Themes: family disconnect, estrangement, emotional manipulation, grief
The day Valja found out their youngest child had been shot was the last day they felt alive. The moment they heard the news, Valja finally saw their purpose clearly: they were responsible for their family, for ensuring they all escaped the vicious pull of the gangs jockeying for position with children’s lives. In all the confusion, Valja had been firm: they had to escape, to leave Yugo-Graad, now. In La Cage, Valja found work, housing, and the essentials for the family, but they felt forced to overlook a bit of extra food or the occasional blanket that showed up unexpectedly. Otherwise, though, they have remained outspoken against criminal activity of any kind. Their dynamic with their spouse Matija became unpredictable – sometimes antagonistic, sometimes compassionate, always codependent – and Valja hovers over their surviving children, Sasha and Zhenya. Valja’s voice is clearest when speaking out against Matija’s casual schemes, trying to keep the children on the straight and narrow. This balance lasted for years - until Zhenya’s spouse, Luka, joined the family. Seeing how easily Zhenya gives in to their fast-talking spouse and how Matija’s eyes light up with Luka’s ridiculous ideas for the next big thing is enough to make Valja wonder if it’s too late. Too late for their children, too late for themselves, too late for their marriage. Will Valja manage to protect the new life they constructed for themselves away from gang turf wars or will they forever live under the dark clouds of the Krot name?
FULL GROUP TEXT
(mandatory for members of the group and Immigration Officers, optional for others - for example various other foreigners)
The immigrant housing occupies one whole wing of La Cage, the more decrepit one, hosting families that are far from home. People love creating distance between one another. Migrants from Graad and Oranje and some undocumented poor souls live here, stuck between horrible jobs in local sweatshops and old dreams. All together, squashed under one roof, the various cultures are clashing and mixing with each other, while everyone is still trying to maintain a sense of belonging. But is it even possible to call La Cage home?
The collective of anarchists is, as it usually goes, not the most structured group with any clear hierarchy. They banded together because they shared a common vision. The Union is right about the oppression of capital, but wrong about the requirement of authority. The mankind does not need to be governed. The movement stands on three main principles - mutual aid, voluntary cooperation, and direct action. Those are non-negotiable, however, when it comes to the beliefs of the individual members, they vary greatly. Maybe that is the reason that they fight as much against the regime, as among themselves. But the group is fresh and ready to take on some less abstract shape. How will the anarchy shape La Cage?
Association for the Rights of the Dead (ARD) started as a lobby and interest group trying to bring back burying people into graves and other traditional funeral customs, however, it already succeeded in it´s political goals. Now, ARD is mostly concerned with providing funeral services, taking care of places of rest and helping people grieve.
For most people in Revachol, death was something that happens out of sight, with dead bodies disappearing into incinerators and memorial places overgrown with vines. ARD is here to change that, both by offering funeral services and by organising some cultural events, like the famous Dance of the Dead, when dead people symbolically join the parties through photos and songs.
A group of avid readers, discussing books, ideas and critically analysing theories and contemporary developments in economy, politics and sociology. Fiery discussions can come based on their deep analysis of the texts, deep friendships are formed and deepest hatreds come to life. What could be more important than the correct interpretation of text?
