"Is everybody just about ready to go?" Henrik asked as 32A, Toivo and Ella were all resting on a living room sofa in Henrik's own little apartment in completely dry clothes and new jackets.
"One more thing." Ella said and stood up.
"Thank you so much for all of this. For letting us get washed and dried here, drying our clothes, giving us your old jackets and even letting us take your boat to get away from here. It's just so kind of you." Ella thanked sincerely.
"We had to. You did your part and deserved a reward. Was that the last thing you wanted to say?" Henrik replied and asked.
"I think all of us are ready to go." Ella replied and the twins agreed.
"Let's get to the boat. It should be where we left it when we came from the facility." Henrik said and put his shoes on.
"Actually... It probably isn't. We took it when we were on our way to get Three and it sank when it was shot by the police." Toivo explained ashamedly.
Henrik just looked at Toivo disappointedly.
"Sorry. We didn't expect to be spotted at that hour." Ella explained.
"I'm not too mad. It wasn't ours anyway. We stole if from the coast guard. It was a risky job and I don't want to do it again. If you want a stolen boat, you're on your own now." Henrik said tiredly.
"What? Are you serious? Fine then. We can do it. So where are their boats?" 32A asked.
"But you won't have to steal one. Trips to the no-contact zones are allowed again and I read that many people who do trading there have already resumed their businesses." Henrik explained.
"Huh. That was quick." Ella commented.
"I know someone here who takes trips there. I'll pay for your trip but that's the last thing you'll get from me." Henrik said to them all.
"That's the last thing we'll need." Ella replied confidently.
"You really sound like you actually want to go." Toivo said to Ella.
"Are you trying to make me change my mind?" Ella asked.
"Not at all. I just want to make sure that you're absolutely sure." Toivo replied.
"Once we're there, it won't be too hard to return if you just find a trader." 32A added.
"So what's the big deal? Let's go!" Ella said and was oddly excited.
"Follow me." Henrik calmly said and exited the apartment along with the others.
While walking on the streets outside, none of them felt any kind of fear at all. It was an odd feeling for Toivo specifically who had to remind himself that he doesn't need to act discreetly anymore after Henrik had said that they're all assumed dead. He just focused on following Henrik and for once he could enjoy looking at the city while walking the streets. He also kept glancing at Ella who was walking on his left side, and Ella noticed it. Ella extended her right hand discreetly and Toivo accepted it and they walked hand in hand while 32A rolled her eyes walking behind them.
Eventually they arrived at some boat docks where the ice had been broken thoroughly. At the docks was a hut where Henrik led the rest to. Inside the hut was a counter with a cash register on it, a backdoor that leads out of the hut and on one wall was a lifebuoy. Henrik rang a bell that was on the counter and shortly afterwards inside the hut came a wrinkly and rugged looking woman with a black cap on her head who seemed to recognize Henrik.
"Well, what are you doing here?" The woman gleefully asked.
"Good to see you again. I came here to get a favor. These people need a ride into the no-contact zone." Henrik said to the woman and pointed behind himself with his thumb.
"Hey! Aren't those the same people who jumped off the bridge after Granlund was arrested yesterday?" The woman wondered.
"I don't know what you're talking about." 32A commented.
"No, you look exactly like them! Everybody assumed that you died. You should have been arrested, but don't worry. I'll get you that ride and I won't tell anyone. But somebody will have to pay for the trip." The woman said.
Erik slapped some paper money on the desk.
"Does that cover it?" He asked.
"It just about does. Let me just finish loading up the merchandise in the boat and then the passengers can get in." The woman said after counting the money and leaving the hut again.
"So it's final now." Toivo said to Ella.
"I made my decision already." Ella said back.
"You're about to leave behind everything you have here. Your family, your hopes of inheriting the house and all of the modern luxuries that you have here. And you want to come with us to a land where people survive to live?" Toivo asked for confirmation.
"My friends have all left me anyway and if dad doesn't allow me to be with you, then my choice is easy." Ella said back.
"I'm still confused about why you two even want to come with me. I can go there alone and live with the pain. I know where to go and the reason why I want to go there. And if I can add something, it's not constant survival. Some people get by there, even if it's hard. Like Ilona's community and the people who I met." 32A commented from her corner.
"But can you protect them alone? I won't allow you to go to that evil place alone. Because alone we're helpless but together we're unstoppable." Toivo answered.
"Same reason why I'm coming too. Don't think that I'm only coming because Toivo is going. I don't want to lose you either." Ella said to 32A and smiled.
"That means a lot." 32A replied and meant it.
A smack was heard from the counter and everybody turned to look at the boat lady who entered the hut again.
"The boat is loaded. So all aboard." The boat lady said and left the hut again.
"Have a safe journey." Henrik wished everybody.
"I still need to request one last thing from you." Toivo said to Henrik.
"I already said that this is the final favor." Henrik replied.
"But it's a really simple thing. Do you remember the three people who I spoke with outside of the facility and in your bus?" Toivo asked.
"Those people who you had a seemingly heartfelt conversation with that I didn't understand a word of? What about them?"
"If you ever see them again, tell them where we went. I don't want them to think that we died. I want them to know that we're alive and that we have a place to go." Toivo explained to Henrik.
"That's simple enough. At some point we intended to go back to check on the freed prisoners and see if they're still where we left them. If I see those three people, I'll tell them that." Henrik assured.
"Thank you. And thank you for paying for this trip too. We have to go now." Toivo said to Henrik.
Ella extended a hand again that Toivo accepted and the passengers boarded the boat.
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"So where exactly will you land?" 32A asked the woman driving the boat.
"If you don't have specific coordinates in mind, I'm landing in the Pinkjacket Casino where I usually sell my wares." The boat lady answered.
"I don't think they'll be happy to see me." 32A said.
"What's the Pinkjacket Casino?" Toivo asked curiously.
"Remember when I first found you and arrived on a boat that I stole from a gang of four guys in pink jackets? Those guy have some kind of a casino now." 32A laughed while explaining.
"Sampo's old gang? You can't be serious." Toivo said back and also laughed.
"And I've now stolen a second boat from them too." 32A said amusedly but quietly so that the boat lady couldn't hear her confession.
"That's not a very nice thing to do." Toivo commented.
"It was really the only way I could have made it back. You can't judge me for that." 32A defended herself.
"Was pushing us off a bridge and into the frozen water the only way to get us out of that situation at the parliament?" Ella asked.
"Did you have any other ideas?" 32A asked back.
"Not really. But we could have died!"
"I took that into account. Toivo has died before too but he's fine."
"Too? So did I actually die? Is that why I felt the way I did?" Ella wondered.
"How did you feel?" Toivo asked with concern.
"I don't remember anything from that time between when I hit the ice and when I woke up, but the feeling I felt when I woke up was something I can't even describe." Ella explained.
"That's also how I felt when I came back from the dead." Toivo added.
"Sorry about that. I wish it could have gone smoother, but it was either that or prison, so I made the choice for you." 32A explained herself.
"I'm glad that you did it, since it all ended well anyway." Ella said.
"I'm just sick of sinking into cold water for now." Toivo joked.
"You shouldn't have gotten into this boat then." The boat lady joked, but nobody understood the joke and they just looked worried.
"Agh, forget about it." The boat lady added and got quiet again, as did everybody else after the joke.
"Anyway... Guess what Henrik gave me back at his apartment?" Ella asked Toivo excitedly.
"A valuable life lesson?" Toivo guessed.
"I wish. But he gave me this. I asked about it when I saw it on his table and he just allowed me to take it." Ella said and handed Toivo a notebook and a pen.
"You'll be able to draw again!" 32A added excitedly.
"Hey, that's awesome! Thank you!" Toivo said to Ella with gratitude.
"I figured you'd want it." Ella said back and blushed.
32A started looking through the window into the open sea and felt excited about being part of a community and helping them and having her turn to be somebody's hero, but she was also worried if she'd find her way there again, or if they'd be able to find a sustainable way to survive there, or if the people had moved away. She then got second-hand embarrassed when she saw from the reflection of the window what Toivo and Ella were doing and she couldn't stand watching it so she left the cabin and chose to sit in the back of the boat under open air. She sat on the edge of the boat with her feet dangling close to the water.
She felt peace and fullfillment under the cold wind alone. After some time her moment of solitude was however interrupted when she heard the door of the cabin open behind her. She looked and saw Ella come out of the cabin alone and sitting down next to 32A on the edge of the boat and feeling too shy to say anything.
"Did you want to talk or just enjoy the fresh air?" 32A asked since Ella wouldn't speak.
"No, I did want to speak. I wanted to ask how you feel about going back to that land. Do you feel any kind of connection to that place?" Ella said.
"Some type, yes. I didn't spend much time in the actual Deadland, but I was born somewhere in there in what is now the rebel territory. The people there speak my language and that's why I feel a kind of oneness with them that I never felt with any of our neighbors." 32A explained.
"And sice you were born there, do you ever wonder who your parents are and if they're there?"
"I wonder all the time. And I also wonder if they're even alive. If they are alive, then why can I not feel their distance from me like I can with Toivo? That makes me think that they might be dead, but I'd want to know for sure. I just don't think I'll ever get to find out." 32A explained somberly.
"That must be heavy." Ella replied, not thinking of anything else to say about it.
"I don't bother myself thinking about it too much."
"And do you ever wonder where your abilities came from?"
"I wonder that all the time too. If I want to find an answer, I'll find it there. When I spent those couple of days there, I saw an old article about somebody who survived a gas leak that got everybody else sick. I know that it might just be good luck but for some reason it made me think that somewhere there could have been somebody else that also had inexplainable abilities. And if somebody like that is or was out there, then even more people like us might be there." 32A replied.
"That's very interesting. Do you ever want to really investigate and try to find out the truth?" Ella asked slightly excitedly.
"I hope I get to know the truth somehow, but I don't even know where I'd begin to investigate. And helping the people who helped me is more important for me right now." 32A explained.
"I understand. And... One more question that I wanted to ask." Ella said nervously.
"And what it is?"
"How do you feel about me and Toivo being...Together?" Ella asked nervously.
"Not really one way or another. Honestly I thought you already were. I'm happy that at least you two are still able to have those kinds of feelings. I don't think I'll ever be able to feel that way towards anyone." 32A answered and explained.
"Why do you think so?" Ella asked curiously.
"I don't really know. I just can't imagine letting anybody get that close to me after everything that's been done to me. I've seen how awful people can be and I always assume the worst of them."
"That's awful, but I've heard your stories and I understand why you feel that way. But if you're happy that way then that's what matters." Ella said cheerfully.
"I don't know how happy I'll be there but it's not my own happiness that I'm concerned about. But I hope you and Toivo will like it there, even though it won't be an easy life."
"We can make it there. I know it." Ella said and looked into the sea.
"In some weird way I'm excited to return there." 32A said and smiled into the distance.
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After hours on the waters the boat started slowing down and 32A who was already alone again entered the cabin to see through the front window. The Pinkjacket Casino was on the shore ahead and one of the Pinkjackets was outside smoking a cigarette and raised a hand when the boat got closer. 32A got behind the boat lady as the boat was about to dock.
"Do you have any kind of a hood or a sack? I should hide myself when I'm near these people." She asked the boat lady.
"All I have is a bucket with a hole in the side." The boat lady replied.
"Can I have it?"
"If you want to. It's in the back of the boat." The boat lady replied.
32A hurried out of the cabin and searched the back of the boat where there were lots of buckets. When she found one with a hole in the side, she put it on her head and only saw through the hole in the side. Once the boat was stopped, she had some difficulty stepping over the edge and onto the ice, but she found her footing. While walking to the shore she heard some cautious giggling from behind but she didn't mind it. Once she made it on land, she turned around to see if the others were still with her but just as she turned around, she felt a snowball hit the bucket on her head.
"Bullseye!" Toivo said proud of himself.
"Don't treat your sister like that!" 32A shouted back, pretending to be angry.
"Sorry. I didn't recognize you, bucket head." Toivo shouted back and Ella chuckled next to him.
"I have a reason for wearing this that you monsters just don't understand! Your cruelness to me is colder than this windy winter!" 32A overacted playfully and then faced the road out of the casino's premises and walked with her head down.
"Hey! I recognize that voice! Who's that bucket head!" The smoking Pinkjacket outside wondered out loud.
"She's that girl who drank too much last time and got banned." Toivo quickly lied as he and Ella were walking past the Pinkjacket.
"We don't ban anyone for drinking too much. We encourage it." The Pinkjacket said back.
"Sounds like a disgusting place. What are we still doing here? Let's just follow her. She knows the way. Let's go!" Ella said, took Toivo's hand and ran to catch up with 32A.
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On the journey to their destination walking was not easy. All roads were unused and snowy, but with road signs 32A could lead the way, as she remembered what city the tent was in. The absolute silence of the empty roads surrounded by flat snowy fields was a welcome change compared to the previous day in the city, and although 32A had previously been afraid of the Deadland and its slave traders, the brutal regimes on both sides of it, its serial stranglers and murderous violinists, she was no longer scared, because she knew that if she sticks together with her twin, nothing can threaten them. She led the way the entire time and even wolves stalking on the sides of roads didn't scare her, as any wolves that tried anything got swiftly scared away by exploding pieces of ground. Going through long abandoned towns and their skeletons gave Ella an idea about the land but she stuck with her choice. A day passed and a night passed, and on the early hours of the morning after a hike that felt like it would never end, 32A finally started seeing sights that she remembered. Old run down houses could be seen in the distance and the road sings showed that the city was correct too. From there 32A knew the way and after one final push, a familiar circus tent was ahead. 32A wanted to pick up speed but was simply too tired, as were the others. She finished the journey with grace and opened the flap of the tent to step inside.
"Hi all. I came back sooner than I thought. I brought a couple of friends too. I need to nap now." She said and lied down on somebody's sleeping bag without even noticing that nobody was in the tent.
"She fell asleep quickly." Ella said with exhaustion and tiredness to Toivo who had fallen asleep on his own feet while leaning on Ella's shoulders.
Ella just looked around in the empty tent and couldn't understand why 32A wanted to come here. She was tired too so she sat down and closed her eyes and let Toivo lean on her as they both slept in a sitting position.
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"Who are these guys?" 32A heard Ilkka's voice shout from the direction of the entrance accompanied by the sound of a knife being pulled out.
"Three!" Urho's voice also shouted as 32A started opening her eyes on top of the sleeping bag after having napped there for a few hours at that point.
"When did she come in? We should let her and her friends sleep." Ilkka said.
"No need to. I'm awake." 32A said while sitting up after fully waking up from her nap where she saw no dreams of any kind.
"Or at least so I think. Can somebody confirm?" She added and stood up.
She walked up to one of the water barrels and washed her face to see if she was awake, and after she was done with it, everything was still the same.
"I think I'm awake." 32A said gleefully and turned around and before she could even react, Urho was already hugging her torso.
"Haha. So I came back a little sooner than I thought. I solved the matter with my family but we couldn't stay there with them. I also brought my little brother and our friend with me because they couldn't stay there either. I hope that's fine by you." 32A explained to Ilkka while scratching Urho's hair.
"Well, we have some less people here now that some of us headed north towards the Republic's territory in hopes of a better life." Ilkka explained.
"So some left but you remained? Where's Urho's mother and brothers? Are they still here?" 32A asked worriedly.
"They're still here, they're just outside. We only stopped by inside because Urho hurt his wrist while pushing his mother on the kicksled and we found you here with these two others who still seem to be tightly asleep." Ilkka explained.
"Oh your wrist is hurt? Does it feel better now?" 32A asked Urho after using her ability on him to heal any pain he might have had.
"It doesn't hurt anymore." Urho answered while still hugging 32A.
"Can you go back outside while I say something to Three. I'll be there in just a moment." Ilkka asked.
"Can Three also be there?" Urho asked and let go.
"Of course I could." 32A answered and smiled warmly at Urho who then obediently left the tent.
"So what was it that you needed to say?" 32A asked Ilkka.
"About yesterday. It was just yesterday when many of us left from here. And among them was the mother of those boys. She tried to leave with the other leavers early in the morning while her sons were still sleeping. She was being pushed in her kicksled until I interrupted. I thought that she was being pushed away against her will but then she told me that she wanted to leave her sons behind but I talked her out of it after a long argument." Ilkka told 32A who sighed in disappointment.
"I feared that she might try something like that. She told me that she regrets even having her boys. I understand why, but I can't respect her after hearing that." 32A replied.
"She told me the same thing. But after some arguing I found out that she does care about her sons at least some amount, and she told me that she wouldn't go. I hope she sticks to her word." Ilkka said back.
"But does she actually care about them or did she just say so?" 32A wondered.
"We can't know. But I know that the boys will need some kind of a positive influence in their lives in case their mother still decides to leave. I'm glad you came back."
"That's the reason you're glad I came back? You're taking this back to that hero thing?"
"I admit."
"Well, it's the reason why I came back anyway." 32A said and chuckled.
"Was it? I'm glad you've changed your mind then. Yesterday Urho talked about you all day and seemed really down so thank you for coming back."
"Oh. So he really missed me that much? But at least he talked. I know how it feels to have your only hero taken away so I understand how he felt."
"So should you go say Hi to him again and go outside?" Ilkka proposed.
"I guess I should." 32A said happily and made her way out of the tent.
Just as she stepped out of the tent, a snowball flew against her ear, causing her to squeal in a humorous manner.
"Rude! Who taught you to act like that?" 32A shouted to the direction where the snowball came from and where Urho looked guilty.
"You." Urho simply replied.
"I'll sure teach you something..." 32A said and started rolling up a snowball in her hands but before she could finish it, Urho started running away.
"Did you think that you could just get away like a dog out of a leash? You come back here!" 32A threatened and started chasing him with the snowball in her hand.
Before she could get far, she felt a snowball smash against the back of her head, causing her to stop where she stood.
"Who are you threatening here?" Toivo shouted from behind.
"Now you're joining in on this conspiracy?" 32A shouted back, pretending to be offended.
She launced her snowball towards Toivo's face only for the snowball to explode in midair.
"Good try." Toivo taunted.
"That's not fair!" 32A complained playfully and then another snowball smashed to the back of her neck with some of the snow getting under her jacket and shirt from the neckhole, causing her to squeal again.
She turned around and charged at Urho who was at fault. She caught him and lifted him up by the arms off the ground.
"If that's how you want to play then let's see how you like this!" 32A said and threw Urho back first into a deep pile of snow where he sank entirely.
"Who was that?" Ella curiously shouted from the entrance of the tent and went to stand next to Toivo.
"Somebody who needed to be taught a lesson!" 32A shouted back and heard laughing from the pile of snow next to her.
"And what are you laughing about in there. Get back here before you freeze in there." 32A said into the pile of snow and pulled Urho up by the hand from the snow and then led him to Toivo and Ella where she told Urho who Toivo and Ella are.
"Are you bullying a child?" Ella asked 32A after the introductions.
"It's not bullying if he started it. And besides, being a little bit mean is a part of a big sister's job but I can't be mean to Toivo anymore since you probably won't allow that." 32A explained and played sad.
"That's right. You won't be mean to him if I'm in the way." Ella replied proudly and put an arm over Toivo's shoulder.
"You can if you really want to. It's not so bad. And you're not my big sister. We don't know when we were born and you have no proof that you're older." Toivo explained like he was tired of explaining it.
"But you have no proof that I'm younger than you." 32A countered with.
"That's not how it goes. If you make a claim, you have to give proof and not just ask to be proven wrong. That's how it goes!"
"No, it doesn't because I'm the big sister and I make the rules." 32A smugly replied.
"Fine... Make the rules then." Toivo said with defeat in his voice.
"What are you talking about?" Urho asked confusedly, not understanding the language that 32A was speaking with Toivo and Ella.
"We were just talking about how Toivo here doesn't mind if we're a little bit mean to him." 32A said to Urho and then shoved a handful of snow on Toivo's face.
"I meant that I don't mind it if it goes both ways!" Toivo replied while spitting snow out of his mouth.
He then shoved a bigger handful of snow in 32A's face.
"Agh. Fine. Sounds fair." 32A said while also spitting snow out of her mouth.
She then turned her face to Ella and switched languages again to speak to her.
"But if I ever see you being bad to Toivo, I'll be twice as bad to you." She threatened Ella half jokingly.
"You won't need to worry about that. But can I do this?" Ella said and dropped a snowball on the top of Toivo's head in the most gentle way possible.
"You have my permission." 32A answered happily while feeling like nothing was missing from her life at this moment.
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Four months after 32A, Toivo and Ella arrived to the Deadland, was a sunny noon in April. The remaining snow was melting and pussy willows were blooming around the snowless train tracks where Toivo and Ella walked side by side along with 32A behind them who had Urho sitting on her shoulders and was walking next to Ilkka who had his hands in his pockets and a grumpy expression on his face.
"You can't stay neutral forever. Eventually you'll have to stand for something." Ilkka said to 32A with frustration.
"It's because I don't know! How hard is that to understand?" 32A argued back and kept her composure.
"Who was that weirdly dressed woman and what did she tell you and why did she get so angry?" Urho asked curiously.
"I suppose we shouldn't let you be in the dark about this either. That woman who was accompanied by the large men was proposing to build a sawmill in here." Ilkka told Urho.
"What's a sawmill?" Urho asked.
"A place where we'd work in exchange for having guaranteed food and warm homes and clean water. That's what we all were arguing about and voting on. And the lady got really angry because we told her that we don't want her sawmill." 32A told Urho.
"Or some of us told her so, while some didn't give an opinion at all." Ilkka said and glared at 32A judgingly.
"Again. I don't know what to think about it. I understand that it would make our lives easier and that we would no longer have to rely on the traders and we wouldn't have to make increasingly longer and longer trips just to find things to sell, but if we let them start building things here, I fear that it would be the first step in letting the rot of the outside world creep into our world, and I don't want that. I still need to think about it." 32A explained.
"I think you'll get to make a choice soon enough. She was not happy with our rejection and I don't think those people will be as friendly the next time they come around." Ilkka said.
"I don't want to think about it right now. One day at a time. We still have a long way to go to the goldmine and the place where we forgot the wheelbarrow." 32A said back.
"Who's that over there?" Urho asked while scouting ahead from his high place on 32A's shoulders.
"Who? Oh wait. Yeah, who is that?" 32A wondered once she also saw the same person that Urho saw ahead.
The person ahead seemed to be walking towards the party and put both hands up to display harmlessness.
"I'm just a courier! I didn't come here to rob anyone!" The person in the distance shouted.
The party walked closer to the courier who had a bag hanging from his shoulder, glasses on his eyes, an army helmet on his head and a big iron on his hip. He looked healthier and better fed than anyone who had lived in the Deadland for a long time.
"A courier? So what do you have in that bag?" Ilkka asked threateningly.
"Mail! Just mail." The courier assured.
"Mail? From where and to where?" 32A asked.
"I work for the Deadland Couriers. We deliver mail from the rebel territory into different places in the Deadland and even over the gulf. I promise I'm telling the truth. You can even check my bag. There's just paper and packages in there." The courier explained.
"Wait. So you come from the rebel territory? Do you also deliver mail from here to there?" 32A asked excitedly.
"Of course we do."
"And you also deliver mail over the gulf?"
"I just said so." The courier answered.
"Toivo! Take your notebook out. We need to send two letters."
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