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Glory to Zdro
Glory to Zdroiska: Solo Write
Congragulations.
The September labor lottery is complete. Your name was pulled.
An apartment will be provided for you and your family in North Radlyosha. Expect a Class-8 dwelling.
For immediate placement, report to the Ministrey of Admission at Radlyosha Border Checkpoint.
Glory to Zdroiska.
A job at the country's heavily guarded border. Not the most interesting profession ever, but it's not like the letter's recipient would have any choice.
Well, I guess they did have a choice. Work or prison. Which, with the state of glorious Zdroiska's system, boils down to work or die. A phrase that summarizes life in Zdroiska, one that nobody is bold enough to utter. Pretty bleak alternative, hm? Might as well pack up and head to Radlyosha.
What's the worst that could happen?
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Character's File (You can make multiple.)
Name (One that would fit a proud Zdroiskan! i.e. Slavic.):
Age (I'm mostly looking for adults, but some kids would be fine too):
Male or Female:
Personality:
Voice:
Physical Appearance:
Family (i.e. Spouse, children, old parents... OPTIONAL!):
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Dreams:
Pick a Color:
If I Decided to Ship Your Character, Would You Be Okay w/ That?:
Other:
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First post! I'm excited to be here! I'm even more excited to get this Solo Write started!
BTW: I'll accept characters even after it's started!
submitted by Tenebrous, Glorious Zdroiska
(April 3, 2023 - 8:19 pm)
(April 3, 2023 - 8:19 pm)
Reserving!
(April 8, 2023 - 4:22 pm)
Alright!
(April 9, 2023 - 5:37 am)
Hey Luna, just so you know, I'll need your characters by Friday if you want them to be in the first chapter. If you don't get them done in time, that's alright! I can introduce them in another chapter. Thanks for entering!
(April 11, 2023 - 7:26 am)
Name (One that would fit a proud Zdroiskan! i.e. Slavic.): Nikolita Vladmir (Yes, I had to choose this last name. I'm surprised no one has yet.)
Age (I'm mostly looking for adults, but some kids would be fine too): 39
Male or Female: Male
Personality: Blunt in his outward expressions. Blunt inside too. Just blunt overall, he doesn't care.
Voice: Thick and gruff, very deep. Not much to see (or hear) here.
Physical Appearance: Giant bulk, a hulking mass of a man. Very intimidating and bears a striking resemblance to a bear. Just... a walking bear. Has short black hair cut down to the near ends so that they won't get in the way of his sight when he works. Black eyes, and a jagged face set in stone.
Family (i.e. Spouse, children, old parents... OPTIONAL!): His aged mother. Apart from her, he has no more living relatives.
Strengths: The closest person to being an actual workhorse slash powerhouse you will get in Radlyosha. Translation?
Brawn.
Weaknesses: Can't wrap his head around 'fine' things, as he puts it. Complicated emotions, his purpose, his ambitions and goals... he won't think of those too much, being the workhorse he is. (whispers: He's brainwashed! Kind of. He still has some sense in him, if one can find it.)
Dreams: Serve Zdroskia. He only wants that.
Pick a Color: Red. Glorious. Zdroskian. Red.
If I Decided to Ship Your Character, Would You Be Okay w/ That?: Of course, though I doubt someone will fit him.
Other: Work. Work. Work is glory. Work!
(April 9, 2023 - 9:21 am)
Alrighty, here's Kaz's sister.
Name (One that would fit a proud Zdroiskan! i.e. Slavic.): General Feya Tataryn-Honchar
Age (I'm mostly looking for adults, but some kids would be fine too): 29
Male or Female: AFAB, female, she/her
Personality: Efficient, ambitious, patient, hardworking, eager to serve, the perfect Zdroiskan (everything her sibling pretends to be but isn't). She is, however, a good person, and cares about her sibling and part of the reason she wanted to join the Zdroiskan military is to protect the good citizens of Glorious Zdrioska.
Voice: Smooth, low, commanding voice.
Physical Appearance: She's tall, with the same light brown skin and deep amber eyes as her sibling. Her wavy dark brown hair is short, but not buzz cut short, like an inch or two long. She usually wears her uniform or her battle gear. She's strong and usually has a feirce expression.
Family (i.e. Spouse, children, old parents... OPTIONAL!): Her younger sibling, Kaz, is a character made by Scuttles. Two younger siblings. She also had parents but they mysteriously disappeared about three years ago due to her father's treason. She genuinely cares about her sibling and manages to meet with them at least twice a year, and does her best to make sure they stay out of trouble. She knows they want to join the Zdrioskan military and when a spot opens up in the cadet training camp at her base she'll recommend them for it.
Strengths: A talented fighter, both with firearms and in unarmed combat. Capable and intellegent.
Weaknesses: Gets annoyed easily, sometimes cocky and overconfidant.
Dreams: To rise in the military and to use her status to protect the citizens and government of Zdroiska.
Pick a Color: The colors of the Glorious Zdroiskan flag.
If I Decided to Ship Your Character, Would You Be Okay w/ That?: Yes. Definetely. Absolutely.
Other: Because of her position, when her name was picked in the lottery, instead of being offered a normal checkpoint job she was offered a spot in one of the elite border enforcement teams that work out of the military outpost there.
(April 10, 2023 - 7:33 am)
gak, I just reread this, and in family, where it says, "Her younger sibling, Kaz, is a charrie made by Scuttles. Two younger siblings." I meant to say "Her younger sibling, Kaz, is a charrie made by Scuttles, plus she's got two even younger siblings." My brain was falling apart when I wrote that... It was 7:30, which is far to early to be developing charries, so you'll have to excuse me. Ya know what, just go read the version Scuttles wrote in Kaz's form, they're basically the same thing.
(April 13, 2023 - 3:42 pm)
(April 15, 2023 - 7:06 pm)
Almost done with the first chapter!
BTW, you guys can throw in characters even after the story starts!
(April 17, 2023 - 12:55 pm)
Chapter One: Arrival
A/N: Woo! First chapter!
This is sort of from Nikolai Kaschak’s POV, in case anybody was wondering. Also, if anyone notices that some characters are missing, it’s because I plan to introduce them in the future. Enjoy!
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“Glory to Zdroiska, glory to Nekrestyanov, In— Head Inspector Kaschak.”
The blond sat at his desk, papers in one hand and pitch-black coffee in the other.
“Hello, Vladmir,” Nikolai greeted professionally, eyes flitting up from the officers’ reports for a mere second.
Despite the dark circles under his eyes, his expression was as sharp, stern, and focused as ever. As was his appearance, with his clean unwrinkled uniform and polished medals shining brightly against his office’s grim state.
It was, indeed, a grim state. A gloriously grim state. It was obvious that the Head Inspector has been hard at work for his beautiful country’s safety. In short; his office was trashed.
That wasn’t normal for him. At least it wasn’t normal for him before his promotion. He doesn’t have time to tidy up like he did when he was a regular inspector, especially with the sudden staff shortage stretching him thin.
It must be eating away at him. The man liked having his things in order. This development happened just in time.
“Glory to Zdroiska. Glory to Nekrestyanov,” Kaschak continued, “What news do you have for me this evening?”
“It’s exactly 6:45 in the morning. It hasn’t been evening for nine hours and forty-five minutes preciously.”
The Head Inspector glanced at his clock and furrowed his brow. Another accidental all-nighter. Such is life.
At least Nikolita pointed it out before Nikolai took a nap break. Sleeping in the morning would definitely make him seem like a slacker if he were discovered.
“An assembly of replacement workers gathered by the recent September labor lottery is awaiting your assignments in the yard, Head Inspector,” Nikolita went on.
Nikolai gave a hum of acknowledgment. Even if his deadpan expression didn’t show it, he was relieved the new workers were here.
The border’s been short-staffed since the… incident occurred two weeks ago. It’s been a nightmarish start to his new, dreadful promotion.
Everyone’s lives here are going to be so much easier with their arrival.
“Let’s not keep them waiting, then,” Nikolai downed the rest of his coffee and stood from his desk. He grabbed his handgun and stuffed it in its holster.
The two made their way through the checkpoint, small gatherings of officers getting out of their way as they went as if the two were Moses parting the Red Sea.
At least that’s what Nikolai thought happened in the story. He wasn’t sure. All religious texts have been banned nationwide, from the Bible to the Qur’an. Even mere sentences of them are difficult to come across, especially if they weren’t being twisted to fit Zdroiska’s narrative.
Nikolai decided he was going to read all the ones he can get his hands on out of spite if he ever escapes Zdroiska. It’s unlikely to happen, but it’s a nice dream.
A couple of doors, staircases, and hallways later; the two finally got to a pair of twin metal doors, an officer on each side.
Nikolita bid the two a short ‘Glory to Zdroiska! Work hard for the benefit of our country!’ as Nikolai took a stack of papers from one of them. The two officers returned Nikolita’s words, the one on the left robotically handing him a clipboard.
Nikolai felt something shrivel up and die inside of him. He hated that phrase. He hated this place. He hated it with every ounce of blood in his body. Shaking it off, he pushed through the doors.
The yard was a colorless, walled-in lot. The grass had been worn down to dirt over time (sans a few yellow patches), and a few metal picnic tables for the officers’ lunch break have been dulled and moved to the side. A janitor was next to one of them, earning some uneasy looks from the new workers as she scrubbed dried blood off the wall, left behind from two weeks ago.
Nikolai couldn’t help but feel a little wary about that janitor, but he supposed she was good at her job. Alecksock Zander. Despite being an immigrant from Lazagkrus, a land more Eastern than Zdroskia… her name sounded suspiciously Western.
Speaking of suspiciously Western sounding…
Nikolai motioned for Nikolita to look at the page. The taller man glanced at the paper before nodding sharply in understanding, putting a wary hand on his holster.
“Samantha Zagrobelna,” Nikolai’s voice rang, “Step forward.”
A rather short girl stepped in front of the line. She had to be— What, around 153 centimeters? Possibly more. It was hard to guess with Nikolita standing near. He made everybody seem like children next to him.
“Your first name is American by origin,” He stated, “Do you or your family have any attachment to that country or any nation allied with it?”
The young woman’s eyes widened as if Nikolai’s question was the most ghastly thing she had ever heard.
“No, of course not!” She exclaimed, “My family is loyal to Zdroiska.”
“So why did your parents name you such a thing?”
Samantha blinked, “My mother heard the name when she was a military nurse during the war. She liked it.”
Well, that’s plausible. On top of having Samantha’s file, the checkpoint was given her mothers’. Both of them. It seems that they took advantage of the loophole in the country’s homosexuality law, a law that neglected the mention of women entirely. Despite marriage only being legally binding between a man and a woman, there were no consequences for two women to be each other’s lovers.
Those two will have to be careful soon, Nikolai mused, The ice is thin now that more laws are opening up to include both genders. A blessing in some ways, a curse in others.
Anyway, Samantha’s story about her mother being a military nurse checks out. Not like that completely knocks out all suspicion. After all, she could be lying.
The checkpoint will accept her, but only in an unarmed position. The country couldn’t risk it. Not after last time.
“Janitor,” Nikolai shortly decided. Samantha nodded and stepped back into line as Nikolita swiftly jotted it down.
“Akilina Stefka,” Nikolai continued his way down the line.
The tall woman beside Samantha stepped forward.
Nothing incredibly out of the ordinary was found on her file. Her father is a missionary, though. He’s been banned from reentering the country since the third wave of theology laws were enacted.
Honestly, Nikolai didn’t care what people’s personal beliefs were, and he silently believed the government shouldn’t either.
Akilina seemed harmless enough. But what job should she be given…?
‘Good at comforting people…’
“Border Mother,” Nikolai said, the sound of Nikolita’s writing shortly following.
“...Border Mother, sir?” Akilina inquired.
“This is one of our country’s busiest entries. It connects to three other nations. There are seas of people, kids get separated and lost in the lines every day. We created Border Parents to combat the issue,” Nikolai rapidly explained, “Look for crying children and help them find their parents.”
Akilina nodded and stepped back in line.
“Adi Soroka.”
The athletic-looking seventeen-year-old girl took her step forward.
“You’ll be a Hermes,” Nikolai instructed. While religion was illegal in Zdroiska, historical dead religions were free to reference. Thus, the Hermes roll was named without any issue, “You’re essentially an errand runner and a messenger. Move quickly. Delivering a message a couple seconds late could result in tragedy. You’ll be provided with a handgun.”
With a cautious gaze, she fell back into line.
“Cadet 6347-B,” Nikolai pushed forward, “Ivan Skliar.”
The young man who Nikolai assumed to be Ivan almost seemed surprised at the usage of his real name. He must’ve been so used to being dehumanized by being referred to as numbers and a letter.
“You’ll be joining the military in enforcing security,” Head Inspector Kaschak assigned, “It will act as a form of extra credit in your off-checkpoint training. You’ll come out of here with a higher rank than you would without it.”
“Yes, sir! Thank you, sir,” The cadet grinned, stepping back into line.
“Duska… Zatmeniye,” Nikolai furrowed his brow as he read her file.
A great, heavy silence stretched on in the yard; one that was so palpable you could cut it with a knife.
The line waited with bated breath for the Head Inspector’s verdict.
After a moment that felt like an eternity and a half, he waved Nikolita towards Duska.
“Detain her for interrogation.”
Nikolai ignored the woman’s indignant shouts and struggles against the officers as he turned his attention to the last person on the line.
It was a rather short line, now that he thought of it. The Labor Lottery Association better send more people, this wasn’t anywhere near close to enough. He’d have to tell Chessa to compose a request to them later. For now, he might as well make do with what he had.
“Kaz Tataryn-Honchar.”
Mr. Tataryn-Honchar. Former potter, brother of a general, redeemed son of two traitors. Hardworking, intelligent, strong, clever, and above all else; blindingly loyal.
He was the very embodiment of the government’s idea of a perfect Zdroiskan worker. He was the very embodiment of everyone who had ever gotten on Nikolai’s nerves.
Nikolai didn’t care for worshippers of the country. Even Nikolita’s droning of propaganda drove him insane, and he’s had the past thirteen years to get used to it.
Everything in Nikolai itched to turn Kaz away. To turn every dedicated slave of Damyon Nekrestyanov’s away. To burn the propaganda posters in his workplace. To run across the border despite the risks. To escape to freedom.
But that’s just some ridiculous fairytale, isn’t it? Nikolai knew he’d be shot down the second he bolted to the border without approval, regardless of the time he chose to escape or how fast he ran.
Turning away Kaz would only make the checkpoint’s situation worse. Nikolai couldn’t do that to the other workers. Out of respect for the dead, he couldn’t do that to Head Inspector Vinogradov‘s hard work either.
He has to take him. There wasn’t any other good option.
“…Inspector.”
Kaz would have to take Nikolai’s old job. It would be a waste to place him anywhere else.
A sparkle lit up in Kaz’s eyes. Typical devoted Nekrestyanov follower behavior.
“Thank you, Head Inspector!” The fresh meat— Er, new border inspector replied, “I’ll work hard for the glory of Zdroiska!”
I’m sure you will, Nikolai mentally sighed to himself. Somehow Kaz’s attitude tired him out more than the fact he didn’t sleep last night.
“Akilina Stefka and Cadet 6347-B, report to Head Officer Nikolita Vladmir. Adi Soroka, follow them until you reach a desk labeled ‘Officer Blagoy Vasilyev,’ you’ll be reporting to him. Samantha Zagrobelna…” Nikolai nodded towards Alecksock Zander, “Go speak to Janitor Zander. She will administer your assignments. Finally, Kaz Tataryn-Honchar…”
Kaz’s eyes lit up. Nikolai felt himself die a little on the inside.
“You’re with me,” The Head Inspector coldly instructed, trying to mask the distaste he felt in his voice. Kaz didn’t seem to notice it.
Nikolai took a step back and analyzed everyone in the line with his gaze of steel.. It was an authoritative look, one that lets the victim of it know that Nikolai was above them, and he sure as he(ck) wouldn’t tolerate any antics or insubordination.
He gave a sharp stomp on the ground.
“Work hard for the benefit of our beautiful country! Work hard for our powerful leader Damyon Nekrestyanov! Glory to Zdroiska!”
“Glory to Zdroiska!” The crowd echoed.
Nikolai sharply turned, hiding the hatred he felt for the words he just rehearsed.
“I want you to watch them, Vladmir…” Nikolai instructed the Head Officer in a strict, hushed tone, quiet enough for the line to be oblivious that he was even speaking, “Watch them closely.”
Nikolita gave a slight nod. Nikolai knew he could always count on him to protect the checkpoint. Nikolita was loyal to his country to a fault. The man acted like he was practically married to Zdroiska.
With that, Nikolai walked away, his footsteps as stern and precise as the man himself. After realizing Nikolai was departing, Kaz swiftly followed. Kaz hurried and ended up by Nikolai’s side.
“It’s an honor to work with you, Head Inspector,” He claimed, eyes shimmering with excitement to start his new job. Nikolai resisted the urge to glower at him.
“It’s an honor to to have men like you work under me,” Nikolai shortly replied.
This was going to be a long day for him, wasn’t it?
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A/N, cont.: I couldn’t resist the urge to make a NikoDuo(TM). Anywho, time for this chapter’s question!
‘What do you think your character’s impression of their new workplace is? If they already work there, what do they think of Nikolai? If they’re Nikolai, well then, what are three of his favorite things?’
That's all for now. Glory to Zdroiska!!
(April 17, 2023 - 3:00 pm)
(April 17, 2023 - 6:53 pm)
Wonderful first part! I can already see that some of the charries will get into to all sorts of trouble. Personally, I feel sorry for Kaz and Nikolai, who have similar anti-Zdroiskan beleifs but will be too busy hating each other because they're both too good at pretending they don't have anti-Zdroiskan beleifs.
General Feya (I think that's what I named her, right?) isn't in the story yet, so I suppose I only have to answer for Ivan.
Ivan is excited to get some real experience in the military, but otherwise he isn't all too happy to be here. He liked his training school, where he was an exemplary cadet, and where he had friends. There aren't many people his age here, at least not that he's met yet, and he doesn't like that. Not many options for people to cause mischeif with... but speaking of mischeif, at least this is a good place for some, with so many grumpy adults to bother... especially Nikolita, who seems like easy prey, and Kaz and Nikolai, because he can see that if anything were to go wrong (like, i dunno, maybe a whoopee cushion or two on his chair) Nikolai would probably take his frustration out on Kaz. Aside from them, there's a bunch of adults who just came to the checkpoint at the same time as him and will probably be confused, making them easy prey as well. He's also curious about Duska...
(April 18, 2023 - 2:02 pm)
I think she (Adi Soroka) is a little overwhelmed at first. She likes to watch, and she's curious but also wary of the Head Inspector. She will be quick to snap if she feels someone is talking to her in a way she doesn't like. She feels a little lonely, but she would be hard press to let her emotional shields down. She is fine with her job; the fact that she gets to run and she would be able to defend herself are the parts that she likes.
This is great so far! Nice job!
(April 18, 2023 - 5:45 pm)
Omg your writing is so good! You wrote my character exactly how I thought of him. Great job!!!!! :D
(April 19, 2023 - 8:25 am)
I don't have any characters in this, but I think it's really cool how you put Kaz and Nikolai together, because both harbor anti-Zdroiskan feelings but neither can say it. I'm excited to see what happens next- and whether their tension bubble will pop in the future.
(April 19, 2023 - 10:40 am)
Ooo, great first part. The NikoDuo(TM) is great XD
Alrighty. It appears there's questions for me to answer. Welp, lets get to it. I'll start with Alex.
Alex has mixed feelings about Nikolai. He's not an idiot, a jerk, a power-hungry Nekrestyanov-follower, or brainwashed. She can see that he hates the Zdroiskan government. For that, she gives him a certain amount of respect. However, she thinks that for all that he hates the government, he goes along with its rules and prejudices far too easily. She'd also like a promotion from janitor to maintenance worker or something of the sort, because she ends up doing all the maintenance jobs on top of the janitor jobs since there's no maintenance workers. She's hoping that since there's another janitor now she'll finally be able to get that promotion.
Samantha is excited for her new job, but then again, Sam is excited for everything. She's slightly miffed that it's such a low job but she's eager to work hard and prove her worth and hopefully get promoted soon. She's also ready to get to know the other janitor.
And now for Kaz, who has quickly become one of my favorite characters. Their glad that they've been placed in a relatively high position because it makes their job so much easier. High on their priorities is getting in contact with their smuggling ring, recruiting new members of the smuggling ring, and getting on Nikolai's good side. So far they don't like Nikolai. Nikolai seems like a brainwashed Zdroiskan to them, though maybe not quite on the level of a Nekrestyanov-worshipper, but still brainwashed. Nikolita seems even more brainwashed. They can't trust either Nikolai or Nikolita and they don't think either of them will be possible recruits for their smuggling ring, but they'll still observe them both as possible recruits anyways, since they're both in places of power and would both be good allies if it worked out, although they think it's unlikely that it will. Other potential recruits and people to research are Ivan, Duska, Akilina and Alex, or simply anybody, because extra pairs of hands is always helpful in the resistance against the dictatorship of Zdroiska.
(April 24, 2023 - 12:04 pm)