03-02-2020, 12:02 AM
Josephine Poirier enjoyed her life in Laeral. The thought of returning to the Matriarchy, to a life which would be of a much lower standard was not one she wanted to think. Her education and career was already going well, and she was only 22. Things were looking incredibly bright for her, but back in Kerlile her options would be very limited. Returning was not a very attractive option, and she could do much more for feminism here than she could at home.
It was when she was at work she made her decision. Her internship at Les Couloirs was one of the things about her life she loved the most. She had learned a lot during it and she liked the other people there. They were intelligent and thoughtful, they also spoke very freely, something she knew would never happen in Kerlile. She liked the intellectual stimulation and the opportunities her conversations brought her for personal development. All that would be lost if she followed her orders - so she decided not to.
She kept working, living her life, rubbing shoulders with Laeralian lawmakers and debating feminist policy with politically minded Laeralites. Josephine made no move to contact the Matriarchy at all, and hoped that after their deadline expired in a few days, they’d just let her go and make no attempt to contact her. If she had any trouble in the future, she would deal with it by herself, in whatever way necessary. She hoped though, that she would be able to continue her spotless academic record, her model-student image and never need to deal with the authorities at all. Only time would tell if that would come to pass.
*
Felicité Marin did not particularly want to return to Kerlile. She was in a good position, and all that would be lost if she returned - or, indeed, if she came under suspicion. Since the discovery of the Aurora Programme by foreign nations, she had slept rather uneasily at night. The Minister of Inclusion and Women’s Affairs in Laeral was not a particularly happy person at this point in time. Everything hung in the balance.
She didn’t want to go back, but maybe there was something she could do, a way she could convince the Matriarchy to permit her to remain in Kerlile. It was unlikely there would be any way she was able to be completely safe; she wasn’t who she said she was, and that would always hang over her if she remained in Laeral. Yet, it was worth a try, and she could get in contact with Kerlile and ask.
"You're leaving it late, aren't you?" the voice on the other end of the phone answered, much to her surprise.
"I… I'm sorry?" she said, baffled.
"Well, the deadline to return is in a few hours. You should have asked for help before this."
"You haven't even asked who I am," Felicité said, slightly concerned about the breach in protocol.
"I'm about to lose my job in a few hours, what do I care about protocol? Tell me, why haven't you returned yet? And give me your KCID, I'll still need to look it up on the system."
"26419547, and I must say, you are not following protocol at all," she answered firmly.
"Get me fired then. Oh wait, you can't. Look, why… oh, I see now. Yes, someone in your position would find it hard to come back."
"I believe it would be detrimental to our cause for me to take that action at this time," Felicité began cautiously. "My sudden disappearance could lead to questions we do not want raised. It would be beneficial for me to remain here."
"Another one? That's more common than you'd think," laughed the voice. "It's kind of funny how badly Pierre messed up."
"Okay, who exactly are you, because you are not acting remotely like one in your position should."
"Calm down, I'm just having fun! Councillor Hale is gonna give me a job, probably, I can feel it," she said, and all of a sudden Felicité noticed a slur in her voice. The person on the line was drunk. Great.
"Could I please speak to someone else?" she enquired as politely as possible.
"Fine, fine, hold on…"
There was a pause of a few moments, and a lot of background noise, the phone clearly having been left on the desk in another horrendous breach of protocol. Felicité was starting to worry that this was all some kind of bizarre dream.
"Ms Marin? I'm so sorry about that," answered another voice, this one sounding slightly familiar. "There has been a bit of chaos here today, she shouldn't have been on the phones. May I ask what you need?"
"I believe it would be harmful for me to return," Felicité sighed as she explained again. "I would like to remain where I am, I feel this is the best way to move forward."
"Okay, that's understandable. There are a lot of things going on here, and you're not the only one to say this. We are currently formulating a plan to try and enable those who wish to remain. Someone will be in contact with you in a few days, in that case, to discuss this further. Now, I'm sorry, I really have to go, we have an alarm going off again. Good luck!"
The line went dead and Felicité slowly put the phone down and sat, leaning back against a wall and wondering whether that was the wisest idea. It appeared that the Matriarchy had fallen into chaos, and the action of a low-level employee insulting a Councillor without being immediately taken away was something that she couldn't quite process. It seemed that times has indeed changed.
*
Keitha Noguera was in her house, sipping her afternoon tea and staring out at the garden, lost in thought, when the doorbell rang. She barely heard it until the second time it was pressed, after which she shook her head and stood, walking over to the door and opening it. Outside stood her former aide Alyssa Robinson, now working for her successor as First Minister of Aeluria, Nazario Macías.
Alyssa had been by her side during the war, in the worst times of rationing and blockades, when nobody was quite sure if they'd survive. She had developed a fondness for the woman during the time, and knew her to be an intelligent, calm and collected individual who she had come to trust. She had not expected a visit from Alyssa, but it was a very pleasant occurrence nonetheless.
“Alyssa! I wasn’t expecting you! Would you like to come in?” Keitha smiled.
“If you don’t mind,” Alyssa nodded. Noguera let her in, and walked into the kitchen, putting the kettle on as Alyssa took a seat at the table.
“So, what brings you here?” Keitha asked as she poured the tea.
“You see, I’m leaving tonight, and I felt we needed to clear some things up. It’s likely most of it will come out soon and I owe it to you to prepare you. I trust that you won’t tell anyone else of this until I’m long gone - it would give you no advantage, and would be counterproductive and, to be frank, a little dangerous.”
“I’m… very confused,” confessed Keitha.
“Here’s the thing: people misinterpret things. We see it all the time, it’s why we have to be so careful what we say to the media. Yet sometimes things get leaked that the original creators of are not given the chance to comment on - or, indeed, are not surviving to this day.”
“This is not producing any more clarity.”
“President Susanna Pierre of Kerlile, you’ll likely remember her from your childhood. The founder of the Aurora Programme. Oh, don’t get me wrong, she was corrupt too, she used it for her own ends - from what I heard there was a lot sent to Kvask in the 80s. But her daughter was a lot better, and actually ran the Programme on the principles it was set up by, and advertised to the wider Council as.”
“The Aurora… why would you… wait, you’re not…” Keitha turned pale, and she looked up at Alyssa in fear.
“It was meant to be a Programme to spread feminism across the globe. Not the imperialist nonsense that the Clarke affair implied. It’s been misunderstood, but now it puts the whole thing in jeopardy so I rather think the Matriarchy are scrapping it entirely. I don’t know, there are different interpretations and different missions. But I’m in a complicated position, you see. I subscribe to an interpretation that is not what is commonly believed, or perhaps even commonly practiced.”
“Oh Arbrera, you are one!”
“Please don’t freak out, I’m not going to hurt you. Everything I’ve done here has been as it appeared, at no point have I been activated. And even if so, I would not carry out a mission that is not in keeping with true feminism. The government of Kerlile at the time of the war here practiced a corrupted version. I have more loyalty to the Reformist faction, or even what no longer exists.”
“What… okay, okay, let me get this straight. You’re a Kerlian agent, but you don’t support the Kerlian government?”
“Not the Kerlian government at the time of my assignment. There are a few of us, members of the Aurora Programme who have a secondary mission. I need to carry that out now. Please don’t worry, it is a domestic affair. There are elements who dislike how some families have turned the Matriarchy into a tinpot dictatorship which tortures people for fun. It is time that we returned to our primary mission - women’s liberation.”
“I am not sure I understand.”
“You don’t need to, you’ll see soon enough. I must go, but remember that if you report me, if my identity comes to light, it will reflect very badly upon you. I came here as a courtesy, and I trust you will do the same to me and allow me to leave. People already call you collaborator behind your back, don’t make it worse. I will help you, if I can, when things change.”
“When what things change!? You’re a Kerlian!” Keitha cried, distraught and afraid.
“Everything. Trust me. Keep your eye on the news for the next couple of weeks, events are in motion which will change everything. Goodbye,” said Alyssa, the Aurora, and then she left, vanishing into the trees outside.
It was when she was at work she made her decision. Her internship at Les Couloirs was one of the things about her life she loved the most. She had learned a lot during it and she liked the other people there. They were intelligent and thoughtful, they also spoke very freely, something she knew would never happen in Kerlile. She liked the intellectual stimulation and the opportunities her conversations brought her for personal development. All that would be lost if she followed her orders - so she decided not to.
She kept working, living her life, rubbing shoulders with Laeralian lawmakers and debating feminist policy with politically minded Laeralites. Josephine made no move to contact the Matriarchy at all, and hoped that after their deadline expired in a few days, they’d just let her go and make no attempt to contact her. If she had any trouble in the future, she would deal with it by herself, in whatever way necessary. She hoped though, that she would be able to continue her spotless academic record, her model-student image and never need to deal with the authorities at all. Only time would tell if that would come to pass.
*
Felicité Marin did not particularly want to return to Kerlile. She was in a good position, and all that would be lost if she returned - or, indeed, if she came under suspicion. Since the discovery of the Aurora Programme by foreign nations, she had slept rather uneasily at night. The Minister of Inclusion and Women’s Affairs in Laeral was not a particularly happy person at this point in time. Everything hung in the balance.
She didn’t want to go back, but maybe there was something she could do, a way she could convince the Matriarchy to permit her to remain in Kerlile. It was unlikely there would be any way she was able to be completely safe; she wasn’t who she said she was, and that would always hang over her if she remained in Laeral. Yet, it was worth a try, and she could get in contact with Kerlile and ask.
"You're leaving it late, aren't you?" the voice on the other end of the phone answered, much to her surprise.
"I… I'm sorry?" she said, baffled.
"Well, the deadline to return is in a few hours. You should have asked for help before this."
"You haven't even asked who I am," Felicité said, slightly concerned about the breach in protocol.
"I'm about to lose my job in a few hours, what do I care about protocol? Tell me, why haven't you returned yet? And give me your KCID, I'll still need to look it up on the system."
"26419547, and I must say, you are not following protocol at all," she answered firmly.
"Get me fired then. Oh wait, you can't. Look, why… oh, I see now. Yes, someone in your position would find it hard to come back."
"I believe it would be detrimental to our cause for me to take that action at this time," Felicité began cautiously. "My sudden disappearance could lead to questions we do not want raised. It would be beneficial for me to remain here."
"Another one? That's more common than you'd think," laughed the voice. "It's kind of funny how badly Pierre messed up."
"Okay, who exactly are you, because you are not acting remotely like one in your position should."
"Calm down, I'm just having fun! Councillor Hale is gonna give me a job, probably, I can feel it," she said, and all of a sudden Felicité noticed a slur in her voice. The person on the line was drunk. Great.
"Could I please speak to someone else?" she enquired as politely as possible.
"Fine, fine, hold on…"
There was a pause of a few moments, and a lot of background noise, the phone clearly having been left on the desk in another horrendous breach of protocol. Felicité was starting to worry that this was all some kind of bizarre dream.
"Ms Marin? I'm so sorry about that," answered another voice, this one sounding slightly familiar. "There has been a bit of chaos here today, she shouldn't have been on the phones. May I ask what you need?"
"I believe it would be harmful for me to return," Felicité sighed as she explained again. "I would like to remain where I am, I feel this is the best way to move forward."
"Okay, that's understandable. There are a lot of things going on here, and you're not the only one to say this. We are currently formulating a plan to try and enable those who wish to remain. Someone will be in contact with you in a few days, in that case, to discuss this further. Now, I'm sorry, I really have to go, we have an alarm going off again. Good luck!"
The line went dead and Felicité slowly put the phone down and sat, leaning back against a wall and wondering whether that was the wisest idea. It appeared that the Matriarchy had fallen into chaos, and the action of a low-level employee insulting a Councillor without being immediately taken away was something that she couldn't quite process. It seemed that times has indeed changed.
*
Keitha Noguera was in her house, sipping her afternoon tea and staring out at the garden, lost in thought, when the doorbell rang. She barely heard it until the second time it was pressed, after which she shook her head and stood, walking over to the door and opening it. Outside stood her former aide Alyssa Robinson, now working for her successor as First Minister of Aeluria, Nazario Macías.
Alyssa had been by her side during the war, in the worst times of rationing and blockades, when nobody was quite sure if they'd survive. She had developed a fondness for the woman during the time, and knew her to be an intelligent, calm and collected individual who she had come to trust. She had not expected a visit from Alyssa, but it was a very pleasant occurrence nonetheless.
“Alyssa! I wasn’t expecting you! Would you like to come in?” Keitha smiled.
“If you don’t mind,” Alyssa nodded. Noguera let her in, and walked into the kitchen, putting the kettle on as Alyssa took a seat at the table.
“So, what brings you here?” Keitha asked as she poured the tea.
“You see, I’m leaving tonight, and I felt we needed to clear some things up. It’s likely most of it will come out soon and I owe it to you to prepare you. I trust that you won’t tell anyone else of this until I’m long gone - it would give you no advantage, and would be counterproductive and, to be frank, a little dangerous.”
“I’m… very confused,” confessed Keitha.
“Here’s the thing: people misinterpret things. We see it all the time, it’s why we have to be so careful what we say to the media. Yet sometimes things get leaked that the original creators of are not given the chance to comment on - or, indeed, are not surviving to this day.”
“This is not producing any more clarity.”
“President Susanna Pierre of Kerlile, you’ll likely remember her from your childhood. The founder of the Aurora Programme. Oh, don’t get me wrong, she was corrupt too, she used it for her own ends - from what I heard there was a lot sent to Kvask in the 80s. But her daughter was a lot better, and actually ran the Programme on the principles it was set up by, and advertised to the wider Council as.”
“The Aurora… why would you… wait, you’re not…” Keitha turned pale, and she looked up at Alyssa in fear.
“It was meant to be a Programme to spread feminism across the globe. Not the imperialist nonsense that the Clarke affair implied. It’s been misunderstood, but now it puts the whole thing in jeopardy so I rather think the Matriarchy are scrapping it entirely. I don’t know, there are different interpretations and different missions. But I’m in a complicated position, you see. I subscribe to an interpretation that is not what is commonly believed, or perhaps even commonly practiced.”
“Oh Arbrera, you are one!”
“Please don’t freak out, I’m not going to hurt you. Everything I’ve done here has been as it appeared, at no point have I been activated. And even if so, I would not carry out a mission that is not in keeping with true feminism. The government of Kerlile at the time of the war here practiced a corrupted version. I have more loyalty to the Reformist faction, or even what no longer exists.”
“What… okay, okay, let me get this straight. You’re a Kerlian agent, but you don’t support the Kerlian government?”
“Not the Kerlian government at the time of my assignment. There are a few of us, members of the Aurora Programme who have a secondary mission. I need to carry that out now. Please don’t worry, it is a domestic affair. There are elements who dislike how some families have turned the Matriarchy into a tinpot dictatorship which tortures people for fun. It is time that we returned to our primary mission - women’s liberation.”
“I am not sure I understand.”
“You don’t need to, you’ll see soon enough. I must go, but remember that if you report me, if my identity comes to light, it will reflect very badly upon you. I came here as a courtesy, and I trust you will do the same to me and allow me to leave. People already call you collaborator behind your back, don’t make it worse. I will help you, if I can, when things change.”
“When what things change!? You’re a Kerlian!” Keitha cried, distraught and afraid.
“Everything. Trust me. Keep your eye on the news for the next couple of weeks, events are in motion which will change everything. Goodbye,” said Alyssa, the Aurora, and then she left, vanishing into the trees outside.
LIDUN President 2024 | she/her | Puppets: Kerlile, Glanainn, Yesteria, Zongongia, Zargothrax