Royalty in Disguise

[Goyanes]

Passport Control -- Concourse D
Gojannesstad-St. Olaf Airport

Hans Baumgartner lived a boring life. It was a mundane job, reading people’s passports every day. Every time an international flight landed, a swell of people entered the hall, only to thin out before the next plane arrived.

The passport control hall was grey -- very grey, with low drop ceilings. The carpets were a pattern that looked like a laser tag arena from 1995. The fluorescent lights didn’t help either. At least to Hans, it didn’t adequately fulfill the expectations of grandeur one associated with their first moments in one of the more richer countries of the world. Good thing they’d be renovating this concourse later this year.

The usual people walked by, business travelers and the like, but there was also the odd case of a fraudster or a drug trafficker. They were just escorted into the back room with Dvit, the supervisor, and Hans would never see them again.

Then a woman with pink hair walked into his queue.

“Raispas og Ankomstkort, Såtte. Passport and Arrival Card, Please”

 

[Sil Dorsett]

"Pink. Why of all the trendy hipster colors did I choose pink? Should have gone dark blue."

She was a nervous wreck the whole ten hours, never overcoming her fear of flying. She tried distracting herself with superficial thoughts of her get-up; her torn jeans, denim jacket, a flannel shirt tied around her waist and her oddly colored and wavy hair, though that at least matched the shirt she was properly wearing. If she trying to look like someone from a younger generation, she was trying too hard. Her thoughts didn't keep her calm for long enough, so she pulled her travel guide out and read it front to back, all twenty-six pages of it[note]Goyanes: a Concise Guide - https://jumpshare.com/v/HCs3PgXnPLV2ifI7JIAF[/note], over and over, just trying to keep her mind off the fact that she was in the air. It wouldn't hold her attention for the full ten hours though, and she resorted to listening to extended meditation music tracks stored on her phone. Only landing would bring true relief, but even that relief would be short-lived. Immigration would follow.

Arriving at Gojannesstad-St. Olaf, she had her passport ready; a brand-new, never-stamped, yellow-covered book with "Principality of Sil Dorsett" at the top, followed by the lesser used native "Principauté de Sil Dorsett" under it, a gold embossed Dorsettian rose in the middle, and "Passport" and "Passeport" with the biometric indicator at the bottom. Inside, her photo of when she had straight shoulder-length brown hair. Oh, the abuse her hair must have been put through to go from straight brunette to wavy bright pink! Her name: Idelle Peltier, a total nobody, a common tourist.

When Hans asked Idelle for her documents, she cheerfully handed them over. He started typing some things into the computer that were on the arrival card. "Purpose of visit?" he asked her.

"Vacation," Idelle replied, matching what was on the arrival card.

"Please scan your right thumb, followed by the four other fingers of your right hand," Hans ordered. Idelle complied.

A message appeared on Hans's computer, "Missfeil 1617: Anfassen bekræfte flehere raispasen. Såtte ovenbekrefte.", or "Error 1617: Fingerprints confirm more than one passport. Please verify.", and the information for the other passport appeared on the screen.

"Ma'am, did you recently change your legal name?" Hans asked.

She had a feeling the gig was up. Unaware of real international travel protocols, she relied too heavily on the data on the passport, which was authentic but not entirely accurate. She was oblivious to the Goyanean database which knew who she really was. But, she tried to play it off, hoping that it was just a random question, and so she replied "No."

It was a costly mistake. Hans picks up the phone and dials an extension. A short time later, another guard comes from behind the door.

"I'm sorry ma'am we're going to have to take you in for additional questioning. I'll be escorting you to the questioning room, please come with me."

Busted.

 

[Goyanes]

Hans' associate, Joakim, escorted Idelle into a secure questioning room. The room was empty, except for two chairs, and a table with a computer and a landline phone. He offered her a seat, and sat down at the desk, scanning her passport information. The error popped up again, having not been overridden by Hans.

"So, Ms. Peltier, we are having an issue with your passport, as you may know. We know who you are Idelle. You're Claidie Dorsett!"

He chuckled before continuing.

"Usually we'd book you for identity fraud about now, since you answered no back there, but since you are such a high profile person, we're going to call the embassy to confirm what we're seeing is real."

He picked up the landline, and pressed the button for operator.

"GFF Operator, How may I direct your call?"

"Embassy of the Principality of Sil Dorsett, please."

"Directing, please standby."

The phone rung for several seconds before being picked up by a receptionist.

"Embassy of Sil Dorsett to Goyanes, this is Elodie, how may I direct your call?"

"This is Officer Joakim Hansson of the Goyanean Border Guard, may I speak with Ambassador Bettencourt please?"

"Yes sir, please hold."

 

[Sil Dorsett]

"Dammit," Claidie thought to herself. "Well, at least there's no way they'll hold me."

"Fine, you got me," she confessed. She pulled off her pink-colored wig and nets, revealing the long blonde ponytail she was known for. She listened as Joakim filled her in on what could have been and what was about to happen. "Yeah, call them. You might as well search my purse, too. You'll find my Dignitary's Passport in there. You know, all I wanted was some time off with no attention. You know how hard it is to go anywhere when you freakin' run a country? Yeah, you don't. Thanks a lot," she belligerently whined before ceasing, realizing her complaining was falling on deaf ears, and ears who had every reason to not believe a word she was saying.

---

Alexander was in a staff meeting in his office when his phone rang. "Alex Bettencourt," he announced, identifying himself before listening in on what was about to come across. "What the hell? Give me a second to get Minster Bowers on the line," he pleaded.

Thousands of kilometers away, Will Bowers picked up the call. "Will Bowers here."

"Hi Will, Alex Bettencourt here with Joakim Hansson of the Goyanean Border Guard. What the hell is Claidie up to? They're saying she just tried to enter on a falsified passport."

Fully aware of Claidie's intentions, Will knew what was about to happen once she entered Goyanes, and none of it surprised or pleased him. "I told her that wasn't going to work!" Will screamed. "I swear she's so freakin' stubborn sometimes. Don't tell her I said that. Mister Hansson, she's legitimate, she's only going to be there for a week. Her alias docs are authentic; we issued them on princely command. Please let... 'Miss Idelle Peltier'... pass, and for the love of God don't tell the media about this, please? Top Secret, you got me? She's gonna flip out if she can't use that alias anymore because it got leaked."

 

[Goyanes]

Listening to Ambassador Bettencourt on the line, he responded.

"We'll let her through on the passport, thank you for the clarification, Ambassador. We'll try to keep this as low-key as possible, but I will have to report this to the district chief and the head of the Border Guard, as per procedure."

He turned to 'Idelle'.

"You're free to go. Let me stamp your passport first."

He grabbed a hold of her ficticious passport and placed two stamps on it. An entry stamp, and another stamp telling her she had 90 days free in Goyanes from today's date.

"When you leave, there's a bathroom down the corridor on the left so you can put your hair back on. We're sorry for any inconvenience we may have caused, we're just doing our job."

 

[Sil Dorsett]

Unnerved but understanding, Claidie thanked Joakim and reassured him that she understood and was only frustrated from the failure of her government-issued alias documents to ensure her unimpeded arrival. That failure did bring an interesting follow-up point she had to ask. Getting into the country was problematic, so Claidie had no reason to assume leaving would be any easier.

"I take it this won't be a problem when I head back home?" she asked.

"You'll be able to go through exit control normally. We will make sure of that," Joakim replied.

"Thank you," Claidie said before leaving. After a quick stop in the ladies room to reassume the "Idelle" alias, pink hair and all, baggage claim and customs was all that was left before a trip on the U-Baner to Nimrøyke Park Hotel.

---

The weight of "Idelle's" laptop bag, her backpack, and the luggage she rolled around the hotel floor took its toll on her, though she was committed to not demanding assistance from any attendant. The hotel room itself was a far cry from the usual arrangements for someone in a high position like her. Two queen-size beds, one of which she dedicated to arranging her stuff, and basic amenities were available. It wasn't anything like an apartment-style room or greater, but it was what she wanted and what she paid for to maintain that low profile.

Done for the day, she took off her pink wig and cap, letting her blonde hair flow freely. She prepared the next day's clothing and wig selection, this time a brunette piece, before collapsing on her bed to get much needed rest.

 

[Sil Dorsett]

The First Day

Just the first few hours of getting situated in Goyanes reminded Claidie how entirely unprepared she was the first time in the country while she was promoting her electric car racing series. She wasn't used to the metro system in Gojannestad, given how little development there was in Norvalle. She was more familiar with the traffic jams that plagued the capital and how the police would manage to move it out of the way whenever she wanted to go anywhere on official business. Regardless she had an idea on what was to come and prepared early.

She set aside everything she needed for the day before she went to bed, so twirling her hair to fit in a wig cap and fitting her brunette selection didn't take long. "No make-up. Why bother?" she thought. Claidie wasn't trying to impress anyone or look pretty. Being as ordinary as possible was all part of her plan to blend in.

Although not perfectly planned out, she had ideas on what she wanted to do for the week. "Get educated" was first on her list. Her time in academy hardly referenced the Fascist War; the curriculum there centering on more peaceful times and the power of diplomacy rather than the toils of combat. It was all part of an initiative to make hostility between nations an afterthought, but it contributed to Claidie's obliviousness to the true history of the world. She knew it and decided that it was time to correct this flaw. Dressed as casually as possible, while still modest and classy, and with map in hand, she set out to navigate the massive metro system again to find her destination, the Fascist War Museum.

Conveniently, the route to the museum wasn't difficult. The hotel was right next to the Konghuset Square station. Three stops south on the H line brought her to Parkere Tor, the only transfer to another line she had to tackle. At the station, it appeared to her like almost everyone around moved around like clockwork while she was the one standing like a deer in headlights. It took her some time to read the signs, try to understand them, and realize where she needed to be. One stop to the east on the R line brought her to Danneg IV-Bane, from which a short walk brought her to the museum.^[1]

Relieved to be back above ground and at her destination, she mosied on in, curious about what she would see inside.

---

^[1]Thanks for the directions, Goy! Goy's map of the metro system with intended destinations for this trip can be found here: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/398726764043698177/498355259371159552/unknown.png

 

[Goyanes]

After navigating the underground labyrinth of the Gojannesstad U-Baner, Claidie finally surfaced just across the street from the world-famous Fascist War Museum. The museum was a modern, recently redone work of architecture. In the entrance hall there was a RR-153 transport aircraft hanging from the ceiling, and tour groups and patrons were moving around to the various exhibits. She bought her ticket, and decided to enter one of the four permanent exhibits, called The Road to Mitta. The exhibit was about the Northwestern Theater of the Fascist War, and was a walk through experience, traveling in a chronological order, starting with the first battles in western Ninhundland, and culminating in a mockup of the ruins of Mitta. There were interactive displays, and you could even grab mock phone receivers and listen to radio conversations between pilots during aerial battles.

Exiting The Road to Mitta, she entered the grand Vehicles Room. The Vehicles Room was a massive atrium, with aircraft hanging in the ceiling, and various tanks and cars on the ground level. A sports car junkie, she found the room quite interesting, walking around and looking at the various tanks and cars, both allied and dominion.

Next to the Vehicles Room was an exhibit called The Home Front. The exhibit was about life in Goyanes while the most devastating war in its history raged onwards. It was another walk-through exhibit, but it involved walking through models of homes and city streets as they looked like during the period, and it also had rooms that modeled the devastation of the bombing raids.

After The Home Front, Claidie walked into the last permanent exhibit, The Road to Saito, which chronicled the Southern Theatre of the war. Like The Road to Mitta, this exhibit was also walk through, and in chronological order. The theming was different though, there were palm trees inside, and mockups of rainforest and jungles. The exhibit even featured weapons and uniforms of Skandan troops.

After leaving the exhibit, she found herself at the gift shop. Might as well purchase a magnet for the fridge, or a T-shirt for Madeline.

 

[Sil Dorsett]

Claidie's time in the Fascist War Museum proved to be enlightening. For every story of peace she heard in academy, she heard a tale of heroism and bravery. She realized that while the ideal scenario was peaceful dialogue, there were times when strife was necessary to correct an great injustice. It was a matter worth reflecting on for a little longer...

...or at least until her stomach rumbled. She walked around for a while, looking at the various venues and debating what she was in the mood to eat. Her mind settled on the popular fast food restaurant Kvikhalt. Kvikhalt's menu was simple: three burgers, fries, a few drinks shakes, and a few other items. Of what Claidie could read from the menu, she was most curious about the Doppelganger. Curiosity turned into surprise when she received a burger with two patties, which was a bit more than she really wanted. "At least I'll be able to walk it off, I guess," she thought to herself.

A metro ride north on the 4-line brought Claidie to Kurtstrasse and the Norr Slk. Tower, a 104-story behemoth of a skyscraper open to visitors and of which the top of the tower was a popular attraction. To be able to see a significant portion of Gojannesstad from on high was an enticing and exciting proposition, and so she took it.

From the top of the tower, Claidie gazed upon the vast metropolis, a city larger than she had ever seen before. Though she had visited the country before, she never had the opportunity to see the capital's expanse from above. A massive city of 18 million, she couldn't help but realize how small her whole nation was compared to a single city. "To think, all of my people could fit in downtown Gojannesstad," she thought. Her attention turned to the northeast, towards Tageskiele, the seat of the Grand Emperor.

"I don't know how you do it, Anthony. I struggle with much less."

The rest of Claidie's day was spent browsing various storefronts and attending a musical on Renkvist Bane before retiring back to her room to think about what she wanted to see next. Gojannesstad was magnificant, but it wasn't the whole country and there was much more to explore since she was free.

 

[Goyanes]

(This post takes place on the first day)

Anthony was interrupted from his government business by the phone on his desk ringing. According to the caller ID it was his secretary. He picked up the receiver.

"Yes?"

"We have a call from the Director of the Grensevad on line one."

"Thanks Madison."

He pressed the end call button and switched to line one in a near seamless maneuver.

"This is Anthony Tages speaking."

"Your Imperial Majesty, we had Princess Claidie of Sil Dorsett attempt to sneak in under a false alias into the country. After clarification with the embassy we let her in."

He reared his head in surprise. "Is this so? Why would she need to sneak in like that?"

"According to the report she was trying to maintain a low profile. We are unsure of her true intentions."

"I'm sure she's not here to do anything out of line. Alright. Thank you, and goodbye."

"Thank you sir."

He hung up the receiver and contemplated. "Why would she need to do that... I wonder if she's going to visit the palace... I should get back to work..."

Anthony moved his mouse to deactivate the screensaver on his Polykor desktop and returned to his business, reviewing documents, signing paperwork, and other executive matters.