I'm terribly sorry that you came all the way here for nothing, Signore.
Judge's Assistant
Did she not tell you where she was going?
Truck Driver
No, b-but please let Judge Lavinia know that Eirene is looking into her request in all earnestness.
Truck Driver
When she came back to camp, she asked us all to inspect all the association trucks. She should be investigating the accident right now—
Judge's Assistant
Alright, calm down. I'm not here about that.
Truck Driver
Eh? Then—Oh, Lyudmila, do you know where Eirene went?
Truck Driver
Why're you being so sneaky? Nearly didn't notice you...
Lyudmila
......
Truck Driver
How'd your clothes get so torn up? Did you get in a fight?
Lyudmila
...I tripped.
Judge's Assistant
Are you Lyudmila?
Lyudmila
......
Judge's Assistant
I have something for you.
Judge's Assistant
It should really be sent to Eirene so she can notify you, but since she's not here, giving it directly to you should work too.
Lyudmila
What is it?
Judge's Assistant
A citizenship certificate and identity documentation.
Judge's Assistant
You passed City Hall's and the court's background checks, and you've accumulated enough citizen points...
Judge's Assistant
From this day onwards, you are a legal citizen of Nuova Volsinii and formally registered in the Truckers' Union registrar of drivers, and are entitled to all rights stipulated in the New Urban Management Act.
Truck Driver
Haha, finally!
Truck Driver
You treated us to salt soda a day too early, Lyudmila!
Lyudmila
......
Judge's Assistant
Surprised? We are aware of your *ahem* special circumstances.
Judge's Assistant
You still need to undergo regular Oripathy checkups. If your infection worsens, we will re-evaluate your treatment plan.
Judge's Assistant
The Truckers' Union holds a special position in this city. At first, it would have been quite difficult for you to pass the background checks...
Judge's Assistant
Eirene actually came over to City Hall and courthouse many times over this matter. She even made herself your guarantor, and many of your fellow drivers followed her and signed off your materials, too.
Lyudmila
......
Truck Driver
Oh, don't look at me like that, Lyudmila. We couldn't just let you treat us to food and drink forever.
Judge's Assistant
Lyudmila?
Truck Driver
Look, no need to push her too hard, she's not the talkative sort. Why, when I got my cert and documents, I was probably way more shocked than she is.
Judge's Assistant
I understand. According to our data, the uncle who took you in as a child was involved in a turf war, and his entire family was murdered. To be honest, everyone's got a story like that...
Judge's Assistant
After the founding of Nuova Volsinii, many Siracusans once under the yoke of the famiglie rushed over, obtaining new identities and breaking free of their influence.
Judge's Assistant
Many mafiosi have also broke free of their famiglie in this manner.
Judge's Assistant
In this city, we all have the right to escape our pasts and embrace new lives.
Judge's Assistant
Congratulations, Lyudmila.
Lyudmila silently stares at the certificate and documents in her hand.
So this is how life decides to repay the unfortunate...
Truck Driver
What's gotten into you, Lyudmila?
Lyudmila
Has Sommer shown up?
Truck Driver
No. Hasn't he been on break from yesterday evening up 'til now? Maybe he's picking out Carnevale presents for Guri.
Lyudmila
Don't make excuses for him, Ruggiero.
Lyudmila
I know what's going on with the two of you. I was riding alongside him last night.
Truck Driver
......
Truck Driver
You talking about the car crash last night?
Lyudmila
Mhm. That was our truck.
Truck Driver
My God...
Lyudmila
Based on the look on your face, he hasn't come back here. Know anywhere he might go? Think quick.
Truck Driver
There was supposed to be a delivery to the service station near Dock #3 last night. At times, we'll also head over to some abandoned warehouses under Venezia Trucking...
Lyudmila
I've already checked them all.
Lyudmila
The scene of the crash was already cordoned off by the time I went back, and Sommer and the truck were both gone. After that, I searched the places you mentioned. Nothing.
Lyudmila
......
Lyudmila
How could I have left him there? Dammit. If I wasn't distracted by that wolf pup, maybe...
Lyudmila stands between the shipping containers, looking out at the bustling port in front of her.
Over the course of the entire day, she searched everywhere she could, but found nothing.
She was once able to make her way through Catastrophe-torn Chernobog with ease, and lead her team on precision strikes in the middle of a chaotic battlefield, yet now, she could not locate even an ordinary truck driver.
She feels like the target of some sick joke. An inkling of helplessness suddenly worms its way into her mind.
Port Worker
Are you saying we're sending the floats off now?
Dispatcher
Yep, they're all assembled anyway. Send them all to the expansion plate. That's where the Carnevale parade is starting.
Port Worker
I knew that. What I meant was, weren't we meant to send them off at night?
Dispatcher
That rainstorm pouring down all of a sudden earlier, remember? Not often we see such bad weather come by Nuova Volsinii. Who the hell knows if it'll rain again later today.
Dispatcher
That's a dozen giant floats out on the move we're talking about. If they ran into that kind of weather, we'd have to do traffic control, and I'd rather not have to deal with that headache.
Port Worker
I suppose that makes sense.
Dispatcher
C'mon, sbrigati, while the rain's stopped.
Dispatcher
Oh, right, you're going to be passing by a lot of places on the way. Remember to cover those floats with tarps. City Hall wants to keep their designs a mystery until the parade.
Port Worker
Got it. I'll go call the boys over.
Lyudmila
......
Lyudmila
If Sommer could only go back the way he came, and he wanted to hide a truck in a port this busy... Don't tell me he...
In a corner of Nuova Volsinii's port, a dozen or so mobile cranes are hoisting up giant tarpaulins, creating a labyrinth out of thin air, sealed away from the outside.
Under the tarps, a dozen oddly-shaped giant beasts sleep silently. Ere their resurrection at Carvenale, this is their cemetery.
Lyudmila passes by them. She is not in the mood to investigate these strange constructs. She walks directly to the end of their procession and stops.
There lies a great wolf. Vast amounts of imitation fur cover the truck underneath its frame. Its tail oh-so-conveniently droops down over the eye-catching dents and gouges of the truck's carriage.
It bares its fangs in soundless snarl, guarding the secrets hidden below its body.
Lyudmila
......
She pulls open the door to the truck's container. She is greeted by a pile of black tires, alongside...
It's usually stuff for making vehicles. Originium engines, steel, alloys, things like that. At times there's also frozen fins, frozen meat, booze, meds...
Sommer
It's pretty common in other Siracusan cities. Goods the famiglie buy don't have to go through normal customs, so they save a lot on taxes. But here in Nuova Volsinii—
Lyudmila pulls out her dagger, running it against the seam in the tire she spotted just now. She slashes at the thick rubber, revealing what lies hidden within.
Lyudmila
Guns, staves, crossbows, even Originium explosives...
Lyudmila
Sommer, you idiot. Did you know you were transporting this kind of 'merchandise'?
Lyudmila
Pizdets! This is suddenly a lot more complicated than smuggling tires and crashing into the Acting Mayor! Wait, someone's coming.
Hoarse Voice
It should be here somewhere.
Hoarse Voice
I'll take that side, Gambino. You look here. Veloce, veloce.
Loud Voice
Capone, did you ever think about how we're going to explain to Venezia junior where we picked up this trail, assuming we do?
Loud Voice
I mean, surely we can't just say Lappland told us.
Hoarse Voice
Actually, I'm more worried about how that crazy pazza even knew Sommer stashed his truck in the port...
Hoarse Voice
What the hell is she cooking up here?
Loud Voice
Fuhgeddaboutit! No point thinking about that crap, just get back to work—Wait, I think the polizia's outside! Hide!
Sweet Voice
Sir. It's me, Noemi.
Sweet Voice
Have you found anything on your end?
Sweet Voice
I don't drink coffee. It's too bitter.
Sweet Voice
C'mon, let's stay focused on the task at hand. I know the truck we're looking for is hidden around here somewhere! Get over here, quickly!
Sweet Voice
Right, the west side of the port, where the floats are being stored!
Lyudmila
Wait, the dockhands are starting to...
Lyudmila hears the sound of cranes pulling away at the tarps, and the engine of the vehicle up ahead starting up.
Both the mafiosi and the police are close by. This float, its secret, Sommer, and the truck drivers' 'new lives' are about to be exposed to the light of day.
Lyudmila
Blyat!
Lyudmila's hand brushes past her side, and she feels a damp spot in her pocket. It's the documents she folded up and stuffed in there, proof that she is now one of those idiots.
They must have gotten soaked in the rain as she ran to the port. She didn't have time to stash them away in her tent when she left camp.
Caught in the autumn rain again, she snaps back to reality. It's getting cold, she thinks.
It would be great if she could warm herself up by a fire right now.
Look at this bonfire out here among the snow, friend. Once, it could ignite the anger of the Infected. It could spark the dream of Reunion. It could set all of Ursus ablaze.
Lyudmila stands in a shadow not too far away, silently watching the blaze lick away at the carriage. It rises, engulfing the entirety of the great wolf.
Fire can ignite anger. It can spark a dream. It can also bury everything in ash.
And her own smoke can help conceal the fire. Before anyone else catches on, she can let it build into a towering inferno, inextinguishable.
