Prologue
Gonzaga, September 10th, 2021
Gonzaga, September 10th, 2021
Romina Bertrani, a woman in her early 30s, with dark eyes, and light brown hair, long enough to wear it down on her back tied on a tail, with a fringe covering her forehead. She stood heartbroken on the pavement in the historic center of Gonzaga as she saw her life's work just locked and closed off. She always dreamed of having a restaurant. In time, it evolved into becoming a music club. A place where the up and coming artists of Gonzaga were coming to sing live, and where even local recording studios came in with scouts to discover new talents. She was proud of what she achieved, but in the summer of 2021, everything started to unravel. Her husband, a Csengian, left her for an 19 year old student in Kispest, something that made her feel heartbroken, old and unwanted, but she quickly went over the heartbreak when the disappointment turned into anger towards him. Then, President Novak's policy of discrimination against non-Csengians started to be felt, and there were even reports of attacks against the Zarans in Kispest and Becs-Altstadt. Everything came to a boiling point where there was a revolution in Kispest which proclaimed a Socialist Republic, something that brought the end to the Pannonia she knew.
At that time, separatists proclaimed the Bourdignie Confederation and the the Eugenian Republic. She hoped that this would be the end of the Pannonian Crisis, but she was quick to discover it was only the beginning. Csengia turned into a reactionary fascist absolutist monarchy and was eyeing Eugenia too. People cared more of using the money they had to buy supplies for an imminent war or to get out the country, and when the Congress, which administered the Eugenian Republic as a directorial republic ordered a curfew in the capital, she saw her business die. Everything else that she held dear, just died. The time came for her to think if she wanted to still remain there, in Gonzaga, where she left that there was nothing left and a war was incoming, or if she wanted to escape, like tens of thousands of others. One last look inside her establishment, and then a gaze towards the paper that was stuck on the door, saying "Chiuso per il momento" (Closed at the moment). She could feel tears forming up, but she wiped them with her hand. She felt too exhausted after this whole monstrous summer to cry even more.
Romina took her phone and called for a taxi to take her home. She decided on something, it was clear that there is nothing left for her in Gonzaga and there was no reason for her to stay. Not even her parents, who moved to her mother's sister in Fehrbellin, in Rheinbund when the whole disollution of Pannonia took place. When the taxi came, she gave her the address and then phoned up her father. "Hey. You were right, I really need to leave," she said. "Yeah, I'll try and see if there's a train towards Rheinbund," she continued. The taxi driver listened to the conversation and when the finished the call, he turned towards her. "Excuse me, but regarding the idea to leave by train. I wouldn't recommend it," he said. "I cousin of mine tried to take a train from Gonzaga to Fehrbellin, and it was supposed to not have any stops at all in Western Zara or Csengia, but once it left the Eugenian Republic, Csengians stopped the train and arrested everyone having an Eugenian ID, some for being supposedly insurectionists, others for supposedly illegal crossing of the border," he said and that worried Romina. "How else could one leave the country?" she asked. "By plane is now the only safe way. It would be expensive though, but western nations like Natal said they would be sending planes and aid refugees," the taxi driver said.
She arrived home and started packing. She tried to check the websites of the airlines to see if any ticket that won't cost a huge wealth still exists, but she remembered that since the independence of Eugenia, the old Pannonian telecom companies were taken over by Csengia, and they literally blocked the Zarans and you needed VPNs to surf the web. But even so, she was sure she wanted to leave, so rather than lose time with VPNs. She packed what she saw an necessary, and then got to the airport on a taxi.
On the streets, she could saw masses of protesters, and at points, even tanks and security forces. Some were wearing banners calling for a socialist revolution, everything making her believe that it was a folly to regret leaving and that there is nothing left for her in Gonzaga. She arrived at the airport, where there was a huge crowd, clearly many sharing the same escape plans like her.
She went into the terminal and looked at the schedule, where there were many cancelled flights from Radilan Airlines, Dalmatian Air, Aerolinas de Palma, Pelasgian Airways, Cantas and even an interflug. There were 3 special charter flights from Cedar Airlines, two Rhein Eagle flights and an Aeroeste one still scheduled to arrive. The Cedar flights are the special refugee ones from Natal, and they're supposed to arrive in about 3 hours. In an hour a Rhein Eagle flight was leaving for Fehrbellin, the next one would leave in five hours for the same destination, while the Aeroeste flight was leaving for Amerida, the capital of Ebria in three hours.
Romina went to the Rhein Eagle booth, and was happy when she managed to get her hands on a very last minute ticket to Fehrbellin, even if she paid nearly 1,000 EM for it. She went past the security check and then sat herself down in the waiting room, when her attention was caught by the ruckus forming by the big windows overlooking the tarmac. She went there to see what's happening, and she could see a huge mob on the tarmac, with tanks and soldiers trying to block it, and a small governmental airplane landed and taxied right in front of the mob. She could barely see the whole scene, but could observe a man in white coming out of the plane, wearing a very pompous uniform and everyone around her was awed. Someone near her just muttered "El Presidente...". She too was quite awed by the show and a part of her hoped that this would mean that Eugenia is saved. She could see someone in another very pompous uniform, this time Zaran, going to meet him and then El Presidente waved towards the mob. The Josefino president started a speech in which he called the Zarans an oppressed people and talked about how great they were and how they are victims of some form of imperialistic conspiracy, and she could see the people going crazy about it, but her attention was caught by an announcement, a female voice stating that the Rhein Eagle flight to Fehrbellin has been cancelled as the plan didn't receive permission to land on the airport, because of the recent events. She could not but curse the Josefino president for this.
Romina went to the Rhein Eagle booth again, and was greeted by another woman working there. "Hi, regarding the cancelled flight, what can be done?" Romina asked. The woman only shook her head. "Sadly nothing. The surprise visit of president San Jose made company declare the airport an area too sensitive, as they fear a potential Csengian reaction, so they prefer to not have planes around," she said. "So... not even the 2nd flight is set to arrive?" Romina asked. "Sadly not. The flights will return only the on Monday, after the weekend," the woman said apologizing. Romina cursed and then asked for her money back, but of course it was a complicated process that could last quite some time and by the time she completed the form and was given her luggage back, she accepted the idea that she just wasted a thousand euromarks. She then turned again to the woman working on the Rhein Eagle booth. "Could you give any advice what I could do?" Romina asked, but the woman shrugged. "Most of the people here wait for the refugee chartered flights. The airport put only the Natalian ones there, but there are some going to Pelasgia, others to Radilo, and many to San Jose or Gran Occidentia, but to be honest, I wouldn't recommend them," she said. "Why not?" Romina asked, "They will be filled with people. The security said they expect nearly 10,000 people to come to the airport in search of refuge, considering the latest developments," the woman said. "The latest developments?" Romina asked dumbfounded. "Yeah, down on the tarmac was president Jose Constanza, and he met with General Leone. I received some calls and my partner told me to remain at the airport as he said that the army is on the march towards the governmental palace. They said a coup is ongoing and they will proclaim a socialist republic," she said. Romina started panicking and sweating. "Isn't there any other way at all to leave?" she asked desperately. "Try Aeroeste, they have a flight on the tarmac, and are preparing to leave for Amerida," she said. "Amerida? To Ebria? The other side of Gallo-Germania?" Romina asked, but the woman shrugged. "At least you're far away from here," the woman said.
Romina left and tried to phone her parents in Rheinbund but the no phones were working, so she decided that something must be done, because if not with this new coup, everything will go to hell and this might literally be the only way of leaving. Romina quickly crossed the huge waiting area, trying to find a representative of Aereste, because she knew that if she goes out to the check-in booth, the huge mobs outside will make it impossible for her to return or cross the security checks. She randomly found the gate the plane was supposed to leave from and went there. A man was there, wearing the green jacket over the white shirt and a golden tie, which made her think of the Correntine flag. She went to him and explained what happened. The man checked the system: "You're actually extremely lucky. There are actually 5 more empty seats that weren't reserved. Currently they're at 800EM," he said. A woman wearing the same uniform came towards them. Romina thought of it, thinking that she just lost 1000 EM to the Rheinbunders. Then an announcement came, stating that because of security reasons, no more people are allowed to cross the security checkpoints for the time being. This made it clear for it, it's literally the the only way out. She thought of her knowledge of Josefino, which wasn't the best, but she studied it for 4 years in high school, and Tiburan languages like Zaran, Radilan and Josefino were quite similar, so she could learn it easily. People started coming towards the desk and they clearly had the same ideas like her, so if she doesn't think fast, she'll lose it. She took her credit card out and paid the ticket to Amerida.
"What about the luggage?" the woman wearing the green uniform said and Romina looked at it. "It's a bit big but we'll still put it into the hold, as there's no more space," he said. Romina took her ticket, gave them the luggage and sat herself on a chair, waiting to get embarked. People started coming to the desk. The first four bought tickets too, but the rest nearly started a riot, and security had to be called. An announcement was then heard that the Aeroeste flight to Amerida will be delayed by an hour. Romina started panicking, but she could hear the two employees talk that it's only because the runway is occupied by the Josefino governmental plane. When the time has finally come for embarkment, a Correntine border official came and checked passports too, and they had their passport stamped with a special seal which stated "Emergency refugee status". The heard some people around her stating that this will give them a refugee visa in Ebria, and because of the nation's lex immigration system, it meant the right to permanent residence was secured. This was one of Romina's fears, that she would be forced to return, when things calm down, but she wondered if things do calm down, considering a coup is underway and Csengia dreams of conquering Eugenia.
On the plane, she was happy she had a window seat, but she was still stressed that they might be forced to disembark if the flight is cancelled, but when it started moving and she could hear the captain on the audio system say "Cabin crew, prepare for takeoff, " she managed to relax. The plane started humming as the engines went into full throttle and she could see Gonzanga's lights getting farther and farther away as the plane gained altitude. Little did she knew that this truly was the last flight out of Gonzaga for the next months and nearly 6 months later things would calm down, but by then, Zara had become a Duchy within the Kingdom of Csengia.
At that time, separatists proclaimed the Bourdignie Confederation and the the Eugenian Republic. She hoped that this would be the end of the Pannonian Crisis, but she was quick to discover it was only the beginning. Csengia turned into a reactionary fascist absolutist monarchy and was eyeing Eugenia too. People cared more of using the money they had to buy supplies for an imminent war or to get out the country, and when the Congress, which administered the Eugenian Republic as a directorial republic ordered a curfew in the capital, she saw her business die. Everything else that she held dear, just died. The time came for her to think if she wanted to still remain there, in Gonzaga, where she left that there was nothing left and a war was incoming, or if she wanted to escape, like tens of thousands of others. One last look inside her establishment, and then a gaze towards the paper that was stuck on the door, saying "Chiuso per il momento" (Closed at the moment). She could feel tears forming up, but she wiped them with her hand. She felt too exhausted after this whole monstrous summer to cry even more.
Romina took her phone and called for a taxi to take her home. She decided on something, it was clear that there is nothing left for her in Gonzaga and there was no reason for her to stay. Not even her parents, who moved to her mother's sister in Fehrbellin, in Rheinbund when the whole disollution of Pannonia took place. When the taxi came, she gave her the address and then phoned up her father. "Hey. You were right, I really need to leave," she said. "Yeah, I'll try and see if there's a train towards Rheinbund," she continued. The taxi driver listened to the conversation and when the finished the call, he turned towards her. "Excuse me, but regarding the idea to leave by train. I wouldn't recommend it," he said. "I cousin of mine tried to take a train from Gonzaga to Fehrbellin, and it was supposed to not have any stops at all in Western Zara or Csengia, but once it left the Eugenian Republic, Csengians stopped the train and arrested everyone having an Eugenian ID, some for being supposedly insurectionists, others for supposedly illegal crossing of the border," he said and that worried Romina. "How else could one leave the country?" she asked. "By plane is now the only safe way. It would be expensive though, but western nations like Natal said they would be sending planes and aid refugees," the taxi driver said.
She arrived home and started packing. She tried to check the websites of the airlines to see if any ticket that won't cost a huge wealth still exists, but she remembered that since the independence of Eugenia, the old Pannonian telecom companies were taken over by Csengia, and they literally blocked the Zarans and you needed VPNs to surf the web. But even so, she was sure she wanted to leave, so rather than lose time with VPNs. She packed what she saw an necessary, and then got to the airport on a taxi.
On the streets, she could saw masses of protesters, and at points, even tanks and security forces. Some were wearing banners calling for a socialist revolution, everything making her believe that it was a folly to regret leaving and that there is nothing left for her in Gonzaga. She arrived at the airport, where there was a huge crowd, clearly many sharing the same escape plans like her.
She went into the terminal and looked at the schedule, where there were many cancelled flights from Radilan Airlines, Dalmatian Air, Aerolinas de Palma, Pelasgian Airways, Cantas and even an interflug. There were 3 special charter flights from Cedar Airlines, two Rhein Eagle flights and an Aeroeste one still scheduled to arrive. The Cedar flights are the special refugee ones from Natal, and they're supposed to arrive in about 3 hours. In an hour a Rhein Eagle flight was leaving for Fehrbellin, the next one would leave in five hours for the same destination, while the Aeroeste flight was leaving for Amerida, the capital of Ebria in three hours.
Romina went to the Rhein Eagle booth, and was happy when she managed to get her hands on a very last minute ticket to Fehrbellin, even if she paid nearly 1,000 EM for it. She went past the security check and then sat herself down in the waiting room, when her attention was caught by the ruckus forming by the big windows overlooking the tarmac. She went there to see what's happening, and she could see a huge mob on the tarmac, with tanks and soldiers trying to block it, and a small governmental airplane landed and taxied right in front of the mob. She could barely see the whole scene, but could observe a man in white coming out of the plane, wearing a very pompous uniform and everyone around her was awed. Someone near her just muttered "El Presidente...". She too was quite awed by the show and a part of her hoped that this would mean that Eugenia is saved. She could see someone in another very pompous uniform, this time Zaran, going to meet him and then El Presidente waved towards the mob. The Josefino president started a speech in which he called the Zarans an oppressed people and talked about how great they were and how they are victims of some form of imperialistic conspiracy, and she could see the people going crazy about it, but her attention was caught by an announcement, a female voice stating that the Rhein Eagle flight to Fehrbellin has been cancelled as the plan didn't receive permission to land on the airport, because of the recent events. She could not but curse the Josefino president for this.
Romina went to the Rhein Eagle booth again, and was greeted by another woman working there. "Hi, regarding the cancelled flight, what can be done?" Romina asked. The woman only shook her head. "Sadly nothing. The surprise visit of president San Jose made company declare the airport an area too sensitive, as they fear a potential Csengian reaction, so they prefer to not have planes around," she said. "So... not even the 2nd flight is set to arrive?" Romina asked. "Sadly not. The flights will return only the on Monday, after the weekend," the woman said apologizing. Romina cursed and then asked for her money back, but of course it was a complicated process that could last quite some time and by the time she completed the form and was given her luggage back, she accepted the idea that she just wasted a thousand euromarks. She then turned again to the woman working on the Rhein Eagle booth. "Could you give any advice what I could do?" Romina asked, but the woman shrugged. "Most of the people here wait for the refugee chartered flights. The airport put only the Natalian ones there, but there are some going to Pelasgia, others to Radilo, and many to San Jose or Gran Occidentia, but to be honest, I wouldn't recommend them," she said. "Why not?" Romina asked, "They will be filled with people. The security said they expect nearly 10,000 people to come to the airport in search of refuge, considering the latest developments," the woman said. "The latest developments?" Romina asked dumbfounded. "Yeah, down on the tarmac was president Jose Constanza, and he met with General Leone. I received some calls and my partner told me to remain at the airport as he said that the army is on the march towards the governmental palace. They said a coup is ongoing and they will proclaim a socialist republic," she said. Romina started panicking and sweating. "Isn't there any other way at all to leave?" she asked desperately. "Try Aeroeste, they have a flight on the tarmac, and are preparing to leave for Amerida," she said. "Amerida? To Ebria? The other side of Gallo-Germania?" Romina asked, but the woman shrugged. "At least you're far away from here," the woman said.
Romina left and tried to phone her parents in Rheinbund but the no phones were working, so she decided that something must be done, because if not with this new coup, everything will go to hell and this might literally be the only way of leaving. Romina quickly crossed the huge waiting area, trying to find a representative of Aereste, because she knew that if she goes out to the check-in booth, the huge mobs outside will make it impossible for her to return or cross the security checks. She randomly found the gate the plane was supposed to leave from and went there. A man was there, wearing the green jacket over the white shirt and a golden tie, which made her think of the Correntine flag. She went to him and explained what happened. The man checked the system: "You're actually extremely lucky. There are actually 5 more empty seats that weren't reserved. Currently they're at 800EM," he said. A woman wearing the same uniform came towards them. Romina thought of it, thinking that she just lost 1000 EM to the Rheinbunders. Then an announcement came, stating that because of security reasons, no more people are allowed to cross the security checkpoints for the time being. This made it clear for it, it's literally the the only way out. She thought of her knowledge of Josefino, which wasn't the best, but she studied it for 4 years in high school, and Tiburan languages like Zaran, Radilan and Josefino were quite similar, so she could learn it easily. People started coming towards the desk and they clearly had the same ideas like her, so if she doesn't think fast, she'll lose it. She took her credit card out and paid the ticket to Amerida.
"What about the luggage?" the woman wearing the green uniform said and Romina looked at it. "It's a bit big but we'll still put it into the hold, as there's no more space," he said. Romina took her ticket, gave them the luggage and sat herself on a chair, waiting to get embarked. People started coming to the desk. The first four bought tickets too, but the rest nearly started a riot, and security had to be called. An announcement was then heard that the Aeroeste flight to Amerida will be delayed by an hour. Romina started panicking, but she could hear the two employees talk that it's only because the runway is occupied by the Josefino governmental plane. When the time has finally come for embarkment, a Correntine border official came and checked passports too, and they had their passport stamped with a special seal which stated "Emergency refugee status". The heard some people around her stating that this will give them a refugee visa in Ebria, and because of the nation's lex immigration system, it meant the right to permanent residence was secured. This was one of Romina's fears, that she would be forced to return, when things calm down, but she wondered if things do calm down, considering a coup is underway and Csengia dreams of conquering Eugenia.
On the plane, she was happy she had a window seat, but she was still stressed that they might be forced to disembark if the flight is cancelled, but when it started moving and she could hear the captain on the audio system say "Cabin crew, prepare for takeoff, " she managed to relax. The plane started humming as the engines went into full throttle and she could see Gonzanga's lights getting farther and farther away as the plane gained altitude. Little did she knew that this truly was the last flight out of Gonzaga for the next months and nearly 6 months later things would calm down, but by then, Zara had become a Duchy within the Kingdom of Csengia.
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