik.

"I am king of Wakanda, not king of my cousin's conversations. If he wishes to speak to you, you may speak to him."

"He is a suspect in custody at the moment, your Majesty."

"And you are aiding our investigation."

"Understood, your Majesty."

"If we're talking, in private, yeah?" Erik asks.

"I'm still working," Shuri points out. "This is going to take some time."

"After Shuri is finished, Erik can contact you. Okoye outside will show you how to use the kimoyo beads, and you are free to acquaint yourself with the palace with one of the Dora Milaje accompanying you," T'Challa says.

Liaison Paulias looks toward Erik one last time, then excuses themself politely. The doors of the lab swing open, and T'Challa can catch the beginning of a conversation between them and Okoye before the doors fall closed.

Shuri continues her work, and all three of them are silent. Erik has his eyes closed now.

A/N: As with literally every narrative aspect of the SCP universe, amnestics and mnestics have no solid canon to them. This fic uses my (incredibly vague) personal canon of amnestics, mnestics, and protocols for their use. All you really need to know about them is that they make people forget things and remember things, respectively.