02-29-2020, 07:05 PM
(Posted with input from [nation]Lauchenoiria[/nation])
The day after her conversation with the Kerlian helpline-for-Auroras, Comilō found herself even more perplexed than she had been from the phone call.
That morning, she woke up having no idea which "Xiomeran authorities" she was supposed to approach. She lived in Tlilotl'pac, an affluent city that was home to the corporate headquarters of Cala Computer and the epicenter of Xiomera's tech industry. The city was more a home to expensive stores, fancy restaurants and trendy coffeehouses than the dour institutions of state power. Finally giving in to a sense of desperation mixed with exasperation, she drove herself to the Imperial Police station in the center of town.
When the slightly bored-looking officer manning the reception desk asked her how he could help, she threw her fate to the winds, or the gods, if Xiomerans were right about that sort of thing. "I am an Aurora. I was told to contact the Xiomeran authorities to report this and register...." she said, trailing off. It sounded ridiculous, even to her.
The officer seemed as stunned as Comilō was. "Um....wait here a moment, ma'am," he said finally, walking over quickly to his sergeant as another officer watched Comilō, unsure if she was supposed to arrest her or ask her if she wanted a coffee.
After several phone calls followed by approximately twenty minutes of waiting while the officers tried to make awkward small talk with Comilō, another woman came into the reception area. She was dressed in a business suit from a second-tier Xiomeran designer, not as expensive as the truly high-class designers but still very nice. Her outfit, and the briefcase she was carrying, were practically a uniform for those who knew how to decipher Xiomeran class and rank markers. Bureaucrat, businesswoman, or agent. Which one are you? Comilō thought.
"Good morning, you must be Comilō. I am Tezliteza, with ASI. I have been assigned to take your report and transition from your Aurora service to Xiomeran residency. Please come with me," she said.
Agent. I still have the knack for identification, Comilō thought with bemusement. Still nervous, but deciding to trust everyone involved in this very odd situation, she walked to the door with Tezliteza. "Oh, officers....neither of us was ever here," Tezliteza said pointedly as she led Comilō through the doors.
The Imperial Police officers simply nodded. They weren't about to argue with the Agency.
"Am I under arrest?" Comilō asked directly as they reached the ASI agent's car. She wanted to get everything out in the open. "Arrest? Oh, no, of course not," Tezliteza replied with a smile. "That's why I got you out of that police station. I think we should have our talks in a more innocuous location, so you can relax a bit," the agent replied.
After about twenty minutes of driving, the two reached the outskirts of Tlilotl'pac. The area they were in was a more working-class area of the city, home to the many people who kept the city working for its affluent residents to enjoy. There were significantly fewer new buildings in this neighborhood than there were in the bustling heart of Tlilotl'pac, but there was one of note, Comilō noted as the car pulled up. Tlilotl'pac Community Services Center - Secretariat of Support, the sign over the front doors read.
"We're going to talk at....a public services center?" Comilō said, surprised.
"Yes...it's still a government facility, and it has private meeting rooms, but it's not a police station or an ASI office. That should help you feel a bit less nervous," Tezliteza said.
It did, in fact, help Comilō feel less nervous. The shiny new building, a symbol of the reforms of Empress Yauhmi, seemed to represent a different Xiomera than the one which would have probably thrown her in a prison cell, while Topilpopoca had been Emperor. The people at the center also helped reassure her, if only because they seemed as happy and surprised as she was beginning to feel. As Comilō and Tezliteza walked through the building, they walked past people speaking to advisors or standing in line to apply for the new benefits the Empress had launched. All of them were smiling. The new Xiomeran "safety net" was not as broad or as extensive as that of the more liberal IDU states. But any social safety net at all, in a nation whose previous leaders had viewed poverty with a mindset of if you're poor, you're just not working hard enough, was a godsend to the people in this building.
The two of them eventually arrived to a private conference room at the back of the building, looking for all the world like two people meeting to plan social programs. Once they were inside the conference room, Tezliteza activated a small device that she took out of her pocket; it lit up and hummed slightly. "Just disappointing any potential eavesdroppers," the agent said with another smile. "So....as your Kerlian contacts probably advised you, we have come to an understanding with the Council of Kerlile to allow Auroras in Xiomera to remain here, in their current lives, or to return home if you wish. My job is to help you with whichever decision you make."
Comilō nodded. "I'm sorry, I just have to ask....why am I being allowed to make this choice? I don't mean to seem ungrateful....I do want to stay here, with my family. But it just doesn't seem real that the Xiomeran government would let us stay without repercussions....we were sent here as agents, after all. You're an agent yourself...that would seem odd to you, I am sure."
Tezliteza nodded, smiling. "You're not wrong. But the Empress has decided, in her wisdom, that punishing Auroras for the actions of those who sent them here just doesn't make sense. Auroras are very talented individuals, and if they wish to serve Xiomera, that benefits both us and them. The Empress is loath to waste talent, especially if it can help our nation and its people. Also, Kerlile and Xiomera are allies now. And, as far as we can tell, no Aurora sent to Xiomera ever did any harm to this country. So, the Empress considers this a matter worth overlooking."
The ASI agent's expression turned more serious. "There is one overriding reason, though. You may have been born and raised in Kerlile, but you are a Xiomeran. This is your homeland. It belongs to you, just as much as it does to me, or anyone in this building, or this country, even the Empress herself. There is no other Xiomera, anywhere in the world. It would be wrong for us to deny you the chance to remain in the land that is your birthright. The Empress views this land as a refuge for its people, and herself as their protector. So, when confronted with Xiomerans who had their youth stolen, who were forced to serve as spies, with no right to refuse, on their own ancestral homeland....the Empress doesn't want to punish you, or the other Auroras sent here. She wants to save you, and bring you home. You're already here, luckily enough. The only question is....do you trust us enough to take a chance?"
Comilō sat, lost in thought, for a moment. It all still seemed like a dream, like a fantasy of rescue. But if the Xiomeran government had wanted to punish her, they could have just arrested her and been done with it. She thought about her husband, and her daughter. In the end, there was only one choice.
"I will give you my trust. I want to remain here in Xiomera, with my family," she said. Tezliteza smiled again in response. "Then that is what shall happen. You'll need to complete some paperwork, and take the loyalty oath again as a formality, but we can take care of that all now."
"And then...that's it? I can go home?" Comilō said, still slightly dazed at the idea that it could be this simple. Tezliteza nodded. "Let's get started."
A few hours later, Comilō arrived back at her house, her emotions a mix of amazement and shock. It was all done. As she walked inside her home, her husband, Miztal, smiled from the back of the living room. Her daughter, Zia, ran up to her to give her a hug. Hugging her daughter back, Comilō smiled more broadly than she had in ages. She was truly Xiomeran now, and truly free.
The day after her conversation with the Kerlian helpline-for-Auroras, Comilō found herself even more perplexed than she had been from the phone call.
That morning, she woke up having no idea which "Xiomeran authorities" she was supposed to approach. She lived in Tlilotl'pac, an affluent city that was home to the corporate headquarters of Cala Computer and the epicenter of Xiomera's tech industry. The city was more a home to expensive stores, fancy restaurants and trendy coffeehouses than the dour institutions of state power. Finally giving in to a sense of desperation mixed with exasperation, she drove herself to the Imperial Police station in the center of town.
When the slightly bored-looking officer manning the reception desk asked her how he could help, she threw her fate to the winds, or the gods, if Xiomerans were right about that sort of thing. "I am an Aurora. I was told to contact the Xiomeran authorities to report this and register...." she said, trailing off. It sounded ridiculous, even to her.
The officer seemed as stunned as Comilō was. "Um....wait here a moment, ma'am," he said finally, walking over quickly to his sergeant as another officer watched Comilō, unsure if she was supposed to arrest her or ask her if she wanted a coffee.
After several phone calls followed by approximately twenty minutes of waiting while the officers tried to make awkward small talk with Comilō, another woman came into the reception area. She was dressed in a business suit from a second-tier Xiomeran designer, not as expensive as the truly high-class designers but still very nice. Her outfit, and the briefcase she was carrying, were practically a uniform for those who knew how to decipher Xiomeran class and rank markers. Bureaucrat, businesswoman, or agent. Which one are you? Comilō thought.
"Good morning, you must be Comilō. I am Tezliteza, with ASI. I have been assigned to take your report and transition from your Aurora service to Xiomeran residency. Please come with me," she said.
Agent. I still have the knack for identification, Comilō thought with bemusement. Still nervous, but deciding to trust everyone involved in this very odd situation, she walked to the door with Tezliteza. "Oh, officers....neither of us was ever here," Tezliteza said pointedly as she led Comilō through the doors.
The Imperial Police officers simply nodded. They weren't about to argue with the Agency.
"Am I under arrest?" Comilō asked directly as they reached the ASI agent's car. She wanted to get everything out in the open. "Arrest? Oh, no, of course not," Tezliteza replied with a smile. "That's why I got you out of that police station. I think we should have our talks in a more innocuous location, so you can relax a bit," the agent replied.
After about twenty minutes of driving, the two reached the outskirts of Tlilotl'pac. The area they were in was a more working-class area of the city, home to the many people who kept the city working for its affluent residents to enjoy. There were significantly fewer new buildings in this neighborhood than there were in the bustling heart of Tlilotl'pac, but there was one of note, Comilō noted as the car pulled up. Tlilotl'pac Community Services Center - Secretariat of Support, the sign over the front doors read.
"We're going to talk at....a public services center?" Comilō said, surprised.
"Yes...it's still a government facility, and it has private meeting rooms, but it's not a police station or an ASI office. That should help you feel a bit less nervous," Tezliteza said.
It did, in fact, help Comilō feel less nervous. The shiny new building, a symbol of the reforms of Empress Yauhmi, seemed to represent a different Xiomera than the one which would have probably thrown her in a prison cell, while Topilpopoca had been Emperor. The people at the center also helped reassure her, if only because they seemed as happy and surprised as she was beginning to feel. As Comilō and Tezliteza walked through the building, they walked past people speaking to advisors or standing in line to apply for the new benefits the Empress had launched. All of them were smiling. The new Xiomeran "safety net" was not as broad or as extensive as that of the more liberal IDU states. But any social safety net at all, in a nation whose previous leaders had viewed poverty with a mindset of if you're poor, you're just not working hard enough, was a godsend to the people in this building.
The two of them eventually arrived to a private conference room at the back of the building, looking for all the world like two people meeting to plan social programs. Once they were inside the conference room, Tezliteza activated a small device that she took out of her pocket; it lit up and hummed slightly. "Just disappointing any potential eavesdroppers," the agent said with another smile. "So....as your Kerlian contacts probably advised you, we have come to an understanding with the Council of Kerlile to allow Auroras in Xiomera to remain here, in their current lives, or to return home if you wish. My job is to help you with whichever decision you make."
Comilō nodded. "I'm sorry, I just have to ask....why am I being allowed to make this choice? I don't mean to seem ungrateful....I do want to stay here, with my family. But it just doesn't seem real that the Xiomeran government would let us stay without repercussions....we were sent here as agents, after all. You're an agent yourself...that would seem odd to you, I am sure."
Tezliteza nodded, smiling. "You're not wrong. But the Empress has decided, in her wisdom, that punishing Auroras for the actions of those who sent them here just doesn't make sense. Auroras are very talented individuals, and if they wish to serve Xiomera, that benefits both us and them. The Empress is loath to waste talent, especially if it can help our nation and its people. Also, Kerlile and Xiomera are allies now. And, as far as we can tell, no Aurora sent to Xiomera ever did any harm to this country. So, the Empress considers this a matter worth overlooking."
The ASI agent's expression turned more serious. "There is one overriding reason, though. You may have been born and raised in Kerlile, but you are a Xiomeran. This is your homeland. It belongs to you, just as much as it does to me, or anyone in this building, or this country, even the Empress herself. There is no other Xiomera, anywhere in the world. It would be wrong for us to deny you the chance to remain in the land that is your birthright. The Empress views this land as a refuge for its people, and herself as their protector. So, when confronted with Xiomerans who had their youth stolen, who were forced to serve as spies, with no right to refuse, on their own ancestral homeland....the Empress doesn't want to punish you, or the other Auroras sent here. She wants to save you, and bring you home. You're already here, luckily enough. The only question is....do you trust us enough to take a chance?"
Comilō sat, lost in thought, for a moment. It all still seemed like a dream, like a fantasy of rescue. But if the Xiomeran government had wanted to punish her, they could have just arrested her and been done with it. She thought about her husband, and her daughter. In the end, there was only one choice.
"I will give you my trust. I want to remain here in Xiomera, with my family," she said. Tezliteza smiled again in response. "Then that is what shall happen. You'll need to complete some paperwork, and take the loyalty oath again as a formality, but we can take care of that all now."
"And then...that's it? I can go home?" Comilō said, still slightly dazed at the idea that it could be this simple. Tezliteza nodded. "Let's get started."
A few hours later, Comilō arrived back at her house, her emotions a mix of amazement and shock. It was all done. As she walked inside her home, her husband, Miztal, smiled from the back of the living room. Her daughter, Zia, ran up to her to give her a hug. Hugging her daughter back, Comilō smiled more broadly than she had in ages. She was truly Xiomeran now, and truly free.
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