Miscellaneous Events in Listonia

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1

Evesuni’s Governmental Residence as it overlooks Leyuski Avenue during a military parade

“… and now we view the elite soldiers of the Listonian Military. Trained in the style and arts of Listonian warfare, these men and women represent the front lines of defense. It is truly an honorable position to hold in our glorious nation, one that brings glory to one’s family and ancestors! They march with the highest amount of discipline, strong as a united body, all for the freedom of their nation!” (The camera does a quick close-up of Stapen Evesuni, standing by a few other highly-dressed men of varying races) “No doubt their remarkable accomplishments bring praise from Father Evesuni, who watches them with unwavering pride! One can only imagine what strong words he is speaking to his cabinet as the sons and daughters of the Listonian Socialist Republic march past his office!” (The camera quickly pans outward as Evesuni extinguishes a cigarette and coughs heavily)

“You need to stop smoking in public. It’s bad for your image.”

Stapen looked up at the other older vulpine next to him. “It doesn’t matter, Leon. This position is wearing me down. I need it to stay sane.” He stopped his friend’s potential rebuttal with a simple hand gesture. “End of discussion. You don’t have to weigh the burdens I do.”

“But you have to consider your image with the public, Stap. Play the game and all.”

“I’m tired of playing the game.”

“And I’m tired of hearing you bitch. Look, you either do it or don’t. We’ll find someone else who does if you don’t.”

“Relax. Just… don’t worry about it. It’s not your position to worry about, it’s mine. And I don’t need no one breathing down my neck either. You have your job, I have mine. That’s the end of it all.”

Leon only glanced at the marching soldiers below them as he watched Stapen light another cigarette. “So, another Listonian growing season is upon us, eh?”

“It is. We’ll need to make sure things go smoothly. We, as a nation, had a good year due to the high spirits of being liberated as well as a very accommodating growing season. If we’re going to keep moving toward an advanced nation like our neighbors, we’re going to have to count on a good season again, as well as starting up those southern oil fields.” He paused. “We should also meet with whatever allies we have left. We need that corridor this year if the growing season is predicted to be a bad one.” He removed one of his gloves to put out an errant match on the leather as he exposed a very visible portion of bare skin on the back of one hand, raw and scabbed over.

“What the hell’s that? You sick or something?”

“I’ve been sick for a while. But that… forget about it. It’s a nervous condition, nothing more. Some people chew on pens, some rub their chins, I pull on the fur on my hands.”

Leon shook his head and let out a frustrating sigh. “Weak, stupid country boy. You’ll need to cover that up somehow, especially after the growing season starts once it gets warmer, maybe even some minor surgery to get some implanted at least. And if you tear out more fur, I’m going to skin your goddamned hands. Then you’ll have an excuse to leave them alone.”

“Since when did you become my father?”

“I’m not your damned father, I don’t drink nearly as much as he did. But you’re their father!” He pointed to a large mural painted against one of the buildings lining the avenue portraying Evesuni holding a red star in the foreground in front of jubilant people of different races looking in the direction of the star. “To them, you’re their father, the hero of Listonia. Not me, not any of us, but you!”

“Yeah… yeah, don’t remind me.”

2

Sitting at his desk, the dictator of Listonia tapped his pen as he stared out toward the main entrance of his office. It was becoming increasingly difficult for him to concentrate towards the daily tasks of running a nation. One year of his post seemed to age him ten years. While he was more careful and reserved as a typical leader should be, he certainly didn’t view himself as one. Consequently, that created invisible walls in his thought process, restricting what he wanted to do and what he felt his nation was capable of. Coupled with a congress that was practically a conglomerate of yes-men and various figureheads of criminal organizations, the walls quickly turned into bars, as now he had to consider the reactions of them and the people as well. After all, another “sudden” series of deaths and abdications worked fine the first time it was set into motion, but probably wouldn’t bode well for a second time. No, these bars were a much stronger iron now, strain-hardened and cold-drawn over the course of one year.

“It was easier when I could just eradicate whoever didn’t agree with me,” he thought, halfheartedly to himself. He knew he didn’t want to work things the way his younger self did, learning the lessons both on both moral and practical levels. But it was much more difficult to get what he wanted, and people had a way of bringing his darker side out of him. Plus, as his old friend said, he’s now a family man, not a terrorist or even a pagan-savage as Max Venavle once called him. People young and old look to him as a sort of hero, but the only problem is he knew he never played such a role before with any style or grace. Sure, perhaps in the eyes of his people and those who fought with him he was, but his nation could never progress as long as the rest of the world knew him as a terrorist. And while it was easy to convince one nation - his nation - of his heroism, he knew outside of the borders it would always be a different story.

He sighed, extinguishing a cigarette in an ashtray already laden with over one dozen butts.

Furthermore, it was difficult to warm up to a nation that had been cold to him before. While he was smart enough to know Listonia would surely die without Vekaiyun support - he hated to keep a strong reliance upon them. A lot of it had to do with how he was treated by Venavle when he begged the man for some form of support, only to be ridiculed and practically thrown out of the nation. A lot also had to do with the near-sudden mockery of the Kral Commodore pretending to be his daughter, who had died from that despicable train wreck all those years ago, acting like the final straw, surrendering all he knew and immersing himself in anger and crime. After all, he was too weak to fight back for what they did to him, so why not take their money and give them a monkey on their back to boot? Selling drugs to the Vekaiyuns proved to be the easiest “war” to fight - pay off enough people, and they’ll allow anything to cross over the border and into various cities across that nation. Without it, he would’ve never been able to maintain a rebel presence in Sevropia or Dveria, so perhaps he should be a little thankful for them. Heck, the trafficking across the continent was partly to blame for the quick emergence of Listonia as a stable state. And as long as the fallout was a problem for other countries, well, that would be perfectly fine. Perhaps in four hundred years they’d ask Listonia to liberate them from their own problems, instead of the long wait Listonia had to endure while the rest of the continent ignored their position.

While he knew his motives were dark, he didn’t see himself as being evil. Perhaps the works he did were evil, or maybe the way he dealt with people could be classified as evil, but he didn’t believe he himself was evil. What happened to him was most decidedly evil, he believed, as well as what happened to his people. And while perhaps it wasn’t right to answer evil with evil, it seemed to be the way the world worked. Evil only responds to evil. Hatred, to the world, is only a challenge to overcome that hatred with more hatred, like some sinister poker game where every player has expendable income, betting away their money, their people, their bombs and guns, anything to avoid folding. Almighty help the world if anyone ever decided to go all in.

As he turned his back to his office, the vulpine looked outside his window to view the purple-red hues of the setting winter sun. It was getting late. He would be wanted later tonight for a public party involving his supportive words to Andrey Solveseesay, the first Listonian to fly in space. A younger vulpine man, the boy would probably look up to him as a father, like the rest of the nation did, eagerly waiting for his supportive words, regardless of their meaning or length. Wait. Perhaps it was tomorrow, or the day after that. He couldn’t remember. As his gaze trickled down to his hands, his eyes flowing around the channel-like veins winding across the barren backs of the flesh, he knew he had to take a break regardless. Though only forty-five, he swore he was at least seventy by the staggering he had in his step a he carried hundreds of pounds of vine-like burdens on his back in a daily attempt to maybe cut down one before ten grew from the tangled mess.

Letting out a final sigh, he reached for another cigarette, but quickly put it down. Instead, he opened a nearby laptop and set to work on his next task.

— Begin quote from ____

FROM THE DESK OF KIVO STAPEN EVESUNI

Kral Commodore Levinile,

I wish to meet with you regarding the current relations of our two nations, as well as discuss the current state of the Elephene corridor. It is paramount that some form of a resolution is finalized quickly, as rumors of a harsh growing season may necessitate the need for that corridor more now than ever. I hope to see you shortly in Ye’leli, as I am unable to travel to Vekaiyu at this time. Good day.

In regards,
Kivo Evesuni.

— End quote

3

— Begin quote from ____

Kivo Stapen Evesuni,

Certainly. It would be nice to work out a solution to the corridor issue, but I will have to check with my superior first, as I must request clearance from Kivia McEva prior to any departure. I will be sure to

— End quote

“What are you writing?”

Ikrisia looked up from her laptop. “Just an email to… some old man who asked me a question.”

Selvala squinted her eyes as if she was in thought, then seemed to shrug off the instance with a more reassuring exhale. “It’s times like this I often wonder if Leyuski promoted you to Kral Commodore just to curse us. It’s by my grace alone you haven’t been fired, and the very fact we haven’t been nuked due to your lacking military prowess is a miracle to me.” She scoffed as the fire in the room cracked and popped, seemingly adding to the ridicule. “Why do I keep you on in that position anyway? Almighty knows I’m more qualified, being a Ler Commodore back when you were… well, what was it? Working in some special operation?”

“I’ve kept the ranks organized and made certain everyone is on task,” she replied, half in a monotone voice, but with hints of sternness peppered in with sarcasm. Her eyes seemed to look passed her, to the flames in the fireplace rather than those in her superior’s eyes. “We’re prepared, but concealed our numbers and technology enough to expose any blatant holes in our system.”

“Holes, you say?”

“Well, no military is perfect. To believe so is ludicrous… M’lady.”

“I know that,” Selvala replied as she clicked her heals against the cold tile floor, her form stepping out of the light of the moon from the tall windows and into the light by the fire. “But I expect such things to be as close to one hundred percent as possible. Preparation is an absolute, little one. I want to ensure that everything is on the level when it comes to our military. For, if we are attacked, some of our lives may not be worth living for.” She turned to Ikrisia. “Do you understand?”

“Yes, M’lady.”

“Good. Now then, Leyuski had ideas about expansion before his untimely… disappearance, as the papers seemed to call it. I echo his concerns. Perhaps it is time to expand. The southern lands dumping into Packilvania would be an excellent acquisition, and as they are working their ways in Tasselvalta, it would be prime to seize land touching the southern tip of Vekaiyu. Our sources have indicated if the southern areas of Listonia are primed for oil drilling, perhaps the area extends downward.”

“But why wouldn’t the Packilvanians drilled that land dry by now?”

“You are not to ask questions, kral commodore, only receive orders. There is much you don’t know about the situation and, due to your sketchy past and short tenure as chief commander of the Vekaiyun armed forces, one should expect a certain lack of trust for you.” She paused as she walked toward the exit. “I ask you only to consider this. I will speak to a number of generals before presenting you a plan of attack. If we are to go ahead with such an attack, your so-called organization may come in handy.”

Ikrisia watched as Selvala left the room. “That’s my job, stupid bitch,” she muttered as her eyes followed the shadow she cast from the other room. As soon as the shadow disappeared, she opened her laptop and quickly edited her message.

— Begin quote from ____

Kivo Stapen Evesuni,

Certainly. It would be nice to work out a solution to the corridor issue. I’ll depart for Ye’leli in the morning tomorrow via train, and I should arrive in the mid afternoon. Please keep in contact so we can develop a time and a point of rendezvous.

Sincerely,
Ikrisia

— End quote

4

The arrival at the Ulsey Station was ushered in by a cloud of steam from the breaks of the tremendous vehicle. Ikrisia gazed out from her cabin’s window to the people of varying ages and varying backgrounds, doing their best to avoid blending into the background of the open-air scenery behind them. Such a sight intrigued her - they looked picturesque as a whole, like they were meant to all be together. It seemed as if their misfortunes as a people was their benefit; despite being uniquely different in race, they molded together to create a type of hybrid culture. Distinctively “Listonian”, their differences faded with similar histories, making unity a necessity rather than a chore.

Her gaze carried her to the back of the crowd where Evesuni stood, attempting to blend in with his people as a handful of guards kept him a safe distance from the masses. She noticed he began to walk toward the steel beast, so she stood from her seat and stepped down from the train. A gloved hand extended gently in front of her as she quickly grasped it, departing from the vehicle in a subtle manner.

“How was the voyage?” The Listonian dictator spoke in his improper Unonian accent. He used his other hand in front of him to cut down on the glare from the sunlight reflected from the snow.

“Fine, thank you.” Ikrisia began to walk with Evesuni as she gazed out at the view the horizon in front of her - smokestacks to the right, cranes to the left - all spattered with various buildings of differing height. “Now I understand why Ye’leli is nicknamed ‘The City of the Cranes’”, she remarked with a slight smile.

Stapen Evesuni paused at the sudden comment. “Well, we can’t build well during the winter time, so for now they remain frozen. It gets more interesting when they start moving around.”

Ikrisia nodded. She looked at Evesuni through the corner of her eye, hoping not to catch any attention from it. She hadn’t seen the dictator since she was last thrown out of his office for ‘disgracing his family.’ Why he suddenly requested audience with her was odd - perhaps he was more subdued than when she last met him. Maybe he had accepted her belief - that she was his daughter, and was finally going to maybe begin to explain more about her family. Or, maybe she was too delusional - she knew of the importance of that corridor, and, after all, he didn’t really look like a man to warm up to. At least, not in person. That, and she had increasingly wanted to know where she came from. Evesuni was more than a convenient fit.

“I’ll take you to my office. I’ve drawn up preliminary borders for a Listonian corridor that I plan to present to other world leaders. I hope to reach some type of agreement… but…” He looked up as he noticed he was still in a crowded place. “I’ll go over the details later.”

“I understand.”

Ikrisia was more concerned with the ice on the pavement than anything else at this point. Her boots were slick on the bottom and weren’t really designed for such hazardous conditions. It was inevitable that she would slip and fall. But, as her footing gave way, her tumble was halted by a quick grab from the Listonian dictator, his gloved hands grabbing hers as he effortlessly held her up. This, of course, followed an awkward silence, and an awkward stare.

Evesuni dropped his grip and immediately turned to one of his guards. “When we get back to my door, I want all of your identification numbers so I can make sure your fired on the spot! If the Kral Commodore of Vekaiyu were to… break something, we’d be neck-deep!”

“Nono, it’s okay,” Ikrisia said as she put a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t fire them. It’s not like I’ve never fallen before.”

Evesuni looked back at her, but it was difficult to tell if it was one of concentration or just simply a glare. “Get your hand off me,” he finally responded, shaking his shoulder free. A slight sigh soon followed as he subtly motioned the Kral Commodore to follow him further. Ikrisia bit her tongue, echoing the sigh as she tried to keep up, two guards keeping close watch on her in case she fell again.

5

“Coffee? Tea?”

“No, no thank you.”

“Good. Let us begin.”

The dictator folded his hands, crudely covered in bandages to suggest anything could be responsible for the peculiar malady, onto his desk with hundreds of etched markings, written partly in text, partly in symbols, and partly in lines and swirls. “I invited you here as our nation’s greatest ally and, due to the alliance, we are able to share secrets with one another. It is well known that Listonia has demanded for quite some time the necessity of a corridor to Lake Miiyu to facilitate trade. But, nothing was done of the matter. Still, we’re landlocked on the eastern side. Still, we’re left waiting and choking the Elephene neighbors in hopes that they’ll eventually gasp and we’ll get our land. Nothing. And, with the projection of an unfavorable growing season looming, the corridor becomes even more important. We may have to go back on our word and use force to obtain it.”

“I still don’t understand,” Ikrisia said, unsure as to where to rest her elbows, then finally decided to rest them on a piece of unrecognizable text and what looked to be a group of planets. “Why does Listonia require a corridor to that lake? Can’t they accept a city on the lake and go from there?”

Evesuni shook his head. “If we were a more technology-based nation like yours, that may be possible. But we transport grain, oats, meat, vegetation. Food. Heavy materials that would cost much money to send by plane to a city, only to be dumped into a boat and sailed across. Oceanic transport is the cheapest and easiest method of transport, followed by rail, but with the underdeveloped rail systems of Rykkovva and the deteriorating systems of Elehphene, transport to the east is severely limited. We can’t force those nations to not only build, but maintain an adequate rail system. We can force our way to the lake, though.”

“Doing that would cause you to fall out of favor on the world spectrum.”

Evesuni gave a wry smile. “There’s not much else I can do to fall out of more favor with half of these nations. To them, I’m simply a terrorist and an overall “bad guy”.”

Ikrisia grimaced. “Simply subjecting the corridor to dual-governing could be disastrous too, I guess.”

“It would be a temporary solution, but would only make problems worse. If both nations govern a territory, both nations would eventually only want it for themselves. But, if I attack, in one week it will all be over. Our borders will open up to Elephana, removing the embargo. We will have what was promised to us.”

“You were only promised a city.”

“We need an adequate path to that city. That goes without saying.”

Sighing, Ikrisia gazed outside of Evesuni’s window, watching the setting sun behind him as the snow fell. “You will be mowed down by the foreign opposition.”

“They will do nothing, for fear of my WMD’s.”

“And they won’t use theirs on you for invading Elephana?”

“I don’t think so. They, like the rest of the nations in this realm, are lead by money, not by a stand or a belief. If Listonia and Vekaiyu lift their embargoes on Elephana, that prevents the financial drain of Shivat and Drakkengard. They no longer have to keep pouring money into their economy to prevent them from turning into a veritable wasteland. It’s a simple solution, and everyone wins.”

Ikrisia paused. “But it’s wrong to do that. There should be a better solution.”

“If I do nothing, Elephana suffers in addition to Listonia. And it becomes a sitskreig of vain for the likes of Drakkengard and Shivat, continuously pumping money into a nation against our wishes, right next door to us. Which one is wrong? The one who does something to liberate the situation, or the one that continues it?”

“And you? Do you fight for a stand, or fight for money?”

Evesuni paused as he leaned back in his chair. “Both. Initially it was a stand. But I quickly realized money is needed to make a louder stand.”

“You could be so much more, you know?” Ikrisia said as she flashed a look back at him. “You used to fight for a cause, believe in your hardest of hearts that every person deserves to be free, yet you’re holding the chains of another nation at bay, demanding more land and more money for others while taking it from someone else! It’s hypocritical!”

“Hypocritical?”

“Yes!” she shouted as she pounded a fist on his desk.

“Hypocritical… we can talk about hypocritical… about your nation promising to free us four hundred years ago. Or about your former leader promising to liberate us, only to get cold feet and attack elsewhere. But, yet, your nation is strong, powerful, compassionate, and listens to all, because no one understands the abused vulpine race!”

“We had many hardships! You’re vulpine too!”

“But do you see the error in your analysis? Don’t you see that your anger is displaced? Because, for as abused as Vekaiyu claims to be, they had a fairly good era while Listonia was at the mercy of three occupying nations.”

“That doesn’t make it right, though.”

“Sometimes you have to do a little wrong to make things right.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“Whatever you say, Kral Commodore. That is a dangerous position to take when your the military leader of a strong nation.”

“That is my position, Kivo Evesuni. You don’t tell me how to do my job.”

“Then you don’t tell me how to do mine!” Evesuni barked. He dropped his shoulders as he slid his hands from his desk, still throbbing from smacking the wood with a hefty amount of force. “I’m not telling you these things as if I’m after your opinion. These are the options that I must choose. I want to hear if your nation would support it or reject it. That is all.”

“Maybe we haven’t made our decision yet. Any decision made has to get passed me first, because I’m the one in charge of the bombs.”

“I see.” Evesuni folded his hands over his face, exposing only his eyes. “Then perhaps I should go over your head to talk to Kivia McEva.”

“She thinks you’re nothing but a pawn and you know it! She’d sooner get rid of you and just incorporate Listonia directly into Vekaiyu, under her rule, with you thrown by the wayside.”

The Listonian dictator stared directly into Ikrisia’s eyes for an uncomfortably long period of time. The apparent standoff was difficult for her, but she couldn’t understand why. Resting in the back of her mind was the well-documented disappearance of those in the Listonian congress who opposed Evesuni. She didn’t move, but instead decided to go over any possible scenario in her head as to what his next move would be. After all, her former training would be more than enough to overpower him if he did anything with bad intentions.

“Well, what would I do to gain your favor then, Kral Commdore?”

Ikrisia paused. “I want to trust you, Kivo Evesuni. I don’t believe you’re an evil terrorist like the rest of the world has painted you as. But I don’t want to second guess anything either. I want to see your words speaking through your actions. By the time I’ve finished, I want to trust you like a… father.”

Stapen Evesuni scowled. “Very well, Kral Commodore.”

6

The limousine from Stapen Evesuni’s office was flanked with two black cars with black-tinted windows, most likely used in case there was any trouble on the road, no doubt. Still, the limo at least had the Listonian flag on its radio antenna, keeping the “friendly” charm that, even with the foreboding appearance on the road, Evesuni wasn’t too far from his people. Even so, what sort of trouble could they expect from a ruler who had a 98% approval rating?

“So, tell me about yourself,” Ikrisia opened as she closed the door to the vehicle. She watched as Evesuni’s facial expression didn’t change; obviously he wasn’t one to really share such information openly. “Please. I’m honest in what I said, and won’t fall back on my word. Gain my trust, and that corridor is closer to you than ever before.”

“So you’re bending your rules to get what you want, the very thing you accused me of doing?”

“That’s irrelevant for the time being. I offered you a deal, and you accepted. You’re honest enough to hold up a deal, aren’t you?” She smiled slightly.

Evesuni moved his jaw to the side as he propped his head up with a bandaged hand, rolling his eyes, but stopping himself, remembering his position as a leader and what his friend said about being more flexible. “What do you want to know?”

“How about where you came from. What was your childhood like? What were your parents like?”

Evesuni looked back at her. “My father was an alcoholic. When he wasn’t beating my mother, he was beating me. I worked out in the fields from sunup to sundown, because my father didn’t do any work.”

“He didn’t work at all?”

“He did work, but it usually made more work for me. He was a horrible farmer, but Dveria was strict with the quotas from our crop production, so somehow we needed the work to finish. In school, I was a below-average student.” He sighed. “Most of my education didn’t come until I was an adult. But, like any other kid, I picked fights, acted out in school, smoked, and played by the freight yards.”
ii
“Most kids in Vekaiyu don’t do that.”

“Pre-revolution Listonia was a different place.”

“So you were poor, I take it?”

Evesuni nodded, his eyebrow held up by a finger from his propped hand. “I had the same pair of pants for ten years. They were baggy on me when I was young, and tight when I was a teenager. I eventually took a few pairs of my father’s pants when I left home, and his were big on me too. Had it not been for suspenders, I would’ve been a very drafty young adult.”

Ikrisia smiled, which merited no response from Evesuni. “You left home. How did that work out? I mean… I mean, was it worth it?”

“My mother died when I was fifteen. There wasn’t anything left for me in that hellhole, so I took a freight train out of there. I spent a lot of time wandering around, eating whatever I could find and occasionally taking on an odd job for a farmer or tenant that needed a hand or whatever. Just doing anything to stay out of trouble.”

“Were you ever arrested?”

“Yeah. A few times, but I don’t really remember for what. Probably for fighting or stealing. But when you’re hungry, stealing doesn’t seem like such a bad thing, does it?”

“I guess not.”

The Listonian dictator smiled. “You’ve never been hungry before, have you?”

“I have,” Ikrisia muttered. “But I couldn’t steal for it.”

“Ah. You wouldn’t let yourself.”

“No… I didn’t believe it was right, but I really couldn’t. My childhood was… well, it was kind of controlled. It’s not that important anyway.” She paused as Evesuni again remained silent. “You said you were married.”

“I was.”

“Well, how did that happen?”

Evesuni sighed. “She was a miller’s daughter. Taught me how to read and write properly, not in the scribbles I tried to put on paper. She’d give me extra food from her family’s home for me, and would keep me company when I’d hide in a nearby barn, trying to keep warm during the winter and safe during the summer. I think we first met when I tried to steal some of her father’s shoes from their doorstep.” He paused. “Yeah. She was going to get him, but she… suddenly stopped. She looked directly into my eyes and gave a nod. Of course I was too dumb to really value such a nice gesture back then, but I learned. She taught me all of that.” He started to laugh slightly. “She was always wanting to be with me. We’d walk for hours, and she’d try and teach me things along the way. Like math. She was incredibly gifted, and all that seemed like magic to me. But she taught me more than that. She taught me what love was, what it meant to care for someone and look for the good in something bad. She deeply cared about our people, something I didn’t grasp at the time either. She was a remarkable girl, and remarkably strong. But she saw something in me. It made me believe in myself, a valuable lesson not everyone is privileged with having learned.”

“I see. Did her parents eventually accept you?”

“They didn’t know. They’d never approve of me, especially with how old I was. I was seventeen when we married, she was twelve. I… don’t know if they suspected anything, but they probably did when they found her missing.”

“You kidnapped her?”

“No, we both decided to run away together. The town had become suspicious of drifters and, with the bad growing season, the whole area came under speculation. Dverian police were everywhere. Only I was going to leave, but she wanted to come with me. I always regretted making her choose me over her family, but I wasn’t necessarily thinking things through at that time. I was more worried about myself, and thought maybe she’d be better without me. But she insisted. So, we headed south, but stopped when she realized she was pregnant. I did the only thing I could - I married her and sold whatever I could for a small part of land, as someone had pity on us and allowed us to work for him. It was on that land I built a house. It wasn’t really a house, but we managed a winter in it, and a birth, and pretty much whatever else life would throw at us.”

Ikrisia nodded. “I see.”

“The rest is history. The person I bought the land from fell back on his quota and he was removed from the land. We were… also removed.”

“I remember you telling me about this,” Ikrisia said. “They burned her.”

Evesuni looked back at her. “Yeah. More or less.”

“But why her and not you?”

He shook his head. Finally, he sighed. “They flipped a coin. Back then, they were all about setting examples. If you keep people around the killing alive, it’s like teaching them something by force. Plus, the gossip gets around. It all makes people afraid to react to such a terrible thing.” He paused, and looked to be staring right past Ikrisia. “I went back to our home years later, in the hopes I could find her and give her at least a proper burial. Such things are important to me, but her body was long gone, probably the soil which the house had fallen on. I took what I could from that house, and left it to decompose.”

Ikrisia nodded as the limousine continued to follow down various streets and avenues. The sky was darker now that the sun had set, but there was enough light in Ye’leli to at least tell they were definitely in a dense area of the city. Perhaps this meant they were closer to their destination, but, for someone who knew next to nothing about the town, she couldn’t say for certain.

7

“…Truly, his bravery is the essence of the new generation of free Listonians, a generation of people with different species and backgrounds, working together for the betterment all and the pursuit of knowledge. It is these early accomplishments that will define the new state of Listonia and her people. These heroes will live in infamy, and remain nestled in the heart of the nation, forever chanting, pushing us to seek higher heights, and reach the very stars that followed us in good times and bad.” Evesuni paused as the crowd in the highly-ornate ballroom applauded appropriately, focusing their attention on the speaker along with millions watching from television. He turned to the honored vulpine male, wearing a prim-and-proper Listonian military uniform. “Andrey, you are a young man who has chosen to serve his state in a way not many can. As you ascend farther and farther away from the ground in your rocketship built by the intellect of our great nation, never forget that the people will have you in our prayers. I have no doubt in your abilities, and I am certainly proud of your efforts, you, native son of Listonia, your courage is the embodiment of our people. Honor you have bestowed onto us, and the world!” Reaching out with a gloved hand, Stapen shook the young man’s other hand, his face brimming with pride and excitement after Evesuni’s moving speech. The crowd roared with jubilation.

“Father Evesuni has just given Kivio Andrey Solveseesay his blessings for the Suvej 2 space mission, becoming the first Listonian ever in space!” A young female reporter summarized as she stared into a camera next to the podium. “While the Chairman addressed the brave young man in his words, one cannot forget Kivo Evesuni’s special commandment for all citizens - to become heroes of a new Listonia, a proud Listonia, serving their state in the best way possible! We should heed his words and always work together for the betterment of the state!”

Ikrisia watched the entire production from a seat to the side of the audience, reserved for more important people.

“And who might you be?”

Ikrisia looked up, gazing at an older vulpine male bearing a half-smile. “Ikrisia Levinile, Kral Commodore of Vekaiyu. And you are…?”

“Oh, pardon me,” he replied, sitting down next to her. “I didn’t know I was in the presence of such a powerful person! Forgive my manners - Evesuni doesn’t always tell me everything that goes on in our nation sometimes. Anyway, I am Leon Iseneri, congressman and longtime friend of Evesuni. It is a pleasure to meet you, Kral Commodore.”

“Please, I’m approachable enough to not need such an opening.” She smiled. “You’ve known Evesuni for a long time?”

He nodded. “I wouldn’t have said so if it wasn’t true. Lived next to him for a time, gave him blankets when it was cold, traded supplies with him, even patched his roof once when snow weighed it down. You know, the common stuff neighbors do for each other.” He winked. “But, between you and me, he’s nothing but an educated farm kid.”

She nodded. “I’ve learned a little about him, yeah.”

“Oh? Was it followed with dinner and a movie?” He waited for Ikrisia to flash a confused look. “Relax, I’m only kidding. He’s just private about his past, you know? I mean, everyone is, but it’s more with him. Just odd is all. You know?”

“I guess,” Ikrisia replied as she folded her legs. She looked back at the congressman. “And you? What about you?”

“Me? Why would anyone want to know a congressman’s past?” He smiled again, obviously enjoying pulling her leg.

“I’m a curious person. It helps me put a face to your nation. And since we’re supposed to be allies, well, it’s probably important I at least know some important figures.”

“Important? Well, why don’t you talk to that spaceman they’re honoring. I hear he’s the embodiment of the future of Listonia. Imagine that, his body should be huge by now.”

She laughed slightly at the bad joke. “Well, go on then. I’m curious, and the people around us will just mingle anyway.”

He smiled. “There’s not much to know. Born and raised a stonecutter in the south, then moved to fight in the resistance. Didn’t really do much of anything important other than that. I just liked blending in, you know? Not too involved in the daytime, partying in the evenings. Even at my age, that’s still my life.” He laughed.

Smiling, Ikrisia tried to make sense of the old vulpine male. “Has Evesuni ever spoken to you about his family?”

Leon furrowed his brow. “No, at least I don’t recall. I seem to remember him having a wife, but outside of that, nothing substantial.” He shrugged. “Some people are private, you know? Why do you ask?”

“He spoke to me about it. About how he got married and what eventually happened to his wife.”

Ikrisia watched as his face darkened. Leon gave a slight nod. “Yeah, that. Those were hard times for all of us.” He paused, then smiled. “Well, I should probably cut this conversation a little short - us congressmen are busy as usual these days. We should talk again - I’d like to know just what you’re doing in Listonia anyway - probably learning our vast secrets, am I right?”

She shook her head, but quickly realized he was only joking. “Sure,” she said with a smile.

8

Sitting on the bed of her assigned bedchamber, Ikrisia gazed out toward the city. How ironic that it was eleven pm, yet Ye’leli barely missed a beat. People were still outside, even some shops within the marketplace they passed on the way back toward the governmental center were still open, no doubt. It was an interesting medley, at least, a conglomeration of different cultures gave the city its own unique flavor, something that was highly lacking in her Vekaiyu. Still, it was probably a better place to visit than live in. Listonia, for what she knew, was still unstable, and with the variety of religions, backgrounds, and cultures, everyone seemed to be waiting for the state to deteriorate, but it didn’t.

Suddenly, she heard the door open. “Hello?” she inquired.

“Is there anything you need before you retire to sleep?” Evesuni asked. He stepped back when he noticed Ikrisia was wearing only a simple striped dressing gown, as if he was impeding.

“No, I’ll be fine.” She motioned for him to come closer, to which the Listonian dictator responded by walking slowly closer to her. “Have you lived in Listonia all your life?”

Evesuni grimaced as he braced another round of potential questions. “Yes, I have.”

“How does it work? You know, all the cultures not hating each other.”

He paused. “When people suffer together, it brings them closer together. It’s not a vulpine emotion, nor is it solely a human one. Present a big enough problem, and people will attempt to find the answer, even if it means dropping their pride and their favoritism for at least a passing moment. It’s reason why Listonia remains undivided.”

“Will it always remain undivided? I mean, your opinion, of course.”

He shrugged. “I can’t control that. One day I’ll be dead, and someone else will have to run the nation. If he or she does a bad job, the nation will dissolve. If he or she keeps things running well, the nation will respond with harmony. One thing that must not be forgotten is the past. Once the past is forgotten, all that struggle and unity, all is lost. Because then people will forget what we fought for, and that will be the death of this nation.”

“Does that scare you?”

“I don’t get scared.”

“That’s a bull-headed response. Everyone gets scared. Everyone’s scared of something, but it doesn’t have to be out of fear. It can be out of worry too.”

He sighed. “It is dangerous to get involved in such conversations when the two speakers hold different positions of power.”

“It’s off the table, don’t worry about it. I’m not malevolent. Do you fear one day Listonia will dissolve and divide?”

Stapen put his hands on his knees as he sat down next to her on the bed. He faced forward, however, keeping the conversation impersonal. “I gave nearly thirty years of my life for this nation. But it wasn’t a nation then, it was a state of mind. A dream, if you will. To allow a group of people to live as they want to live. There’s beauty in that. We, being the beings we are, strive toward beauty. And I’ve known nothing more beautiful than unity.”

“Do you regret any of it?”

“I don’t understand the question.”

“If you could change anything, would you have changed it?” She watched as Evesuni looked to the floor.

“Of course.”

“Like?”

“Is this really necessary?”

“To me, it is. So yeah. It’s necessary.”

“Your pestering is persistent.” He sighed. “I wish I would’ve protected my family better. There, is that what you wanted to hear? I don’t hide my imperfections like some leaders do, but I’d rather not be reminded of such shortcomings again and again.”

“Relax. I only want to know.”

“Why? Why do you want to know? Your whole attitude is unusual. Your demeanor toward me is even more bizzare. So what is it? Why do you come here only to pester me, dangle in front of me what I want and then turn it into a game? Do you understand how frustrating that is?”

Ikrisia ran a tongue across her teeth as she looked to the floor. “I’m sorry.”

“Now, what is it? What can I do to stop this barrage of questions and bring my nation closer to that corridor?”

Ikrisia paused. “What was her name?”

“Who’s name?”

“The name of your daughter.”

Stapen sighed angrily. “You’re not going to give this up, are you? You have some preconceived notion that somehow we’re related. Pretending to be my daughter, all in an attempt to absorb my nation!”

“I don’t care about your goddamned nation!” She paused. “I mean, I don’t want it. I want to know if its possible, but you don’t let me get close to find out!”

“Why should I? Where in this book of life does it say I have to entertain such things?”

“Because you cared once, you loved once. I can see it in you!”

“You see nothing! You know nothing!”

“You’ve made yourself cold so you can feel nothing. You can’t accept the fact that there could be someone out there who is related to you, who is a part of your family and your own flesh and blood. Someone who complicates matters, who perhaps needs you just as much as you need her.”

Evesuni closed his eyes in frustration as he rubbed his forehead. “Alright. Alright, you’re so hellbent on being my own flesh and blood, then prove it. Prove you’re my daughter, and I’ll consider it.”

“Consider it? You really do have a heart of stone!”

“My offer still stands.”

“Well, maybe I don’t want to know now. I don’t know if I want to be related to an unfeeling creature such as yourself.”

“Good.”

The two sat on the bed for what seemed like hours, but probably was only minutes. Ikrisia occasionally glanced at Evesuni, but he remained defiant, facing forward with a stare that seemed to go passed the wall roughly ten feet in front of them. It was awkward, but somehow, some way, one had to break.

“What was her name? The name of your daugter.”

“The name escapes me.”

“You mean you don’t remember?”

“I said the name escapes me.”

“Why can’t you let me find this out? Don’t you believe me when I say there’s no tricks to this? I just want to know. I’ve never had a family before. You had a crappy family, but at least you had one. Someone to relate to, to see what they did and what you wanted to do differently. I never had that chance, you know, the ability to learn from a parent. I was raised by unfeeling and malevolent… people. You at least had a mother. And when you ran away, you found someone else who would relate to you. No one gets married by choice to someone they don’t have feelings for. And no child that comes from such a situation is unloved. There was a time when you did care about such things. Now you’re just a bitter, aging man. Is it really worth it to be bitter? To keep hiding and holding onto your faded relics, refusing anyone to get too close? To never hope for something greater than what you once felt or believed in? To live in the past and let everything else pass you by?”

Evesuni turned to stare at her. “Why?”

“Why what?”

“I don’t believe you when you say you don’t want my nation. My greatest worry is losing that. I lost my family, and my nation became my family. It’s why I’ll eventually die from smoking. If you’re so concerned with families, you’ll understand that.”

“If you’re so worried about me, then how come you haven’t smoked since I’ve arrived in Listonia?” She watched as his eyes moved back to the floor. “I don’t want your nation. I just want to know. Is that so wrong? Please? When someone comes to you in an honest way, do you throw them out into the cold?”

Stapen stared at his hands as she spoke. The rubbed-off and ripped off patches of fur exposed newer wrinkles he wasn’t aware of before. Spots. Protruding veins. blood pooling on one knuckle from when he pounded a fist on his desk earlier in the day. He was old. He hated thinking that way, but if he wasn’t old by age, he was old by mind and body. The stresses of running a nation combined with the detrimental effects of smoking, turning him into something more ugly than he was supposed to be. “It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. I didn’t want this to happen.” He paused as Ikrisia watched him. “Why do you want a father?”

“I want to know there’s someone out there who’s like me,” she said as she wiped her cheek. “I want to know I’m not alone.”

Evesuni looked down, then up at her. “But, do you really want that person to be me?”

She nodded. “Because I know you cared enough to listen. You have a family that’s millions of people long. Would one more really hurt?”

“But if I’m not, then. Then you’d be setting yourself up for more pain.”

“At least I’ll know. It’s better to know it’s not true than live the rest of your life thinking of what could’ve been.”

“And if you are? Then what?”

“Then I’ll finally have a father. And you’ll have a daughter. And if that’s all it can be, that’s all it will have to be.” She reached out and touched the bare spot of his hand, resting her palm on it. “But at least we’ll know.”

With a slight grimace, Evesuni exhaled a deep sigh from his nose. “Her name was Ikrisia. My wife always wanted to have a girl, so I let her to choose the name. She said she saw it in her eyes, blue like water. And Ikrisia was a name she thought sounded like the water that flowed in a stream next to where we lived. She loved that stream, because she loved birds and birds would always flock there. She loved our daughter too. And so did I.”

She smiled slightly as she wiped her cheeks. “I… always hated my blue eyes because they made me look too soft.”

“You shouldn’t be ashamed of them. They are good eyes. My wife had eyes like those. Well, not as crystal-like, but they were blue.” He paused as he let out another sigh.

“Are you okay?”

“I’ll be fine. I’m always fine.”

“Do you… think I’m your daughter?”

He looked at her, then shut his eyes and gave a slight nod. “I can’t say otherwise. I can’t say a lot of things right now.” He stood up and walked away from the bed, toward the doorway, his shoes making a crisp sound as they clacked against the tiled floor.

“Hey… dad?” She waited until Stapen turned to her. She felt like asking him to stay, but figured a simple acknowledgment was good enough for the time being. At least he was being more receptive, perhaps even understanding. “Goodnight.” She watched as he gave another slight nod, then headed toward the exit.

9

“Will you be okay?”

“Yeah,” she replied half-heartedly. She looked up at the young man in front of her, smiling and watching him nod with probably the same amount of doubt as she carried. The tension in the small shack was larger than the space it enclosed. If ever there was a way to make such an emotion an entity, the walls would burst from their poorly-fastened rivets, screws, and nails, pushing the wood and sheet metal out in all directions, then the roof would cave in… faster than how it was caving in with the amount of snow still on it. But, at least for now, things remained relatively quiet. Relatively is such a tossed-around word though. It was uncomfortably quiet. A different kind of quiet, one that can make one’s own nerves twist across the bone in anticipation, scraping passed tendons and ligaments, bundle into the stomach and rest there, waiting, just waiting for the right moment to reach the heart, strangle it, then work toward the throat where it would remain, then ooze out in the form of tears. For this was not a normal time – this day had been much different.

“Is… um, she going to be okay?”

The younger vixen looked up at him. Her husband had to at least be six years older than her, and barely seemed to fit the clothes he wore. Loose pants were held up with suspenders that had hardened in some areas, the way leather always does when it was left to deteriorate over time. His shirt hinted at once being white, but was now a mixture of colors, from brown to black, especially the left side of his collar, which he used more for a napkin than decoration, it seemed. His shoes were partway gone – the leather worn to the point where it had cracked across the tops and exposed rags which had been used to pack up the holes to prevent frostbite from walking outside. His black hair was matted, messy, and greasy – no sign of proper bathing was apparent. He was disgusting, comical, poor, and probably smelled of something horrible. But that didn’t matter – to her, he was beautiful, the shy and heart-of-gold drifter she had come to know and love. But she couldn’t answer him, not now. She didn’t know how he’d take it if she tried to give the true answer – what she really felt like saying. She was quick with a readied lie. “I think so, Kirin. Just give it some time, I remember my mother told me sometimes it can take a while for them to wake up. At least she’s still breathing.”

Kirin nodded dumbly, fetching some hot water off their pot-belly stove and doused a towel in the warm liquid. He gave it to his wife, who nestled it in her lap, covered with blankets. “You’ll probably need more warmth.”

She smiled back at him. “I’ll be fine. Why don’t you read a story in the meantime? It will help to pass the time.”

He nodded again, picking up a chapter book that had been worn to just pages – the book cover itself was missing. “And when it comes to pass that the time of hardship sets like the red sun across the hills and streams bestowed upon us by the Almighty, the crops will bloom with freedom for our fallen brothers in Listonia. Their lands will re-unite with the vulpine home world under the cover of moonlight, and… just… justice will be had to those who once per-secuted them. Like a theif in the night, I, Max Venavle, will topple the o-pressive re…um, regimes and bring peace to the Land of Blood. I write this without fear or guile – this is my word, and my word is as good as a delayed action, only time separates it from truth. Almighty willing, those who call themselves Listonian will be Listonian no longer, but Vekaiyun, pure and immediately placed back into the vulpine… fold, the apparent hex of St. Aiya removed, the suffering of their impious deeds paid in full by the lives of millions before them. Their time is not now, but soon. But, like the coming of the next harvest moon, it should be an-ti-cipated. Wake up! For I have come to re-store what is right, and remove the evil that surrounds it. Set down your sickels and shovels, and arm you-“

The words were silenced by a soft cry. A long paused soon followed as the couple held their respective breaths; the husband watching as he softly put the book down.

“Is she okay,” he finally asked?

His wife nodded. “Yes,” she replied with a smile over the cries. She removed the blankets to reveal a small vulpine kit, apparently just born. “It was the words of Venavle which brought woke her up.”

Kirin grinned. “She likes those words.” They watched as the child opened her eyes.

“Crystal blue,” his wife replied, “like the stream.”

Pulling up a chair, Kirin maintained his grin as he watched the two. “You should name her.”

“I’m too exhausted to name her right now,” she replied.

He knew it took nearly the entire day to have their child, but it was all lost on him right now. Things looked like they were going to be okay – the moment couldn’t just end on a paused note. “Please? If you do, I will… look at those lessons you made for me.”

“Oh, alright,” she replied. “Read to yourself too, you’re getting better at it.” She paused, gazing into their child’s eyes. “Ile… llesira is her first name. She needs a name that reflects her eyes. The second one… Venavila, after Max, because of his words. Maybe he’ll give us a better to world to live in, and her middle name will be honorable to that.”

Kirin nodded. “Ilesira Venavila Evesuni. It fits her perfectly,” he said.

She yawned as Kirin helped cover them with blankets. “Thank you, Kirin Stapen Evesuni,” she replied with a smile.

“We’re going to address each other by all our names now?”

“No,” she laughed. “But you started it. It’s important she knows her father too before she sleeps again, though.”

Setting down a photograph of three members of a family faded by time, Evesuni put his hands, now nearly devoid of the short-coated gray fur, on his face. “What have I done?”