Themes: vengeance, reconciliation, madness, obsession, fascism
Jordan lost their family when the Local Union Branch... transformed and took power. Jordan's parents were former Union heavy hitters and pushers - now, of course, remembered by most as nice and honest people. Elian let Jordan live and even supported their education, probably hoping that Jordan would just give up on La Cage and run away.
Jordan did not. Jordan returned to La Cage and started at the clinic as a nurse. However, the stress of the work, the unresolved trauma of their loss, and complicated feelings towards the gang running La Cage push them to the brink. And when Jordan has their sadder and _weirder_ moments, they like to turn to some very disturbing creative outlets. Mostly involving scalpels.
Everybody who lives in La Cage is mostly poor and desperate. The families and professionals living in Apartment Blocks are the ones who really try to keep some semblance of normality in their lives. The Block A is the wealthier one - it consists of people that are sure to have food even next week but are not entirely sure if they can get medical care in times of need. All while enjoying the luxury of reliable electricity and mostly repaired windows. The people living here have at least some "power" due to their jobs, but almost everybody is afraid that their little slice of paradise will be taken from them by relocation to a different flat.
Some young people of Revachol felt lost in life. Nothing made sense and they saw everything around them going to shit. Slowly, they realized what was causing this - the foreigners, bringing in drugs and crime, and the liberals that love them so much. Then, a solution hit them - fascism! The Iron Cadence is formed out of fascists (although the less radical of them prefer being called Traditionalists) of varying degrees. Not necessarily racist fascists, but quite often that. Joined together by a sense of the world being wrong and wanting to put it to right, by staying in SUPREME HEALTH, having SUPREME LEADERSHIP, and basking in SUPREME FRIENDSHIP.
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.
An honorable, traditional artistic collective in La Cage, the Theatrical Taxidermy Society has been stuffing animals and delivering pithy social commentary for a long time. Some find the collections of birds with little hats and cloaks or Comrade Meerkat with their little lantern of progress a strange thing to find in the alcoves on their way to work, but the denizens of La Cage are now used to the sight. They know which windowsill to look on if they want some gossip told through stuffed mice. They marvel at the battles of old illustrated by the mangled taxidermy parrots. And they all turn up for the annual Great Taxidermy Expo, which always delivers a nuanced portrayal of the current affairs plaguing the neighbourhood in their main play - and a brand new specimen to boot!
