Kal'mera Broun

Kal'mera Broun / Kalvin Brnine
Basic Information
Pronouns	they/them
Titles	Captain of the Blue Channel
Aliases	Monger (old callsign) Markup (new callsign)
People	Apostolosian
Connections
Af­fil­i­a­tion(s)	Stel Apostolos Stel Orion The Society of Banners and Bright Returns Millennium Break The Cause
Re­la­tion­ships	Valence (friend)
Meta Info
Season	PARTIZAN PALISADE
Playbook	The Technician (Beam Saber) The Captain (Armour Astir: Advent)
Player	Ali Acampora
Debut	PARTIZAN 00: The Divine Principality

“

Who's the swagless fish now?”

– Jack, "Weapons Ready Pt. 1"

Kal'mera Broun (or Broun for short), later known as Kalvin Brnine (or Brnine, pronounced "Brine"), is a player character in PARTIZAN and PALISADE. They are an engineer, a tinkerer, and an initially-reluctant revolutionary.

Appearance

They have a long neck and high ears with multiple piercings, and high, sharp cheekbones that make them look distinctively "alien." Their hair is burgundy or maroon and they don't have eyebrows. Their skin is slightly iridescent, reminiscent of fish scales, though they don't have actual scales. They occasionally wear face paint.

They don't have a facecast, but according to Ali, if they were in a live action show, their part should go to someone with a good condescending eye roll who makes "your best friend does your makeup and is mean to you about it" TikTok videos.

PARTIZAN

At the beginning of the show, Broun's hair is shoulder-length and they keep it tied in a Dutch braid. They shave their head during the timeskip after "The Red Light"; it grows back a bit over the next few months, but the iridescence of their scalp remains visible.

They often wear plated hoodies, overalls, and/or sweatpants (like Genji's in Overwatch 2). On the boat in "The Seaside Town of Obelle" they wear a sweater and overalls. At the Summer Passage of Arms, they wear a white cropped jacket with gold buttons over a red unitard bathing suit that has a Millennium Break symbol on the back.

In "The Grand Premiere" Broun's fancy outfit consists of a light leather suit jacket (like Richter's in Total Recall), a sheer white chiffon button-down with embroidery of hands holding fans (like designs by the tattoo artist lizlizkimkim), lavender suspenders, dark navy formal shorts, and Teva-style strappy sandals.

PALISADE

In PALISADE, Brnine has a shag haircut, multiple piercings, and bags under their eyes. Over one eye, they wear a Dragonball Z scouter with a large 90s anime girl antenna on it, which lights up when they take calls. On planet, they wear an armored shirt and overalls, and when they’re in space, they wear an anime flight suit. They also have a Millennium Break captain's jacket, which they wear reversed so the symbol isn't visible. They at least sometimes wear "space Timberlands" and they own a "Chewbacca-style" tool belt.

At the masquerade party, they wear neon graphic line eyeshadow, a gaiter-like garment made of overlapping inlaid neon plexiglass/plastic from under the nose to the shoulders (which hooks to the ear), a white ruffled shawl / crop top, and dark slacks with neon plaid. All of the neon colors are matching.

Their funeral outfit is a "too-casual" black linen v-neck button-down that they have French tucked into the same slacks from the masquerade. The pants, which are their "only good pair of pants", are color-changing: Brnine has them set to a grey pinstripe pattern for the funeral.

After their scouter is broken they rework the Asepsis backpack they sometimes use into a belt carrier like a Pokeball belt, which Ali describes as having "dyke carabiner energy". They have a new scouter by the beginning of the finale, which they built during the last movie night. It's mostly the same colour as the old one, but the lens is now green instead of pink.

Personality

PARTIZAN

Broun is very distrustful of others; because of this, they preemptively push people away, or treat them as tools. Although ethnically Apostolosian, they don't identify with their homeland, and prefer to use "they/them" instead of "kal" pronouns.

During the train ride in "Ambush in the Sand", they spend most of their time playing cards with other passengers and train staff, not caring to look for deeper connections in the surrounding conversations.

They enjoy playing with a puzzle toy described as a cross between a Rubik's Cube and a Bop It. In "A Call From an Island" they shopped for fanmade challenge cartridges for this toy.

Drive (Beam Saber)

• Own a spaceship.
• Find a future for Millennium Break off of Partizan.

PALISADE

In the PALISADE era, Ali describes Brnine as a power-scaler, a tinkerer, and a scumbag. They have put a lot of work into their communication skills over the five years between seasons: in most social situations they are no longer an outright asshole, merely extremely awkward. They have fully bought into the Cause.

In Questlandia, Brnine's role is Hero/Inventor/Warrior, their drive is officially Change and Progress (but unofficially guilt and panic), their personality is Daredevil and Bumbling, and their weakness is Lash Out.

Hooks (Armour Astir)

• The crew put their faith in me so I must prioritize their safety.
• I will prove that Millennium Break can change lives.
  • I'm living on borrowed time; keep up their fight.
• (Asepsis) Verify the integrity of anyone you let on the ship.

Goal (Questlandia)

• Connect to the wider network of Millennium Break.

History and Involvement

Origins

Broun comes from Stel Apostolos. Like many Apostolosians, they had family members and schoolmates who died in the war against the Branched. They went to Stel Orion as a late teen on a work education scholarship to avoid enlistment and got a job working for Adamant Arms and Artifice, where they designed missiles and other explosives.

Broun was sent to Partizan for work, and found themself stuck there after they were laid off. To make money, they began doing freelance repairs and designs and smuggling things, as well as identifying weapons. At some point Broun became a member of the Society of Banners and Bright Returns (SBBR) along with Valence, working under the Scrivener's Guild with K.O. Rooke. SBBR purchased Thisbe together prior to realizing that she is sapient.

PARTIZAN

Spoiler warning! This section contains major spoilers for PARTIZAN. Tread carefully!

Broun participated in SBBR's support of Oxblood during the crash landing of Past in Obelle. Afterwards, Broun was pressured by Midnite Matinee into giving up one of the mechs they stole during the operation to her, and agreed to sell the rest to the Church of the Resin Heart. They spent some of their off time working at a Scrivener's Guild facility to build SBBR's reputation with the Guild and some of it building a small support drone called Bing 32.

In their next mission, SBBR helped drive away the 301st from the Sable Court, and received clarified memoria in exchange, while Broun bartered with Eiden Teak for mech parts. During a visit to the Isles of Logos, Broun met with Gucci Garantine, who upgraded SBBR’s equipment and asked the squad to escort her on an upcoming mission to Orzen. Broun and Thisbe were part of a staged fight with Oxblood, which became a real fight against Imperium's Plume. During the battle, Broun used chemical weapons which affected many civilians.

As the war intensified, Broun worked on collecting resources, with the goal of obtaining a spaceship. They learned about Valence’s true form, and visited the baths with them, where Broun reached out with telepathy. The two soon had an argument about Valence's radical plans; it culminated in Valence agreeing to help them leave Partizan.

Broun joined the nascent Millennium Break alongside Valence and Thisbe. Although they found the revolution stressful and frustrating, they were instrumental in pirate raids on Principality vessels, the development of hydroponic farming infrastructure, and Millennium Break’s covert version of the Strand Semaphore technology. They also supported Valence in their election campaign (believing that this would be personally advantageous), who in turn prevented Broun from being imprisoned for their use of chemical weapons and involvement in the death of Thetonious.

Broun was part of the effort to defeat Courage, assisting Thisbe in particular. In Vigil City, Broun stole parts of the Divine Asepsis to research and experiment with. They also created a new body for Valence. They worked with Apparatus to blockade supplies for the Summer Passage of Arms and won the swimming and bartering duathlon at the event. After Millennium Break took Cruciat, Valence pooled their resources and influence to get Broun the spaceship they promised, overwhelming and shocking them.

Broun was then deployed to Auspice along with half of a reorganized version of SBBR to protect the negotiations there, where they faced off against Motion’s GLORY soldiers. Upon their return to headquarters in Oxbridge, they learned of Valence’s death and organized the funeral with Millie’s support, while SBBR was taken off of active duty due to factional polarization within Millennium Break. When the Red Light approached, Broun refused to evacuate people to the Reflecting Pool, resulting in a serious argument with Sovereign Immunity. Instead, they used their ship the Blue Channel to evacuate small groups.

5 months later, Broun received the locations of off-map worlds from Sovereign Immunity, allowing them and a few other Millennium Break members to launch and spread the revolution off-planet. After a successful engagement with an attack force sent by Motion, the Blue Channel arrived at the Partizan Portcullis. They found signs of an upcoming Pact plan that would destroy Partizan. Broun agreed with the rest of the group that instead of using this opportunity to leave the system, they would continue to fight to save Partizan.

During Operation Shackled Sun, Broun was part of a group in the Blue Channel that descended into Girandole to try and stop the gate there from opening. They then supported the efforts to fight the empowered Motion and dealt the final blow with Asepsis — a high crime in the eyes of the Principality and an act which created Kalmeria.

PALISADE

Spoiler warning! This section contains major spoilers for PALISADE. Tread carefully!

In PALISADE, having assumed the name Kalvin Brnine, they are the captain of the Blue Channel and the lead operative of the revolutionary cell of the same name, which is commanded by Gucci Garantine. At the start of the season, their crew consists of Thisbe, Phrygian, Figure, Coriolis Sunset, Hunting Tomorrow, Midnite Matinee, Routine Rennari, and Asepsis, who now lives under Brnine's bed. While the crew is on a mission to find a Fundament in the Diadem, they encounter two Twill people who are attempting to resurrect the Divine Palisade. Their plan fails, and instead the person who wakes up is the Delegate Partial Palisade.

During the next mission, Brnine attends a masquerade party on the Isle of the Broken Key with Phrygian while Thisbe, Figure, and Cori attempt to apprehend a person of interest to the Cause. During the party, Brnine has a strange encounter with a Nobel person who turns out to be Lattice, a speaker for the Affliction Refrain. They try to convince Lattice (and therefore Refrain) to join the Cause, and while they are unsuccessful, Refrain finds itself intrigued by them. When Brnine returns to the party itself, they learn first that Phrygian is being followed by a BIS spy and second that Cause leadership has tricked them: they are using Thisbe, Figure, and Cori as bait.

Following their return from the mission, Figure confesses to Brnine, Phrygian, and Hunt that they have been hiding something: they are still following orders from the Witch in Glass, who can use Figure to surveil the Blue Channel and its crew. Brnine declines to discipline Figure, and instead the team agrees to find a new source of magic that can keep Figure alive in order to free them from the Witch. Gucci orders the Blue Channel to go to Baseline for its next mission, but, with concerns about spies and resenting the Cause's choice to use them as bait, Brnine and their crew defy orders and go back to the Isle of the Broken Key to weed out BIS spies instead. They're relatively successful, but because they defied orders, many people in Baseline die. Cause leadership is furious.

In part because of the Blue Channel's actions on the Isle of the Broken Key, Stargrave Elcessor arms her stellar combustor and delivers an ultimatum: if any movement is made against the Bilateral Intercession, she will detonate it and end trillions of lives, and she will only disarm it if every leader of the Cause turns themselves in. Along with Phrygian and Routine, Brnine chooses to again defy Cause orders and go on a stealth mission to deactivate the stellar combustor.

Phrygian sacrifices themself to take every single stellar combustor in the Principality offline permanently, and Brnine and Routine are subsequently kidnapped by the Pact. Brnine is extorted into taking part in a filmed interview for Five Stels, Five Questions, and then given an audience with the Glorious Princept, Dahlia. Dahlia tries to recruit Brnine to their cause, but instead Brnine kills them. Brnine picks up the Divine Integrity from Dahlia's corpse and, moments later, is teleported back to the Blue Channel by Figure (with the help of Perennial's magic). Integrity comes back with them, and they put it in one of the fish tanks in which they used to keep Asepsis.

For a time most Bilats think Brnine is dead, until the Pact puts out word that it is looking for them. Brnine begins to leave the Blue Channel only in disguise. During a mission to recover the Diadem Gravtrain's "train brain", Brnine is caught by Dust's magic and falls into Thisbe's Dust dream. They meet Thisbe for drinks and have a conversation about Brnine's feelings that is so intense and, for Brnine, so uncomfortable that they both fail to clock anything strange about the world they're in. When Cori breaks everyone's dreams, however, Brnine approaches and communicates with Dust. Dust explains to Brnine what the train brain really is and agrees to let them leave with it.

Relationships

Agon Ortlights

Agon Ortlights is a starting connection for Broun in PARTIZAN. Their relationship with her is cooperative.

Gucci Garantine

In PARTIZAN, Broun's relationship with Gucci is mercenary: they exploit her by charging her for repairs on HORIZON mechs without going through the Scrivener's Guild. (Gucci apparently does not notice.) Gucci trusts Broun to remain quiet about her activities with HORIZON, and she occasionally contracts with SBBR for missions.

By PALISADE, Gucci has become Brnine's commander as the leader of the Cause's Blue Channel faction. While Keith has described their relationship as "fucked" and "terrible", Gucci genuinely cares about Brnine in a personal (and not merely professional) capacity, and Brnine claims to care about her too. Gucci confesses to Brnine that, when she first heard about Palisade, she imagined that she and Brnine could work together on the planet like (a romanticized version of) a Primary and a Satellite.

This section contains spoilers for PALISADE 29: Honesty and Integrity Pt. 2.
Click here to reveal.

Following Brnine's return from deactivating the stellar combustor and murdering the Glorious Princept, Gucci implies her feelings about them are romantic in nature. She credits their actions with showing her that the revolution provides possibilities beyond incremental reform.

This section contains spoilers for PALISADE 51: A Palette of Colors Pt. 6.
Click here to reveal.

When Clementine hands Future over to Brnine, Brnine glances past Clem to see Gucci smirking at them and receives a "selfish" vision from Future: themself leaving the Mirage with Gucci.

Jesset City

Brnine and Jesset likely first met prior to the beginning of PARTIZAN, when they were both employed by AdArm.

Phrygian

“

Captain ordered me to be their bestie.”

– Sylvi in reference to Phrygian and Brnine, "Worth the Trouble Pt. 2"

By the beginning of PALISADE, Brnine and Phrygian have become friends. Phrygian is Brnine's de facto first mate and bestie, with Brnine frequently lassoing Phrygian into special side missions with them.

This section contains spoilers for PALISADE 25: An Impossible Ideal Pt. 4.
Click here to reveal.

Phrygian's actions during the stellar combustor arc—their death, functionally if not literally—have a profound effect on Brnine, though the Blue Channel never does have a funeral for them.

In A Palette of Colors, Ali tried to claim two additional Questlandia goals for Brnine, but was denied by Austin. One of these additional goals was for Phrygian: "Bloody their noses."

Thisbe

“

Why does it matter if I’m happy here, but your happiness does not matter?”

– Thisbe, "Seize the Chance Pt. 5"

Brnine and Thisbe have a complicated relationship.

In the PALISADE era, the difference in wordcount in their texts to each other is similar to those between Elizabeth Holmes and Sunny Balwani. They have big divorced energy.

Inside of Thisbe's Dust dream, Brnine and Thisbe have an awkward but intense conversation about what home means to Brnine. Brnine tries to insist that the Blue Channel is their home, and when Thisbe asks them to look back further and tell her if there is anything in their life that they would like to go back to, Brnine can't come up with an answer. They try to deflect, pointing out that it's hard to settle down when they're a wanted fugitive, and Thisbe tells them that they cannot live inside the crimes they've committed.

Valence

Valence starts out as Broun's coworker and becomes a very important person to them over the course of PARTIZAN. Their relationship is intimate, singular, and very close. Broun and Valence develop a mutual telepathic connection during a visit to the baths after Broun learns about Valence's true form, and Valence agrees to help Broun find a way off of Partizan. They are stunned and overwhelmed when Valence keeps this promise by buying them the Blue Channel.

This section contains spoilers for PARTIZAN 41: Orbital Decay.
Click here to reveal.

Valence entrusts Broun with the coordinates to their homeworld, which they leave in a message on the Blue Channel. Broun doesn't discover this until after Valence's death.

Despite finding the revolution frustrating and professing no interest in the elections, they help Valence in their campaign as their campaign manager, purportedly out of self-interest. Ultimately, Valence is the person who convinces Broun to buy into the revolution in a genuine way.

This section contains spoilers for the PARTIZAN Post-Mortem.
Click here to reveal.

That Valence's death cuts short this important and transformative relationship also has a profound effect on Broun's life trajectory going forward. As Ali put it, "Broun and Valence weren't in a [romantic] relationship, but it doesn't matter for the rest of Broun's life."

The second Questlandia goal that Ali tried and failed to claim was for Valence: "Make life better."

Relationship Mechanics

Beliefs (Beam Saber)

Kalar Anakalar

• Kalar will prove useful if they don't break anything important. OR: Kalar is naïve and they're trying to endanger their family.

Phrygian

• Working well with Phrygian will improve my reputation.

Thisbe

• Thisbe is capable of more, and if I can get her to trust me, I can use that.
• Thisbe wants offworld too, and I want to know what she'd spend to do it.

Valence

• Valence has good connections, and hopefully if I impress them they'll lead me to people with deep pockets.
• Valence is someone who keeps their word.

Ver'million Blue

• I can count on Milli; I need to remember to watch her back if she's watching mine.
• Milli is chill and dependable. I hope she thinks the same about me.
• Milli has helped me at my most vulnerable. I’ll help her with whatever she needs.

Bond (Kingdom)

• I need Valence to keep their promise to me but I don’t believe they can.

Gravity clocks (Armour Astir)

• I should support Cori while she settles in.
  • Try to teach Cori when to stop and think.
• I want to understand Lattice.
• Levi will provide hope for the future.
• Thisbe doesn't think I'm significant.
  • Thisbe is an important part of my past.
  • Thisbe is an important part of my life.

Questlandia

• Eclectic: New crew member.
• Thisbe: Old friends. [Exhausted]

Abilities

Beam Saber

Experience as a mechanic and engineer has allowed Broun to develop their skills.

• Jury Rig: Broun can make vehicle damage less impactful on the vehicle for the length of a mission.
• Researcher: Broun may invent or craft a useful creation.
• Road Master: Broun knows how to wreck or destroy an area with experimental substances and methods so it is either impassable or good terrain to infantry and vehicles.
• Saboteur: When Broun wrecks, the work is much quieter than it should be and the damage is hidden from casual inspection. If they use placed explosives instead of wrecking tools the work is not any quieter but the action is more effective.

Armour Astir

• In Command: Brnine can command the Carrier's crew to act on their behalf.
• Tactical Genius: When supervising from afar during a Sortie, Brnine can lever their tactical know-how into better positioning for their allies.
• Force Multiplier: Brnine has access to Asepsis, which allows the Carrier and crew to operate better than usual, at the cost of it whispering in their ear and needing physical protection against damage.
• Selfless: Brnine can put themself in Peril to:
  • Defend someone from one source of incoming harm; or
  • Attempt something uncanny, superhuman, or unbelievable.
• Jury Rigger: Brnine can take random parts of objects and create something useful out of them.
• Born Leader: Brnine leads Sorties with advantage and passes on confidence to their crew. Other members of the Cause lean on them for strategic advice.

Possessions

• Bing 32 (floating drone)
• Bandolier of explosive and chemical weapons
• Fine engineering tools

Mech

Broun's mech in PARTIZAN is the Three Cheers!. This mech was bought from or given to them by Adamant Arms and Artifice, but Broun replaced the armor plates, giving it a patchworked look that advertises their skill. The plates are replaceable, and Broun has their own screwdrivers to replace them so they don't get stolen.

In PALISADE, they do not have a mech and are instead in charge of the Blue Channel and its NPC crew members during combat.

Trivia

• While working on "The Storm Over Cruciat" Austin made an edit of a scene between Broun and Valence with the song "MakeDamnSure" by Taking Back Sunday underneath. It can be found here.
• If Brnine was a Muppet, they would be Gonzo.

Gallery

• 

  Brnine's masquerade outfit from "The Canvas of Dreams", drawn by Ali.

• 

  Fanart by Arp.

• 

  Fanart by Si F Sweetman.

• 

  Fanart of the original Blue Channel party by vlasdygoth.

• 

  Fanart of Brnine and Phrygian by SeamonsterArt.

Quotes

“

Uh...listen, everyone. I know you're gonna be out there doing something important and risky, and...I'll see you when it's done.”

– Brnine's big captain speech before the stellar combustor mission, "An Impossible Ideal Pt. 1"