PA-5 Noble Betrayal

...Anna! The street lamps ahead are out! Chyort... why is this happening?

Don't worry about that for now.

Take this torch, Leto, and call out to the students who have fallen behind. Have them follow the light towards me, slowly, and watch out for anyone who might've collapsed.

Gotcha.

What are you doing here... get up! We need to go!

Olga!

A-Anna... where are we?

Out of Tsarevgrad, on the streets. The rest of them are behind us.

Enough talk, are you hurt? Can you stand?

M-My left foot!

...I need a hand! Anyone?

Over here, Sergo.

I... I, she—

Grab Olga's arm for me. We'll talk after we get out of here.

Then... where are we going?

The theater.

...Therefore, I didn't go home that night, but instead went to an abandoned theater with the rest of the students.

Baryshnya Olga Trepleva, as the three previous witnesses all strayed from the subject one way or another—

I need your statement to be strictly based on facts, so that we might avoid wasting our time.

During the committee's preliminary investigation, you clearly stated that you chose to part ways with them as their actions went beyond the pale.

However, Anna Morozova and the students kidnapped you, and used your disappearance to deceive Duke Treplev. Is that correct?

...Yes.

And so, I witnessed Anna Morozova's group planning, and how they participated in Sonya Mikhailivna's violent actions.

Finally, a sensible witness. I knew we could count on the House of Treplev.

Very good.

Please continue. The committee needs to hear more truthful details—how did Anna Morozova help Sonya Mikhailivna sabotage the order of the quarantine zone?

Those of us in the theater were terribly frightened. We had lost our reason, and everyone was either crying, or accusing one another...

...Damn, what happened to the communications gear? I'm not getting anything.

Quit fiddling with that trash, Vanguards. What do you have to say for yourself, instigator of 'great action'?

Nonsense! We were going to—

Raid the prison? See what they did to us, even though we were unarmed. We would all be dead, if we believed your crap!

You were the ones who were calling for violence first! Don't try to hide!

The problem isn't with this action. It's with your lack of faith in the nation, blindly expanding conflict and slandering His Imperial Majesty in Tsarevgrad.

We were going there to petition. His Imperial Majesty would have appointed an inspector if word reached him.

Now, there's no way back...

This has nothing to do with us! It's the Vanguards who forced it through! Faddey must be held responsible!

I didn't see you vote against it.

Everyone knows I've always been a supporter of Sonya and the Self-Government Group. It was because you people were threatening to expel and punish anyone who didn't cooperate—

You didn't say anything at the meeting, didn't say anything today at the scene, and now you want to act superior after things went wrong?

You're one to talk, Vanguard! I was looking for an excuse to teach you a lesson!

Stop. Now is not the time to argue.

We need to figure out how many were arrested, then discuss how to rescue them. At the very least, we need to learn what happened to them.

What are our options? These Vanguards got Leonid arrested. None of this would have happened if we'd listened to him!

So you want to keep yelling? We have to do something!

We must go home, apologize to our parents and teachers, and hope that we're not expelled...

No, I'm gonna help them! We need to help Sonya!

Quit dreaming, Lada.

I know, Sonya saved you, but how are we supposed to save Sonya when not even she could get herself out of there?

She didn't just help me, she helped everyone! People like her were standing in front of us, and now they're hurting for our sakes!

I... we can't give up.

That's right. How do we know it wouldn't work? We'll find a way, we'll keep fighting!

Fight? Easy for you to say. What are you going to fight with? Those books Anna carries with her, and your spirit?

Yeah, what about my spirit? I'll bring Sonya and the others back, as long as I can still move my arms and legs!

You don't have the guts, you can shut up and watch from the sidelines, but stuff your jokes up your ass!

Those that want to go can go. It's none of my business.

Sonya was reckless, just like you, which is why she got herself arrested. She's probably locked up somewhere, regretting that she ever tried to—

Calm down, Rosalind. We don't need a fight.

......

Maybe YOU can tolerate these cowards, Anna, but I've had enough. Even the air here makes me want to puke.

I'm gonna find General Zima. Come find me when you and Lada have had enough of this trash, and the SSG will go together!

...Then Rosalind left, and neither Anna nor Lada could catch her. They called out to her from the door, but she never turned back.

This corroborates Ukusik's testimony that Rosalind entered the quarantine zone of her own accord, and not as part of the Student Assembly's plan.

Yes. She and Sonya Mikhailivna were both members of the Ursus Student Self-Government Group, a testament to their internal unity. This has nothing to do with the Student Assembly.

It seems we are now able to further narrow the responsibility for the Katorga Incident. Let us go to how you were kidnapped.

...Many people were asking me what the students should do.

...You were the one who led us, led the Assembly to protest.

I, I don't know.

You said your father would smooth things over, just like the Petrachevsky Group at first.

What do we do, Olga...?

I... I'll go and ask him. I'll try my best to find out about the other students.

We'll be alright, won't we? We'll go to bed, and things will get better when we wake up in the morning, won't they?

......

If you're going to ask your father, should we all go back to our homes right now?

It's been a long and hard day for everyone. Better to dismiss everyone early.

You're right... let's call it a day? Let's all go home and get some rest, and we'll figure things out tomorrow.

Where are you going?

Didn't you hear Olga's instructions, Anna? We're going home.

The Assembly hasn't determined a plan to find and help the captive students. Many in the theater are still too weak to move.

We should not disperse before these issues are resolved.

Lada?

Please stop! We have something to say!

A lot of you said the Self-Government Group was right when we were talking. Why not hear us out?

But it wasn't just you; most of us were opposed to violence. Olga only proposed the compromise because Faddey's group was insistent.

This is not our responsibility. Let Olga take care of it. I'm not going to have all of us pick up the bill for the Vanguards' recklessness!

Let's not waste any more time here. We're all—

Enough!

Gummy. A honey drop, please.

Huh? Istina...

You, every single one of you, voted to do this, chose to wave the banners, and chose to shout those slogans. No one made you do anything.

You argued over whose slogan was the most powerful, who cared the most for Rania, who could come up with the most creative insults about the aristocracy, and who was the most fit to guide the future direction of the student movement.

And the result? You caused a commotion, threw your friends under the bus, and ran away satisfied with a good night's work, hoping for mercy from the nobles you just insulted, so that you can pretend nothing happened?

Is this 'great work' that you advocate nothing more than a farce?

You misunderstand, Anna. The Symposium is very serious about this. This is why we study the theories—

So the result of your studies is to convince yourself that you're doing great things when things go smoothly, and pretend none of it has anything to do with it when things don't go smoothly?

You shout about 'new Ursines', yet you run off and hide when the smallest thing happens. Why would any Ursine with the slightest bit of spirit want to associate themselves with you?

......

Anna's right. You people are always undermining things when unity is needed. You're a bunch of cowardly—

And you, Vanguards! How do you manage to sound like you just downed a whole cask of mead whenever you open your mouth to speak?

Get your hands on a few old weapons, draw a few lines and put a few wargame pieces on some old maps of Bresk, and suddenly you think you're ready to fight the gendarmes?

You spend less than a minute deciding, and get thrown into jail in less than an hour. The assembly meetings would have more substance if we replaced your vandalized civilian maps with cheap detective novels!

......

But we all want to go home—

I haven't gotten to you yet! 'We were going there to petition'! How did you manage to say that with a straight face?

The more students like us shout our slogans, the more we become 'seditious elements' that the nobles look to hand over to the tsar in chains. Why would they want to sit down at a table and talk to us?

Now you sneer and scoff and talk about surrender, after your fellow students have been arrested. Do you dare say those same words to their faces?

......

......

And you!

Huh? I didn't say anything, Anna, I've always been on the side of the SSG—

...Check the theater for functioning lights.

...Olga?

Go, if you can help them. I-I'm—

......

Fellow students, all you who know where your consciences lie—

We are back. We have returned, tired and lost, to this tiny theater that is safe for now, where we found light and warmth.

But our friends, the ones whom we see every day, the finest amongst us, continue to endure cold and darkness out there.

Some say that we have failed, that it is all over. To them I ask: What is failure?

Should we pack up, pretend nothing ever happened, let others pay the price for us, and continue to live without hope? Is this your idea of victory?

True failure is not being struck down. It is choosing to extinguish the flame in your heart, lowering your head in fear that you aren't kneeling submissively enough, even when you still have a choice, a choice to fight against injustice.

True failure is not being locked away behind bars, but being stripped of even the courage to imagine a land that is more just, more free.

Look at your hands. Remember how they made your hearts tremble when you voted with them. You know that you were not born with them to applaud and offer gifts to the rich and powerful, but to topple the high walls!

Anna... we understand what you're saying. But they were taken away, and we don't even know where they are. We—

Just shouting slogans won't do anything, Anna. Do you have a way to find them?

They took my roommate too! I have no clue if he is even alive anymore...

...Yeah, we do not know exactly where they are, but we know who took them.

Please answer a question first—what is your deepest desire? Answer me, not for my sake, but for your own.

Sonya taught me that if you are being pushed around, you have to fight back. I am going to... I am going to fight to the end!

At the very least, we need to know what happened to them! We need them to know that we haven't given up!

I've had enough of hiding in the back! Every time I look down, I feel like I've failed them... that I've failed myself.

Yes! We must fight, until we free everyone!

Then we have the answer—we fight! Only by fighting can we break our shackles. Surrender, and we will forever lose the strength to ever break free again.

Tell Ursus that we are fighting for our fellow students, our friends, our families! We are fighting for ourselves!

Tell us! What is to be done?

First, everyone needs to stay here and do a head count, so that we know who's missing.

If anyone is injured, inform Lada so she can provide medical treatment. Anyone who has medical experience is invited to volunteer as well.

Next, everyone needs to understand that we are facing a daunting mission. I hope everyone can be aware of their own responsibilities.

Understood? Then—

Let's move!

Anna... I've signed in.

I understand. You are free to leave.

......

I couldn't be like you. I joined the group for credits. Maybe I believed in it at one point—but you got to understand, I'm looking for a peaceful life.

You don't need to justify your choice. I hope you get back to school, and get to enjoy the life you want.

If you care about any of the missing persons, please pray for their safety, and for our success.

...I want to apologize to you and Lada. It was not my place to judge Sonya or the Self-Government Group.

If I ever get a chance... no, when you see Rosalind, please tell her I'm sorry.

......

Anna... do you have a moment?

Olga, you should get Lada to look at your injuries, or do you want to—

No... I just want to ask, what is your plan?

Honestly, I'm not totally sure it's going to work.

The resources available to the students are mostly associated with school or family, varying considerably from one individual to another.

This also means, however, that they have access to information from all strata of society.

You want to... leverage our families?

Anna, if you're trying to steal information from the nobility, you need to think about the consequences.

...I won't come to any conclusions until sign-ins are done.

But I know that an inexorable tide has crashed over Ursus.

We could go home, avoid making a choice, and avoid the potential responsibility and scorn that comes with it.

But there is something else that we can do—take each other's hands in this tide.

I will give everything to protect those close to me.

This path can be yours too, if you wish it... Chairman Trepleva.

Baryshnya Trepleva, it is quite clear to all present that Anna Morozova usurped your authority that night.

I am curious, however, as to why you did not choose to leave the Assembly, like other students did.

......

That's because—

Your Honor, I believe the hearing should focus on specific events.

...The atmosphere at the time had compromised my reason.

In that case, you must explain why you split from Anna's group, and how they kidnapped and coerced you.

...Yes, Your Honor.

Virtually everyone stayed at the theater that night, helping those who were injured, and thinking of ways to find out about those who were arrested.

But the situation changed the following day—

...Alright, Olga, I applied what medicine I could find.

It may not look good, but bear with me, it'll help you heal.

......

You're on duty today? Where's Lada?

You went to bed early last night. Natalya showed up later, along with a Vulpo I didn't know. They took Lada away after talking to Anna's group for a while.

Where's everyone else? The theater's all empty.

I'm not sure, but I think Anna assigned missions.

...Our priority is to figure out where the students are being held captive.

Start with this list and talk to their parents, it may help us find a way.

I'll talk to my family contacts. Let me know if you have a lead; I'll verify it.

Take care, Anna.

Hm? What are you two doing here?

Olga was sleeping by the stage last night. I saw her wake up when I came to the theater in the morning, so I reapplied her medicine.

...Very good.

Sergo, help me move Olga to the rehearsal studio on the third floor. She needs rest.

Perhaps I should go home, Anna.

I'm good enough to walk now. I can't promise my father can help get people off, but at least I can ask where they're being held.

Don't worry, I already have a lead on where they're held.

As for you, you should stay put and focus on recuperating. People will talk if you go home like this.

There are other injured students staying behind to receive treatment. I'm having someone deliver their letters to their families.

......

I'll get the stretcher, Olga.

They moved me into a room, claiming to be protecting me.

But I soon realized that their 'protection' involved students standing at my door around the clock in shifts with fireman's axes in hand.

When I tried to talk to them, I was told that they were under orders not to interact with me... so I gave up on writing to my father, because there was no way they would help me send it.

So you realized you were being held captive by Anna Morozova?

Yes.

Do you know her motivation to do such a thing?

My guess is that I expressed reluctance when she hinted at exploiting the nobility the previous night.

Do you think it explains the Ursus Student Self-Government Group's hostility towards the aristocracy? It would be consistent with Sonya Mykhailivna colluding with the Unbound.

...Yes.

I wasn't the only one she imprisoned. Anyone who wasn't sufficiently firm in resolve, whom she deemed an information risk as well as... nobles who had value to her, were all treated the same way.

Did you have any opportunity to communicate with the outside or leave the room?

Very little, except for Sergo, who quietly told me what the students were doing when he was on duty, even telling me—

...Are you sure about this?

Absolutely! My mother has been running a garment factory in Grypherburg for more than a decade. You can trust us on this.

But she said that approximately nine hundred winter army uniforms were being transported to the quarantine zone, while Natalya's observations yesterday indicates that there are no more than five hundred combatants there.

If both of you are right, then there can only be one explanation—someone is sending reinforcements into the quarantine zone.

Sonya just said they couldn't deal with heavy weapons, and now reinforcements are being sent? What do we do, Anna?

......

Will your mother be at the factory these couple of days?

Yes, why?

I will speak to my police contacts, get a few uniforms, put some tall boys in them, and go to your mother's factory disguised as the gendarmes auditing the books.

Tell your mother that you don't have class for a few days, so you're helping out at the factory. Put in a word for us if your mother gets suspicious, tell her letting the cops see the books won't do any harm.

Uh...

No hesitation. Our friends are in graver danger with every passing second. Trust my judgment, if you want to save them.

The source of this order is the breakthrough that we've been waiting for.

But impersonating the cops... that's way too hard.

We haven't been in contact with our comms girl Botani since the ball, but the equipment that she left behind still works.

Bring the equipment and follow my orders. My friend who has police connections will be there to help...

Sergo, are you there?

You're the tallest, you'll be the first to try the uniforms.

Me? But I get all red in the face whenever I go onstage in drama club. No way I could—

...Play a cop.

Wow, my whole face is covered up...

Stop talking to yourself, Sergo. Watch the office door and don't let anyone come in.

Gotcha, Anna.

Do not respond verbally.

Why is it taking so long—

What do you mean, taking so long...?

Wait, who are you? I thought we were supposed to be checking the books today—Unit 2.

What's your district and unit? Did the new superintendent mix up the orders again?

Uh, uh, uh—

Are you not feeling well? There's no fireplace or heating here. Why are you sweating like that...?

......

Slap him, Sergo.

...Huh?

Do it. My friend's coming your way.

Slap him, then yell at the top of your lungs, 'Do not delay the daughter of Lord Yaroslav!'

...Do not delay the daughter of Lord Yaroslav!

I apologize. The superintendent made a last-minute change, and the news apparently didn't reach you.

This man is my bodyguard, whom my family arranged to go into the service with me, for father was uneasy about me being alone.

...So it's like that again?

Yes, like that.

...?

Command knew this factory's books were off, so they left it to some noble kid to reap the fruits.

I've been in the force for three years, and it's the same every year. Every time there's a new superintendent, a bunch of people come in you don't dare to touch.

This is Grypherburg, after all.

Wait!

...Give your father my regards. I'd appreciate it even more if you gave him my name and number.

The cop just walked away without saying another thing! I should've slapped him harder.

That's incredible, Sergo.

But you were telling me that the books revealed that it was the House of Treplev that was supporting the magistrate behind the scenes, and planning to send reinforcements?

Yes. Anna and Natalya talked for a long time last night about your family and friends, especially your father.

How do they know my associates?

Anna arranged for a few students to return home and go back to school like nothing happened.

You know the Assembly has students from practically every school. We talked to friends and teachers of those who were arrested. There are many people who care about them, and so we got a lot of information.

Someone said she's already located the Treplev estate and is planning to lay an ambush for the duke. All hearsay and rumors amongst the students, of course—

......

Olga... I know this isn't fair to you.

I see no option other than to accept.

I'm trapped here with no way to stop whatever they're trying to do. I can only hope for the best.

Mm...

I'm glad you see things that way. I'll let you get your rest.

Say, you said you were going to sew a flag for the Assembly and wanted me to collect various kinds of fabric. Have you finished it?

I'm sure Anna would want to come and talk to you, if I showed her the flag you made.

I'll tell you when I'm done.

Sure! Good night, Olga.

I'm sorry, Sergo. I hope Anna won't be too hard on you.

...I won't be making your flag.

...You must be mistaken.

I understand your wish to protect your students, Professor Valeriya.

However, Olga is not the only student at this school. We need her to help the students who are being held captive.

Please—

......

*Pant*—*Pant*—

S-Stay away!

......

I should have known. Sergo is gentle-hearted, but prone to naivete. He was always likely to make a mistake.

There is still time to rectify the mistake, however.

How did you find me? Do you even have spies in our school?

These past few days, I combed every school in Grypherburg for potential allies, following the list of missing students.

You sought sanctuary at your school as soon as you escaped the theater... you're exactly who I think you are.

Where else could I go? Sergo told me you have assassins hiding around my home.

Is it true that you're trying to kill my father?

I have neither the intention nor the ability to deal with the Ursine aristocracy that way. We have always operated by negotiation.

I believed you when you promised to rescue the students that night, because I felt guilty about what happened to them.

But what did you do to me? Tricked me and locked me up in a room! Did you think I'd still trust you?

I don't know where you heard these rumors—

Stay away from me!

......

I've had enough, Anna!

I-I don't want my father to be purged because of me, but I can't just watch my fellow students die either.

I just want all this to end! If you'll only be satisfied by making me—

Calm down! Think this through. If anything happens to you, it would be a catastrophe for both your father and the students!

The duke would lose his daughter and heir. He would stop at nothing for revenge, to crush us, and everyone in the quarantine zone.

No, no, I just—

I don't know what to do!

Oh—

Olga—

...I was lucky to fall right into the middle of the pile. I escaped from Morozova with only minor injuries.

I hid in the city for a day, until my father's men found me and took me home.

That is the extent of my account.

Baryshnya Trepleva, from your point of view, how did the students enter the Treplev estate?

I don't know how they did it, but given that Anna already knew where it was, they would have had their pick of options.

Well... I'm sure the entire committee has arrived at an answer.

Still, I must follow protocol and confirm this—

Baryshnya Trepleva, do you accuse Anna Morozova, leader of the Student Assembly, of colluding with Sonya Mykhailivna, and committing various crimes, including treason?

......

I accuse the leader of the Student Assembly...

Olga Danilovna Trepleva, of responsibility for all acts involving the students in the Katorga Incident.

Wait—

Anna Morozova should be penalized for blackmailing the nobility, but she only did what she did out of urgent necessity—

Do you know what you are saying, Baryshnya Trepleva?

I am stating the truth, Your Honor.

Ever since Zoya took the stand, everyone in the room knew the source of the storm, yet no one was willing to say her name.

Who was the leader and organizer of the Student Assembly, who pushed it down this path, who is responsible for this broken order...

I declare that I shall willingly don the shackles I deserve—

Recess! Recess!

Stop writing, parliamentarian! Escort Baryshnya Trepleva out for fresh air, now!

Hah—hah——

Get, up, here!

...What?

I'm not letting go! Stay put!

Hah—

You can't die here, Olga. Didn't you hear what I said?

But, I could never be, as ruthless as you are—

Ruthless?

Tell me, were you really planning to jump when you were sitting on that windowsill?

......

Your problem was never that you couldn't be ruthless. You were simply running away.

When you decided to hold the protest, and now... you were fearless in opposing everything, simply because you knew—

No matter what you did, all you needed to do was to turn around, and you would find yourself in your father's embrace.

You never knew what it felt like to struggle to survive, you never even imagined it. You simply dreamed one day after another, in the cradle that your family has woven for you...

Do you think all the other people in the land of Ursus get to dream the same dream?

Let me tell you this, Olga.

You have never truly seen your country, seen Ursus for what it is. Innocence is a sin in this land, and indecision its greatest accomplice, but you have continued to avoid choosing your path.

I—

If you wanted to continue to dream, you should have gone back to your father a long time ago, and sat by the warm fireside watching the executioner's axe fall on our futures.

If you want to rescue the students, you need to put all your chips on the table, even your own family.

I have already made my choice... stand up, Olga.

I'm taking you back, whether you like it or not. I will show you how we get the others out of the quarantine zone.

......

We have to go, Anna. We've already caused quite the commotion on campus. The students helping us can only delay them for so long.

...Let's go back to the theater.

Students can't remain students forever, Olga. Everyone has something that they must do... and what I must do now is make you disappear for a while.

You will be freed once the situation has been resolved.

...One moment, Anna.

You know where the Treplev estate is...

Yes, but I have no intention of killing your father. I only want to convince him.

To save the students?

Yes.

...I have an idea.

There is a secret passage that leads to the manor's wine cellar, accessible through the warehouse of a vineyard on the western outskirts of Grypherburg.

It is my father's escape route in the event of an assassination attempt... not even the guards know about it. You can enter the manor through there, and he will know at once that it was I who told you about it.

Olga...

You understand that this will ruin your relationship with your family beyond repair.

No, Anna.

I will defend my honor and that of my house, in my own way.