After about a minute of conversation Gehrman learned a few things. First, there was something very, very powerful at work. This wasn't a Mind Hex, in order to erase Gehrman's thoughts, one would need at least the power of a Sacred or a Cursed being. In other words, only a god could manage such a feat. With his Supreme Charm and natural mental fortitude, that was the only possibility.
Of course, that was only true if what was happening here was an active phenomena. Since there was simply no way that this Transcendent Terror had access to a power (at least, there was no way for him to use it so constantly) that led Gehrman to believe that what was happening was passive.
His first thought, the most simple explanation, was that this was his Flaw. However, this was also not likely. Based on their first meeting, this guy knew who Gehrman was on a personal level. He also seemed to be holding out hope that Gehrman would remember him.
If his Flaw was to always be forgotten, then it would be impossible for him to ever get to know Gehrman in the first place. There would be no reason for this fellow except that Gehrman may remember him.
Of course, it was possible that the Flaw was uniquely odd, and perhaps his being forgotten was something that only occurred if certain criteria were met. Casters Flaw, for example, would be non-existent so long as he did not use his Aspect, so there was precedent for criteria-based-laws.
There was only one way to know for sure though.
"What is your Flaw, if you don't mind me asking?"
The man's face briefly showed a look of horror, but then it eased.
"I do mind you asking, at least, I normally would," he paused, deliberating something.
"I never did tell you, in fact there was a lot I didn't tell you now that I think about it. At this point though…it doesn't matter. My Flaw is that I can not tell a lie."
Gehrman blinked.
"You can't lie?"
"Yes. Also, I want to point out that lying by omission, in other words not responding to a question, is also not acceptable. The best work around I found is half-truths. Although, it is best if you add "if you don't mind answering" to the end of your questions, just for the sake of…Actually I'm not in a position to hide anything anyway."
The guy trailed off, looking quite forlorn. It was as if a huge chunk of who he was and how he lived had been irreparably removed. Of course, this was likely the case seeing as no one could remember him.
At least, no one could remember the old him. He was sitting right in front of Gehrman at the moment and he had no problems retaining that fact.
Gehrman tapped the edge of the table they sat at, trying to find the best way to work through this.
For a reason he could not quite place, Gehrman was rather adamant about figuring out this odd situation.
"I'm going to ask you a series of questions, is that okay?" he asked.
The Transcendent Terror, a being of truly horrifying and dreadful power, looked at him with exhaustion that was all too human.
"Go for it."
"Alright, what is your name?"
"Sunless, though I go by Sunny as well."
Gehrman nodded.
"I was able to remember that, any idea why?"
There was a double meaning there. Not only was Gehrman genuinely trying to get a sense of what this guy already knew about his condition, but it was also important in defining the key traits of the forgetfulness that surrounded him.
"Well, it's just a name. And it's not unique to me. Perhaps it isn't a detail that–"
Gehrman blinked and looked around. To him, it seemed like Sunny had stopped talking, but things had indeed changed, so he must have said something else.
"Intresting."
Gehrman waved his hand and a stream of blood poured from a tentacle that grew from the back of his neck. He then molded that blood to a very specific weight and size and solidified it before hanging it on the wall.
"Okay, the pendulum will help me tell when time has passed, it's a bit tricky using outside stimuli since there is nothing here."
Gehrman had been using the change in the wind to tell when the odd skipping of time occurred, but this method was much simpler for him.
He tapped the table again, scrunching his forehead in thought.
"It has to be something about you as an individual. If it is a concept that is broader and contains multitudes, it can't exist."
Suddenly, time skipped again.
It took a moment for Gehrman to realize that Sunny had replied again. Either confirming or denying his theory but unable to communicate it.
"Okay, got a skip there, so it's a bit more complicated than that. It seems that explaining the fundamentals behind this curse is also a no go."
Sunny sat back in his chair further. Before, his eyes appeared disinterested and full of melancholy, but now they had the slightest spark in them.
"I'm going to try something, let me know if you forget."
Gehrman nodded, appreciative of the cooperation.
"My True Name was Lost From Light."
Gehrman was surprised. True Names were something that one was the core of an individual. Not only did they hold great mystical significance (and were thus not usually given out freely), but it also seemed random to bring up.
"I heard it, Lost From Light," Gehrman repeated.
Sunny flinched as he heard his True Name repeated back at him for some reason, and then a complex mix of emotions covered his face.
He opened his mouth to say something else.
Another skip.
"That didn't go through, whatever it was you just said," Gehrman said awkwardly.
Sunny frowned.
"Ah, if that's the case then…you'll have to figure it out on your own."
It hit him then that Sunny had happened upon another principal of the situation, yet he was unable to communicate what it was.
"Annoying. Do you think we could do a system to answer yes or no questions? Like you move a rock to your right or left depending on whether I was right in my guess or not? I can narrow things down better that way."
He had expected Sunny to applaud his inventiveness, but instead the guy's gaze returned to its previously exhausted state.
"Did we…already try that?"
"We didn't, but it was one of the first things I tried. It doesn't work. You forget which answer was which, or forget about the system all together."
"Gods this is tedious," Gehrman lamented. Most of what he was going off of was inference, and even then it could not be necessarily confirmed if he was on the right track.
"Yeah," Sunny responded dryly.
Gehrman let his mind whirl, trying to come up with theories on what this new principal might be.
Eventually he scratched the back of his head and postponed the issue.
"How about this, try telling me a bit about yourself, let's see what gets through."
Sunny paused for a moment before nodding.
"I suppose there are some things that I probably should have told you a while ago. I told the others in the 2nd Nightmare, and Neph's known since…" he trailed off. Time didn't skip which meant that his hesitation was not mystically induced, but instead due to his own internal conflict.
Eventually he gathered himself and spoke quickly.
"My Aspect's name is Shadow Slave. My Innate ability is Shadow Bond. Whoever says my True Name is my "Master" and I become unable to disobey an order from them. It's at the core of who I am, an absolute law that can not be…well I suppose it can be broken."
Gehrman stared at him blankly for a while.
Then he let out a long breath.
That was a lot. A Transcendent Terror could be brought low simply by uttering his True Name. Plus, he couldn't lie, so if anyone ever asked then he was basically screwed.
That being said, there was a lot more information that could be gleaned from this shocking truth bomb than just that.
The mention of an "absolute law" made Gehrman think about the current situation. Whatever was making Sunny's past non-existent operated at a seriously high level.
However, that didn't make any practical sense, and indeed after thinking about it for a while he came to a new conclusion.
"You said Neph, are you referring to Changing Star?" Gehrman asked slowly. It was honestly the first time he could recall someone referring to her so casually. She was a Princess of Valor now, technically, and even in the Forgotten Shore she was put on a pedestal.
However, this was indeed the case.
Sunny nodded, and Gehrman was instantly glad that this bit of information was not erased from his mind.
Why didn't that get erased? Gehrman asked himself.
It was then that a theory started to burgeon in his mind. Details about Sunny and who he was would find no purchase in his mind, but not all of them.
What was the difference? It seemed so arbitrary. Yet something operating at this level had to be following strict rules.
His eyes widened as one other sentence suddenly stuck out to him.
Sunny had said: "there are some things that I probably should have told you a while ago." It was rather simple, but if that was the crux of the matter then a lot of things made sense.
Gehrman couldn't recall anything about who Sunny was, but he could learn new things about the person in front of him.
"So long as it's new information about you, I can retain it," Gehrman said in a hopeful voice.
Sunny let out a chuckle of abundant emotion. He was relieved, perhaps even overjoyed that someone was learning about his predicament. At the same time though, he was also confirming that the past he had built was well and truly gone.
"It seems that way," Sunny confirmed.
"Fascinating," Gehrman stood up from his chair and started to pace.
If he looked at everything from an objective standpoint, this whole turn of events was insane. He had managed to escape what was surely a death trap, revive in a safe place, and suddenly he was putting all of his effort in helping out this wayward Shadow-guy who was inexplicably afflicted by a cosmic erasure of his past.
"Earlier, you said something and there was a skip. I think it was about the truth behind what happened to you. Did I already know about what happened to you, is that why I'm unable to retain you explaining it?"
Sunny thought for a moment.
"You didn't, actually. I think there was a skip because I was talking about–"
It happened again.
When Gehrman returned, Sunny's face was nonplussed and annoyed.
"Don't worry about it," he said with a defeated voice. "I was just complaining."
Gehrman nodded.
"So your past is erased and also it seems that when we try to circumnavigate the forgetting via a system that is also tampered with, if that's all, then couldn't you actually tell me what happened to you to incite such a curse?"
Sunny's eyes went distant. His hand traveled to his solar plexus, his center. It was like he was making sure his body was still in the right place. Or maybe it was his Soul that he was checking.
"Yeah, I can tell you. In fact, I'll tell you a lot more than just that. There's some stuff I really need to get off my chest. And after only having myself to talk to for over a year, venting to an unlicensed professional is probably a step up in the sanity department."
"I would say so," Gehrman smiled. "What else is it you want to talk about?"
Sunny turned his whole body to face him fully and with a terribly serious look on his face, he looked at Gehrman dead in the eye.
"Fucking. Everything."