Finding Closure

Marina was indeed coming to Kingsley Bedford with a very busy pony in her arms. Lily was turning one on this trip and she wanted to see her big brother. She had other reasons of traveling to. She wanted to see the damage done and she wanted to thank the Lanosian soldiers too for their work. She wanted, though, to meet her son and figure out what's next. That had been a dream of hers since this raid went down and the bombing so she wanted to get there..."Lily, it'll be ok. Stop tugging on Mother's dress. We'll be there in a few minutes." True to her word, the plane landed at Harani's airport (named after Mikhail Sr., which Marina did not approve of) and readied to greet her son.

"Ok ok..." Whinny! "I know...he'll see him soon."

As the plane touched down Mikhail had arrived at the aerodrome in Harani.

Does my mother know what country she's coming to? This place isn't the same anymore Mikhail wondered.

It was true, Kingsley Bedford had changed since Marina's last visit, the heart of the government had been attacked and the country was in mourning. He wondered if his mother had brought extra security because it would be needed to protect her and his sister.

The door to the plane opened

Kingsley Bedford wrote:

As the plane touched down Mikhail had arrived at the aerodrome in Harani.

Does my mother know what country she's coming to? This place isn't the same anymore Mikhail wondered.

It was true, Kingsley Bedford had changed since Marina's last visit, the heart of the government had been attacked and the country was in mourning. He wondered if his mother had brought extra security because it would be needed to protect her and his sister.

The door to the plane opened

Lily trotted out like she owned the plane. She trotted to the bottom of the stairs until she got to the ground where she ran up to Mikhail and tightly hugged his leg. Lily knew her brother survived what happened so she refused to let go even when her mother came up to hug Mikhail. "Lily?" No! "Well I guess you're going to have to hold her." Mikhail dutifully picked his sister up and put her in his arms and thereupon Lily began to nuzzle and give a low whinny every so often. Marina though had business to discuss. "So my security is here...and yours?"

"My security is here, but most of it is focused on what has happened" Mikhail said.
"What exactly happened? What went on?" she asked
"We saw a van outside the building, the next moment there was an explosion, the windows shattered and the building shook, the van exploded and it was obviously a bomb. Someone tried to kill us. I think we were the target" Mikhail said.

"Why is the airport named after your father?" Marina asked.
"We decided to name it in his honour, it has been under consideration for a while. We could've named Sirushostan's after him, but we opted for Harani as he lived here" Mikhail said.

Kingsley Bedford wrote:

"My security is here, but most of it is focused on what has happened" Mikhail said.
"What exactly happened? What went on?" she asked
"We saw a van outside the building, the next moment there was an explosion, the windows shattered and the building shook, the van exploded and it was obviously a bomb. Someone tried to kill us. I think we were the target" Mikhail said.

"Why is the airport named after your father?" Marina asked.
"We decided to name it in his honour, it has been under consideration for a while. We could've named Sirushostan's after him, but we opted for Harani as he lived here" Mikhail said.

"No no no!" Marina is insistent against the idea. "Your father would be offended by this! He wouldn't have the airport named for him in his hometown! He was humble, not like what you're aiming for!" Marina was miffed. She certainly wasn't going to have anything much named for her and the founders of Lanos weren't expecting much either. In fact her father, a great Revolutionary general, refused to have anything named after him and Marina's mother until after their deaths in 1990. Marina knew Mikhail was no exception. "Can't they change it back or something?" Lily though wasn't caring about what Mother was saying. She was more interested in loving her big brother and still doing what she was doing. Her tail wagged as she was close with Mikhail. She had to ask: "When Mickey coming?"

"When am I coming where Lily?" Mikhail asked.

Kingsley Bedford wrote:

"When am I coming where Lily?" Mikhail asked.

"To home! When big brother coming?" Lily always wanted her brother to come to Lanos. In fact, she wanted to see her brother more and wanted him to join her mother in Lanos. "When big brother coming home?" Lily began to cry. "Big brother no come home...* Marina wanted to talk to Mikhail about just that but Lily had make Marina tear up too. "Mickey, she wants you to come home and join us. Given that she'll be a big sister too...she wants her brother to come home."

"I plan on taking a hiatus from politics if I do not win the next election" Mikhail said.


So big brother come home? Lily asked Mikhail
"Yes if that happens Lily I will" Mikhail told her.

Lily stopped crying.

"I think she's happy about that. Don't you think you'll win the next election?" Marina asked her son.
"No, Yuliana's teamed up with Alexei Turskchenko, they are bound to win. I've lost popularity as many think I only have one aim. To find justice for my father. Never mind the fact I've introduced many other things, but I'm seen as the person who destroyed the relationship with the Triptych in the people's minds" Mikhail said.

"Does Yuliana know Alexei's wife is Lanosian?" Marina asked
"I assume so... but I thought of that when they announced it" Mikhail said with a laugh.
"I wonder if Misty will confront Yuliana about her racism towards Lanosians" Marina said.
"Mother for the last time Yuliana is not racist. She just dosn't like you since you blame her for that incident with the media" Mikhail said.

"I hear she helped treat injured Lanosians. Is that true?" Marina asked.
"She did, as did I. We couldn't allow them to wait until paramedics arrived. You'll see the extent of the damage for yourself. However I wouldn't advise bringing Lily, the scene is pretty gruesome. The paramedics and rescue workers are still trying to get to everyone" Mikhail said.

"It must have killed her to do that" Marina said with a smile...

"Your car is waiting... are you planning to go to the dacha first? or to Sirushostan" Mikhail asked.

"No, to the capital first." She wanted to see the damage done first. Marina, of all people that hated Sirushostan the most, wanted to see what happened there without reservation. She put a fully protective Enhanced Outer Tactical Vest on and got in her limo with Lily in her arms and dragging Mikhail along. The fully protected and armed convoy proceeded to Sirushostan while Marina prepared herself to see the scene. Lily was in her brother's arms whinnying about him staying home with Lily but Marina was focused on business at hand. Only when she got to the dacha could she relax.

"Whinny. Mickey staying with pony and Mama!"

As they traveled to Sirushostan Mikhail had the task of preparing his sister for what she may see. Even though she was staying in the limo, she might see something from the road as the pony often liked looking out the window when travelling in the car.

"Now when we get there you'll stay in the limo ok?" Mikhail said to his sister

Big brother stay with pony?
"No Lily, I have to go show Mother the building. But Yulia will come and stay here with you"

Yulia!

"Yes" Mikhail said.

"Does she have to come?" Marina asked.
"Would you rather she stay here alone or come in and see the crime scene?" Mikhail asked.
"No Yuliana will be fine... but she better not say anything about me" Marina warned.
"She won't say anything to Lily... it's Lily. Why would she say anything about you to her? You make Yuliana sound a lot worse than she really is" Mikhail said.

They arrived at the government quarter to a still chaotic scene. Paramedics were still there and police were pushing gathering crowds away from the area and out of the road so the car could get in. Bodies were on the sidewalk, Mikhail covered Lily's eyes as the car pulled up outside the burnt out national security HQ.

A familiar figure could be seen walking toward the car.

Mama look! Yulia! Lily said.
"Yes it is Yuliana" Marina said with a bitter tone. She really didn't feel like dealing with Yuliana's bullshit right now.

The car door was opened and Mikhail and Marina got out. Yuliana poked her head in the door

"Hello Lily" she said..

"Yulia! Yulia stay with pony?" Lily asked
"Yes I'll stay with you, It's a bit scary out there for you isn't it?" Yuliana said hopping in.
"Did you have a nice flight Lily?" Yuliana asked her.


Mikhail led Marina towards the building.
"This is where the van was parked" he said pointing towards a crater in the concrete outside the building. An overturned burnt out car undercarriage could be seen nearby. It was obviously the van containing the bomb.

Marina was shocked at the damage done to the building. The entire glass facade of the building was shattered and the building was completely burnt out. It was a miracle her son survived. It was definately an assasination attempt/terror attack for sure. No doubt the work of the same man who killed her husband. Maybe retaliation for his arrest she thought.

"How many are dead?" She asked.
"Unconfirmed... I know at least 9 Lanosians are among the dead in the room we were in alone. Only one survived. Your nephew in fact. He stayed on to treat the wounded. Insisted on doing so , even when Yuliana and I were transferred to a safe room underground, and he was offered to come and join us, he refused, opting to stay inside the burning building. He is safe though, unharmed. The rest of the Lanosians are injured and hospitalised... some in critical condition. You can visit them later" he said.

"At least 16 Kingfordians died in the room I was in. Several are wounded too. I escaped with a couple of cuts from glass which can be seen on my arm. But other than that both Yuliana and I were unhurt. But I believe the motive of this attack was to indeed kill us specifically" he said, leading her into the gutted lobby.

"As you can see fire engulfed this room instantly after the explosion. It began to spread throughout the building quickly" Mikhail explained.

Mikhail led her up to the control room. "Your nephew is still in here. Insisting on helping out. You'll see him in a minute. This is the room we were in when it happened" Mikhail said. He opened the door.

Marina met her nephew eventually. He was covered in blood from the wounded and he had to bawl out several Kingfordians before he came to her. He took his gloves off and shook Marina's hand. She returned the favor but said nothing, preferring to save her words while she was shown around. She refused to answer to anyone at this point as she was shown around. Marina wanted to talk later to the Lanosians and the Kingfordians and she had choice words for the latter group when she could talk to them. Lily was, on the other hand, chattering away to Yuliana. She wouldn't stop talking about all the things the pony did and wanted to see the outside, only to be shooed away by Yuliana. It wasn't until Lily saw the outside did she "eep!" and hide under Yuliana's arms.

Then a car backfired. Marina's guards didn't know that so they grabbed Marina, Mikhail, her nephew, and manhandled them all into the limo and fiercely drove off. Lily reunited with her mother and talked about all the things she saw. Marina held her pony all the way back to a Lanosian base in Harani and told her not to worry.

"It was just a car backfiring" Mikhail said... getting off the phone

"Still, better to be safe than sorry" Yuliana added.

"I suppose" Marina said.

She turned to her pony still in Yuliana's arms. and began to tell stories about the civil war.

Yuliana rolled her eyes.

Lily listened to her mothers stories as she got a picture of what it was like

"Why am I listening to this?" Yuliana asked

"Don't upset Lily" Mikhail whispered.

"Yulia Be nice to Mama, she live through war!" Lily said.

As the car approached Harani, Yuliana was relieved.

"So if it was just a car backfiring why didn't we go back?" she asked.

"Mother is asking to go back to Harani" Mikhail said.

Lily was not happy at Yuliana's snap. Not at all. She wiggled out of Yuliana's arms and returned to her mother and kept listening to Marina's stories about the war. Mikhail would get it from his little sister later but she was too busy listening to Mother's old stories. Marina retold her stories trying to be as gentle as possible but it seemed Lily already saw the bomb scene. Marina though told everyone of when she was a little girl and her parents took her to Keinsteinem's National Capital District, the day of the first terrorist bombing during the war. Her family had missed being there by mere minutes after running out of gas and stopping at the nearby station before they could exit the Interstate and get on Revolution Avenue to enter. The checkpoint was closed so they got on then-Freiheit Strasse (now July 20 Strasse) and saw the bomb blast directly from their car. If they had been on Revolution, they would have been caught next to the blast, as her father later estimated, and killed. She had been 8 at the time and it shook her. She asked her daddy, whom she was very fond of, if the same thing could happen to her. Daddy told her that he wouldn't let that happen. Years later, it shook Marina to know that Mikhail had been caught in a bombing and Lily had to see it. She was very strong looking on the outside but she was in pieces on the inside. She held Lily tight after the pony asked something like the same question she asked her father years ago. "Same thing happen to pony?" "No Lily. Mother will never let that happen to you, your brother, or your new brother or sister."

They arrived harmless to the Lanosian base and they got out to first visit the wounded Lanosians from the raid.

"Does someone want to tell me why we're here of all places?" Yuliana asked

"Where'd you think we were going?" Mikhail asked.

"The dacha, obviously" Yuliana said rolling her eyes.

"You're at a Lanosian military base" he told her.

"I've just entered hell... that's where I've entered" she whispered.

Mikhail laughed. "Don't let Lily hear you say that" he whispered back

"Oh right... the pony" Yuliana said.

"What are we doing here?" she asked

Marina had wanted to see the wounded from the conflict and the bombing so she would meet with the men. She met with each one individually as she comforted them and thanked them for their service. Lily helped with the greetings by cutely saluting every soldier, something that Marina loved about her pony. Marina could tell Yuliana didn't like the trip but she dragged it out to make her suffer. The group would later meet with the commanders of the brigade and the division that helped take the compound.

"Aww.. look at the pony saluting, isn't she cute" Yuliana said.
"Yuliana are you drunk?" Mikhail asked.
"No Mikhail, I'm high..." she said sarcastically
he raised his eyebrows

"Oh for god's sake did you honestly take me seriously?... I was joking. But no, it is kind of cute I suppose in a weird way" she said.

"You are high" Mikhail said.

Yuliana laughed. "I am not. What the heck are they doing?" she asked, referring to Marina.
"Be fucked if I know" Mikhail said.

The group would finish up in the hospital after a short while and moved on to a hangar to review the brigade that completed the mission in Romburyan. It was an expansive area for the brigade to be posted in and then they were settled. Everyone stood for a playing of the Lanosian national anthem which Marina, Lily, and the Lanosians proudly sang.

Spoiler:

The ceremony began soon after.

"Did you bring Earplugs?" Yuliana whispered into Mikhail's ear.
"Sadly no" Mikhail whispered back.
Yuliana looked annoyed.

"Do they have to subject us to this torture?" she asked Mikhail
"They sing it a little too much if you ask me. They're obsessed with it" Mikhail whispered to her.
Yuliana laughed silently "She's doing it because I'm here... she loves making my life hell" Yuliana said

"Why do you hate this so much?" he asked Yuliana
"Because this is what they sung at the end of the raid. Turned it into a Lanosian bullshit propaganda festival" Yuliana said bitterly.

The national anthem finished
"Thank god" Yuliana whispered.
"Just hope Carla dosn't sing it at WorldVision when they win" he told Yuliana
"I'll drag her off stage if she does" Yuliana joked.
Mikhail laughed.

People noticed but didn't mind. They expected that from Yuliana. Lily giggled when she sat down next to her mother as the ceremony began. Things began well with a review of the mission (in Lanosian with translations provided). It was short just to avoid incidents. Then the medal ceremony. Marina stood with those being awarded, starting with the minor medals and awards being presented first and this would take a while. She joined the awarding while waiting for the more significant medals were being worked their ways to. It would a prideful day for everyone but the witch in the room.

Yuliana whispered to Mikhail... "Jeg Dargvet vartakh idiyeta mord Kingfordia Republik?" (Are these bastards going to acknowledge that the Kingfordian Republic lost people too?)

"Probably not... this is usually all about them. Should I demand we get a mention?" he asked
"That wouldn't be a bad idea" Yuliana said.