The Contact (IC, MT, ESQUARIUM ONLY)

[Kebenajaya]

THE CONTACT

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OOC thread | IC thread

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A Hotel Room
Vadopolis, Pavonistade
May 13, 2016
10:02 am Local Time

A hotel room sits in the dark, at one of the premier hotels in the center of Vadopolis, the largest city of the Pavonistadian States, and the closest city to its northern neighbour of Kebenajaya. It is nicely lavished and designed, with wood and rustic styling; two fresh beds with pillows and sheets; a high-definition tv that shows international and local television stations; A desk that business travelers often work on while on travel here; a nicely stocked bathroom with a shower and bath and a safe. This hotel room has been used, time and time again, for people on their first honeymoons, to couples looking to get away from their home countries to families looking for a holiday. A Daeconese football captain and girlfriend even stayed here once on a holiday 2 years ago for spring break.

But this occasion, at this time and place, it is being used for a different purpose. A very different purpose. Made possible by an anonymous contact from Kebenajaya. It is being used as a meeting point for something very illegal, and will probably get you sent to jail for a long, long time in most western countries, like Pavonistade, Luziyca, Arkiasis and Daecon. However, this is not the same for the contacts homeland of Kebenajaya. Over there, you will face either a lifetime behind bars, or execution by firing squad at the light of dawn. But, the contact does not really care about the consequences of what he is doing, or the morality of what he is offering. He is looking for one thing, and one thing only. People who can do a simple job; someone who is looking to earn some cash, while helping the organisation he is working for earn some break time in the process. That is all it mattered to him anyhow.

A note in a envelope has been left on the table; carefully sealed and unmarked. Besides it, was a inconspicuous phone, the only mobile phone in the room. One of the older models of smartphone a year ago, it still looked like it was brand new. It had all of the features of a smartphone and has a SIM card brought locally, it just happens to have a very noticeable lack of personal information and locked behind a password. These two items, the envelope and the phone are the only two things on the table. Untouched and unused. It is a very quiet environment, and people will probably think that someone has left their personal belongings and think that someone will collect it. They will be wrong, however.

5 people, each of very different background, ethnicity and of monetary fortunes, are staying in the hotel separately, each having no connection to each other other than staying in the same hotel in Pavonistade. However, that will immediately change, as their paths will connect interchangeably, forever.

The hotel door, closed until now, swings open and brings some light the room, the lights turning on as the person who opened the door takes a look around the room......

(OOC: Your character can make way from their room to the meeting point, or do freely as you wish before meeting.)

[Baiwa]

Waskōwa International Airport
Waskōwa, Baiwa
May 11, 2016
6:08 AM

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"And Mrs. Entābartulis, what is the purpose of your trip?" asked the customs official, flipping through her papers. Everything seemed in order, the one week allowance, the stamp of the local Party headquarters, the travel visa issued. Everything with the exception of a Statement of Re-Education. He could see in her papers that she had only been recently released. She could leave the country of course, but she could never return. Return in Baiwa for a political prisoner recently released after a trip in a foreign country guaranteed that she would immediately jailed as soon as she set foot on the soil of the country.

"I am visiting relatives." replied Valda, nervously smiling at the customs official. A week ago she had received a call from an unknown contact that offered a very lucrative job. The contact said it would offer good money. Hopefully enough to secure papers for Aucuria. After all, she had no choice. If she stayed in Baiwa she would be arrested again in six months, a year, two years. But arrest for 'traitors of the fatherland' was certain. Once in a camp, a political prisoner could expect to be released and imprisoned again at least seven times.

"I hope you know what you are doing." he whispered to her as he stamped her passport with a big "APPROVED" seal and handed it back to her.

"Next!"

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Vadopolis, Pavonistade
May 13, 2016

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Valda walked around the room nervously, looking at her phone from time to time to check out what time it was. She had arrived here two days ago, and she still couldn't sleep. Finally she decided that she should started going if she didn't want to be late. She took her room's card and her mobile phone and stepped outside, closing the door behind her. She was wondering what kind of mission this would be, what kind of risks it would involve. Most importantly, she wondered when she would get the cash. She wanted to get in Aucuria as soon as possible, to leave all this behind her.

But for now, she had to do a job and she had to perform it well. Slowly, she reached the room that she had been instructed to go to. She stopped for a bit, wondering for one last time how things had gone this way. But alas, it was too late for such thoughts. She swung the rooms door open and stepped inside, turning on the lights as she walked further inside it. The room was empty, and she took a look around as the lights opened.

[Luziyca]

(OOC note: if Huimang or any other Shibdanese native speaks in fluent English, it means that they're speaking in Luziycan)
April 27, 2016
Bangson, Nord Naklon

Huimang had been part of the Jabi Handyi, or the Merciful Gang, ever since he moved to Bangson this past November, from Chongyuk in the rez. He ran away from home after a violent fight between his parents and himself in June.

Huimang had been broke, and was homeless. He dropped out a while ago, and he seemed ready to give up .Luckily, the head of the Jabi Handyi, Makarov Chonsa (or Chonsa Makarov) took him into his home, under the condition that he join the gang. Having nothing to lose, he agreed.

It was a rainy evening when Chonsa decided to tell Huimang something important... something that will change his life forever.

"Aga," Chonsa explained, "for the past while, I have ordered you to take shit from people's homes. I think now that you have gotten used to the light stuff, I want you to become a nanpyon, a full-fledged member of the Jabi Handyi."

Chonsa passed an envelope to Huimang. "You have an offer to transport drugs like hashish from Kebenajaya. If you succeed, we will get rich, for you will have given us about... uh... thirty-thousand lira."

Chonsa paused for effect, and then resumed, saying sternly, "All of us will get rich. We will all get a share of the cash. But if you succeed, you will be a full member of the gang, and you can stay at my house. Fail, and you'd be out on the streets. Deal?"

"Deal," Huimang said. "But first, I need some cash and a passport."

"Will do," Chonsa said. He gave Huimang about 5,000 lira, and a stolen passport. "That should cover your plane ticket. As for your passport, you need to adopt the identity. I will help you a bit to adopt your new identity, but you need to put in a lot of effort, kulae?"

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May 13, 2016
Vadopolis, Pavonistade

Huimang had finally arrived into Pavonistade. It took a few weeks from that talk with Chonsa regarding the offer to smuggle drugs from Kebenajaya, all the way to that fateful day: flights to Pavelgrad from Bangson only come about once a week, and he chose to wait until the closest day possible to Friday the Thirteenth: then he had to wait for a flight to Namo, before flying to Vadopolis.

Now, Huimang had arrived. He tried his best to blend in and adopt his new identity that appeared on the passport, but it was painfully obvious that it was paper-thin. He did not have the right voice, the right skin tone, and still looked more like a native than the Slavic man that was on his passport.

Still, he dressed like the man on the passport, and somehow managed to get past airport security. He probably had luck on his side: it seemed like those who were supposed to monitor travellers as they went through customs were completely oblivious to the fact that he was not the man the passport said he was.

He had just arrived from the airport to the hotel where Huimang would meet the other four members in the gang. Chonsa was able to pay for Huimang to stay at the hotel, so all Huimang had to do was show up, be informed of his room, and then head up to the room where he would meet the other four.

Huimang headed towards the room. Not wanting to draw suspicion, he used the stairs, climbing and heading up to the floor where that room was. He then began walking towards it, until he can see the numbers. He then opened the door... and saw only a single soul.

"Hello....?" he said to the lady in his broken English. "Who da fook are yu? A hoe?"

[Qianrong]

Vadopolis, Pavonistade

Jiang inhaled deeply as he walked up the stairs, repeating his invented history and made-up name to himself, as he headed to meet the anonymous individual who had contacted him a few days ago.

Jiang Meng-Hu- or "Tsai Yung-Wen", if anyone asked him his name- was on the run for his life. His father's ties to the defunct Nationalist People's Party, the party that ruled Qianrong for decades as the sole legal party in the Free Democratic Republic, had made him a target following the rise of Long Jiao-Dan and the Equalitarianists to power. Initially, he'd attempted to simply sneak across the border and establish a new life for himself. But apparently Long was desperate to prevent word getting out about what was going on in South Qianrong- no doubt to make his regime look better to Namor and Ainin- and some random nobody like him suddenly had people in Long's employ trying to take his life.

So he'd fled to a country he hadn't heard of until he started looking for countries that were far-away and not likely places for him to head- Kebenajaya. Then he'd gotten a call from an individual promising him a high-paying job and he had found himself on a plane from Padangan, Kebenajaya to Vadopolis, Pavonistade. I flew all the way to Kebenajaya only to immediately head off to Pavonistade, he thought to himself. If the South Qianrongese aren't back on my trail, they will be soon.

But it would be worth it, hopefully. The anonymous contact had promised him enough money to buy high-quality forged documents that would allow him to wholly assume his new identity of Tsai Yung-Wen. With forged documents, he could hopefully get the QSR off his trail and assume a new life as a new person, without any of the baggage given to him by his father- perhaps even in Qianrong itself.

Inhaling deeply to calm his nerves, he opened the door of the stairwell and walked down the hallway. Finding the room, he opened the door. Inside there were two people, a white woman who looked Nordanian or maybe Artisian, and an obviously Monic individual. "Uh, hello," he said, struggling with his English. He'd never been particularly studious, and it was coming back to bite him. "I was told to... meet? To meet here for one job chance."

[FreYhill]

13th May 2016
Vadopolis, Pavonistade

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Throughout 2016, Ronja Bergius has backpacked throughout Esquarium; particularly around Pavonistade. However; the whole reason for Ronja’s travel now hit a new aspect. She knew what she was doing will be punished severely; she knew the odds are against her. Though this was her only option; she would return to Freyhill with a financial debt looming around her otherwise.

Ronja had to continue to remind herself “we can do this”; the urge to jump out of her failed financial prospects greatly outnumbered the costs; well in her mind anyway. Throughout time, Ronja became impatient stuck in the traffic of Vadopolis; she wanted to get it over and done with. Ronja continued to display emotion; she started to sweat on the passenger seat of her uber car. Suddenly her uber parked on the side of the busiest cardinals of Vadopolis; the heart of the city. Ronja immediately collected her bags and paid the uber driver for his services; she began her pillage towards the meetup hotel.

Ronja continued to make her way to the meetup room; she continued to maintain her thoughts, “we can do this”, “we can do this”. Ronja walked down the stairs instead of the lift for the same reason why she caught a uber instead of a taxi; she wanted to become invisible from authorities. Ronja encountered a door that stood out from the rest, “this is it” she sighed under her breath. “Good Evening” Ronja whispered to the occupants of the room; people who looks of Monic, Nordanian or possibly Artisian nationality. “Have I entered the right room?”

[Baiwa]

May 13th 2016

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Valda had only entered the room when the other three entered in rather quick succession. First a Monic man who called her a hoe, another Monic man who said he was told to meet her for a job, and another woman, perhaps Nordanian or Artisian herself who asked if this was the right room. She got over, the initial surprise of being insulted by a complete stranger and turned towards the other two people. "We were all told to meet here for a job, were we not?" she asked in slightly accented English, looking at the three people in the room. "I just entered the room myself and found no one here, but an envelope and a mobile phone" she said pointing towards the table. She wondered briefly if these were all the people that would participate in the "job". She would have to get to know them all.

"My name is Valda." she said, introducing herself to them.

[Kebenajaya]

Vadopolis, Pavonistade
May 13, 2016

After the initial introductions between the 4 members of the gang, they would eventually notice the untouched letter and smartphone on the desk, which was apparently addressed to some businessman that was apparently going to stay here today. However, this address hides the real intention of the letter, and once the letter is opened, it will go like this:

To the people reading this letter:

I hope you have made it here in whatever way you can and with clean hands, since this job requires the utmost solidity and security. You may be wondering why the offer was sent to you in the first place. Certainly of course, you think why would you travel half the world to Pavonistade for a simple job? Besides the long distance, this job will be very different from others. Very different.

This job, if taken up straight away, will wash away any financial troubles any of whom who will wish to take it up. It will guarantee financial security for the people who take it up, and the organisation that I am working for will pay you very generously for your services. However, this will come as a risk. If you wish to back out now, you may do so. However, the payout will be worth it, I can guarantee that. To help facilitate the smooth running of this offer, certain objects will be provided to you to help in this endeavor.

The contents of this envelope will contain 4 plane tickets and corresponding Kebenajayan Confederation visas, to travel to Buku Latihan, Kebenajaya and go to the hotel listed here. The booking has been covered by our organisation. A small cash reserve will also be provided once you reach Kebenajaya, and another set of instructions will be provided at the hotel room.

Destroy this letter after being opened, since the hotel does not know that this letter is here.

Good Luck.

Signed by:
Your friend in Padangan

[FreYhill]

With the whole of the gang now incumbent within the room; Ronja began to study its items. Rustic stylings consisted around the room as Ronja began to look for clues; clues to tell her what they're about to face. Deeper into the room, a note carefully sealed and unmarked sat on the top of the desk of the room; Ronja picks it up and opens it carefully. Slowly reading the letter, Ronja analysed every aspect of the contacts letter; "Quick, come! I've found a letter from our friend for us!" Ronja bellowed to the other occupants of the room.

[Qianrong]

May 13th 2016

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Valda had only entered the room when the other three entered in rather quick succession. First a Monic man who called her a hoe, another Monic man who said he was told to meet her for a job, and another woman, perhaps Nordanian or Artisian herself who asked if this was the right room. She got over, the initial surprise of being insulted by a complete stranger and turned towards the other two people. "We were all told to meet here for a job, were we not?" she asked in slightly accented English, looking at the three people in the room. "I just entered the room myself and found no one here, but an envelope and a mobile phone" she said pointing towards the table. She wondered briefly if these were all the people that would participate in the "job". She would have to get to know them all.

"My name is Valda." she said, introducing herself to them.

"My name is-" Jiang caught himself before he said his real name. "My name is Tsai Yung-Wen. Good to meet you."

With the whole of the gang now incumbent within the room; Ronja began to study around the room. Rustic stylings consisted around the room as Ronja began to look for clues; clues to tell her what they're about to face. Deeper into the room, a note carefully sealed and unmarked sat on the top of the desk of the room; Ronja picks it up and opens it carefully. Slowly reading the letter, Ronja analysed every aspect of the contacts letter; "Quick, come! I've found a letter from our friend for us!" Ronja bellowed to the other occupants of the room.

Jiang quickly moved to where Ronja was standing, and read through it quickly- or at least as quickly as he could. Once again, his lack of studiousness in English class was coming back to bite him. He didn't recognize all the words, though he got enough of them to understand what the anonymous contact was attempting to convey.

"Well, this letter is very-" he paused. The word he wanted to say next was vague, but he'd never heard the word spoken and wasn't sure how to pronounce it in English- and determining how to pronounce English was, without a doubt, one of the hardest things he'd done. "This letter is very not clear," he finished, settling on a simpler term.

[Luziyca]

Huimang dashed after Ronja opened the letter, and tried to read through it. Some of the words, he could discern, but he had a hard time understanding the gist of the letter. But he understood the tickets, and he grabbed a plane ticket and what the letter called a "visa."

Once he read the letter, and they began making introductions, Huimang said, "Hi. Name's Huimang. Come from Shibdan. Where you from?"

[Qianrong]

Huimang dashed after Ronja opened the letter, and tried to read through it. Some of the words, he could discern, but he had a hard time understanding the gist of the letter. But he understood the tickets, and he grabbed a plane ticket and what the letter called a "visa."

Once he read the letter, and they began making introductions, Huimang said, "Hi. Name's Huimang. Come from Shibdan. Where you from?"

Picking up his own ticket and visa, Jiang responded, "I am from Qianrong- that is, northern Qianrong." Jiang was actually from South Qianrong- Xiangmen specifically- but his made-up identity had been born in Yucheng, which was North Qianrongese, so from now on he was Yucheng-born. He was safely sure none of these individuals- a Shibdanese man, and two people from Artisia or Nordania- would know the differences in the northern and southern Minjianese accents, so his cover was secure with them.

Probably.

[FreYhill]

"I'm Ronja, Its nice to meet you all" Ronja said whilst picking up her visa from the pile on the desk. Ronja then pulled out her passport immediately and attached the Kebenajayan visa to her passport; "Forgot to tell you, I'm Freyhillian" Ronja told the occupants to the room in an attempt to bring the conversation into light.

[Luziyca]

He sighed. Another woman had come in.

Huimang turned towards Ronja and said. "Hey, Ron...ya? Is dat right?"

He paused for a few moments, and then added, "What made you join dug life? Why do you gals want to risk life 'n body, for dis? Some-ting that will result in you being cot by fuzz?"

"WHY!?" he exclaimed to both Ronja and Valda. "You bitches, you dink dat you can do well in gang. But I fear if ya kontinue..." and then discovered the horrified looks.

"Sorry, Falda, sorry Ronya..." Huimang said in a low tone of voice. "I am just worried 'bout you two. I fear dat if ya get cot, ya will be abused by da fuzz. I just... I just want ya to be safe, ja?" Little did he know of his impending doom...

[FreYhill]

Although that Huimang arose tensions between the members of what was going to be the gang, Ronja seemed to be flattered that Huimang wanted to protect Valda and obviously, herself. Turning her attention towards Huimang, Ronja decided to begin a conversation with him; "Huimang is it? Its nice to meet you." Ronja wanted to know more about Huimang; more about the people who she is going to be with for a very long time.

[Luziyca]

"Danks, Ronya," Huimang said. "Anyway.... I come from da rez. I from Chongyuk. It ain't good place to live: my bumonim treat me like shit. Ya know, dey hated me and mah brothers and sisters." He paused, and added... "My fader was not just a drunkard, he was also a loving man... he was close with ma sisters..." He sighed. He realized he was spilling the beans, and he did not want to even get closer. He feared that Ronja would be horrified.

"Am I telling too much? I dink I'm telling too much..." he stated. He shed a few tears... why did he tell Ronja his home life? He had barely known her, and yet here he was... telling him his abusive environment.

"I'm sorry," he said. "Why did I tell you dat? WHY!?"

[Qianrong]

Jiang took a deep breath to prevent himself from noticeably sighing. This Huimang fellow obviously had some serious issues, even by Jiang's standards; if anyone was going to be the weak link, it was going to be Huimang. He could barely prevent himself from spilling out his entire life story to a group of random strangers; if he got caught and interrogated, he'd give all of them up in a moment. Naturally of a nervous disposition, Jiang's mind went down a slippery slope; if Huimang ratted them out, then the job would be a failure, and he wouldn't have the money to escape his old identity. He'd have to spend the rest of his life- which might not be that long- on the run from every drug enforcement agency in Esquarium and the QSR to boot.

Jiang quickly shook his head to clear his thoughts. In an attempt to calm himself down, he got involved in the conversation. "It- it is okay, Huimang," he said. "You do not need to tell any things that you do not want to." Inhaling deeply again, he continued "As I said- before? As I said before, my name is Tsai Yung-Wen. I am from North Qianrong, Yucheng in specific. I am here because I need money. I had one job before the big regional economy crash. Qianrong's economy was no good before, but the economy crash hurt many, myself included. So... I find myself here."

Calmed by his near-perfect recitation of his fabricated backstory, Jiang smiled and nodded, waiting for the next person to speak.

[FreYhill]

Interested by all the back stories of her future friends, Ronja decided she will tell them about herself. "Well, Just like I said before, I'm Ronja. Throughout my life, I have lived in the capital of Freyhill; Goldglass." she paused and picked up a hotel standard water bottle from the minibar."I'm studying Pharmaceutical Science at The University of Freyhill, I'm in debt; Finances have taken a turn, a bad turn."

[Kebenajaya]

(OOC: All conversations that are in italics are in not!Indonesian/Kebenajayan.)
Dharmawijaya Budiono International Airport
Buku Latihan, Kebenajaya
May 13, 2016
1:39 pm Local Time

Their first job and meeting in Vadopolis done, the gang leaves the hotel room and heads to the airport to head to their next destination, which was Buku Latihan, the tourist capital of Kebenajaya. A city of nearly 3 million Kebenajayan citizens, the city grew substantially during the early 2000's and now caters to the massive tourist economy that is centered around the tourist district of Sabrangan, which is close to the coast. Although at first glance it may look quiet during the daytime, the district lights up during the night time as tourists and locals flood the district for a good night out. Shopping, nightclubs, bars, restaurants and local attractions. The bread and butter of the district at large, as well as the city. The Kebenajayan Confederate Police patrols here during the day time and nighttime, and is often supported by the local DEBK office.

The airport, which was built in early 2003, looks relatively modern and has the facilities and shops that an airport is expected to have. The walls are modern and shiny, the concrete still having that newish look even though it is nearly open for 13 years. Although the airport was not big, per say, it was large enough to encompass two terminals, one domestic and one international, a cargo terminal and maintenance facilities. Dharmawijaya Budiono International Airport is one of the main gateways into the city of Buku Latihan itself, and it is popular with foreigners who don't want to enter via Padangan. Because of this, the immigration counters at the international terminal is usually staffed full time due the amount of people coming through, either during the mornings or in the afternoon.

As the gang is moving towards the airport and heading towards the immigration counters, they will see a drug penalty warning from the DEBK, warning travelers about the penalty of smuggling drugs either in or out of Kebenajaya. The warning might have caught the attention of the gang, but this is just the start of what they got themselves really into, as they meet the first opponent in their goal....

Kristian Sudomo Setiawan
Immigration and Customs Officer with the Kebenajayan Immigration and Customs Service
May 13, 2016
1:56 pm local time

Kristian was sitting in his prescribed booth in the Immigration area of Dharmawijaya Budiono International Airport Terminal 2, trying to pass the boredom that comes with a immigration officer at one of Kebenajaya's busiest airports during the noon downtime between 10:00am and 2:00pm. His stand, a newer version that was installed a few months ago, is equipped with a modern passport reader, immigration stamps and a computer for immigration work. He has a walkie talkie radio on the desk and has his pistol in his holster, which was government issued. Sometimes, he wanted to just take a break from stamping people's passports for awhile, but his replacement wont arrive for another hour so he would had to sit there until then. He was looking around the hall when the radio blared and Kristian picked it up putting it to his ear. "How is the immigration desk?" came the voice from the other side. "Is it quiet yet? I reckon you got tired from the morning shift."

"Yeah, it is tiring actually." Kristian responded, with a bit of tiredness creeping into his voice but it is mostly clear. "I think it is advisable not to talk chit chat over the radio. There is a group coming. See you." Kristian then put down the radio on the desk, prepared his stuff and looked at the group coming towards him.....

[FreYhill]

Although Buku Latihan's International Airport was nowhere near what would be called "modern" in Freyhill; she began to explore the shops situated before the Immigration desks of Kebenajaya. "Sigh, this is all duty-free and I want to buy stuff in Kebenajaya, what should I do?" Ronja though in her head whilst exploring Kebenajaya's premier airport duty-free stores. Ronja suddenly knew she was behind from her gang and she would need to catch up to them; but how? Suddenly she saw a newly installed "segway ride" for young children and the elderly only costing a few Kebenajayan Rupiah. "Let's do this, they can't be that ahead!" Ronja muttered to herself whilst putting the golden coins into the machine. Suddenly the Segway came off the rack's lock in response to Ronjas payment, she climbed on board and turned the two wheel vehicle on. Shit, I can't loose the gang Ronjas though whilst riding the Segway, let's go full speed! Furthermore, a "Brrrrrrommmmmmmmmm" screeched throughout the airport and Ronja finally caught up with the gang before they reached Immigration.... Just...

Ronja decided that she was to be the first one to go through the Kebenajayan Immigration and effectively enter the Confederate Provinces of Kebenajaya. To Ronjas surprise, Immigration was quite modern; though I suppose that's the international standard these days. "Yeoboseyo! (Hello!)" Ronja bellowed to the Immigration officer in front of her; who would later introduce himself as Kristian. "Here is my passport with the Kebenajayan visa in it" Ronja stated whilst pulling out her Freyhillian passport.

[Luziyca]

Huimang was nervous en route to Kebenajaya. It was a short flight, but... he was afraid of getting caught.

When he disembarked, he felt awestruck. It wasn't as modern as Pavonistade, Gijirokastra, or Shibdan, but it was still up-to-date. Ish.

He glanced at a sign, but had no idea what it was. Little did he know was that it was the drug warning sign. He felt a bit nervous, and was a tad scared of what might happen next. He noticed a segway going straight for him, and thought for a moment that it might have been airport security, before he realized it was Ronja. Still concerned, he decided to let Ronja go ahead of him. Maybe she'd have better luck than him.

Once she got past immigration, it was his turn. He pulled out a Shibdanese passport. He stepped towards a custom official.

"Hi," he said in a poor attempt at a Slavic accent. "Name is Andrei Kondratiev, I from Shibdan. Here is passport and visa to enter beautiful country. Am here for business." He handed him his passport and a visa to visit Kebenajaya.

[Qianrong]

Jiang sighed as he entered the airport. He'd been in too many airports, running and running and running. And, unfortunately, it didn't look like he'd stop seeing the shining, sanitized insides of airports any time soon.

At least I'm getting better at lying, he thought to himself as he walked towards the customs counter. He'd been "Tsai Yung-Wen" for a while now, keeping the disguise up around Ronja and Huimang for long enough that he was beginning to feel at ease in it. And, of course, some parts of the lie were easier here. It was obvious to any Qianrongese person that he spoke Minjianese with the accent of someone from Xiangmen, not someone from Yucheng; in Pavonistade or Kebenajaya, he would be surprised if the average citizen could tell Minjianese from Min or Namorese or Koy.

He still had concerns about Ronja and Huimang. Ronja seemed too well-off, too soft almost, for the job; Huimang was a weak link in his own way, with his poorly-hidden criminal background and his inability to keep a secret. If either of them got caught, it would be a matter of time before-

Jiang stopped himself. If he allowed himself to get nervous about the others, then it would show, and he'd become a suspicious person. He had to keep himself calm about the others lest he become the weakest link. Jiang stopped walking briefly to steady and slow his breath, making it look like he was checking the time. After a few seconds, he resumed walking towards the customs counters, holding his visa and passport in hand.

Once it was his turn to pass through, he handed the immigration officer his documentation. "Good day," he said to the immigration official. "My name is Tsai Yung-Wen. I am from North Qianrong, and here for business."