PORTOFIRO

Far off Portofiro's beaten tourist path.

"This is chimera verde, a mould strain indigenous to Portofiro -- and a surprisingly stubborn survivor." He smiles at the sample. "Quite the find."

"Tempo was going to get the old guy out of Luz, via Portofiro. Exit papers and all, whole-new-you type of package."

"Yep. Tempo offered him safe passage through Portofiro. Set him up with a new life."

"The Weeping Eye took down my network. Five years ago. Here, in Portofiro."

PORTOFIRO 91: Network DISSOLVED. 5 Assets and 1 Operant LOST. CASCADE: EXTRACTED. Competency rating: INDETERMINATE. Loyalty rating: INDETERMINATE.

"EMTERR's got one, doesn't it. Here, in Portofiro."

"Portofiro went in for one of these loans?"

"Here in... Portofiro? No. Here, at my personal nadir, strewn upon the gravel?" His eyes flicker behind their lids. "I would say... affirmative."

The largest corporate entity in Portofiro, with a monopoly over the city's telecommunications. Their logo is a cheerful dolphin.

"If she did my job there would be no one left in Portofiro." He chuckles. "But seriously, half my time is spent dealing with the Mother."

Returning to Portofiro, you were sure of one thing: if anything remained of your network, if anyone from the Crew made it...

PROPERTY OF PORTOFIRO DREAM STUDY LAB, 91. DO NOT REMOVE

After an hour of thought, the clatter of Portofiro pulls you back in. Slowly, you stand up. A rest for your legs, at least.

An hour passes, its minutes unmarked. Portofiro pulses in the background. Eventually, you stand up -- a bit more rested.

At last, you stand up, your limbs lighter than they were. Portofiro coaxes you back into its rhythm.

Microphones. You have to force yourself to remember, over and over: this is Portofiro, not Novessa.

After some time, the present seeps back in. Your limbs don't feel as heavy as they did. Gently, Portofiro coaxes you back into its rhythm.

"Portofiro will be different without it. Maybe that's what the song's about, or what our song should be about."

Portofiro has been like this since before they were born. They can't remember a different world -- but the song brings it to them.

"Not at all! We can reconstruct it for Portofiro, for now, for us."

"That's a clear picture, now! The Superbloc ambassador comes to Portofiro with a song, Nestor rejects them, a man gives a package to a woman, she sends it away in the tubes..."

Previous Assignment: Portofiro, 88-91. Network: 'Whole Sick Crew' Operants: CASCADE, ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ Assets: ▒▒▒▒▒▒, ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒, ▒▒▒▒▒▒, ▒▒▒▒▒▒, ▒▒▒▒▒

Carabineros: Portofiro's sanctioned police investigators. They report directly to the Prefectura and deal in actual crime -- murder, grand larceny, rape.

"If all you know of Portofiro is the Bootleg Bazaar, then you don't know much at all."

Sweet Nestor, Portofiro's supreme leader from the years 28 to 80.

"Portofiro should join the Superbloc, become a proper People's Republic."

The bartender politely ignores your invocation of Portofiro's fraught history.

"Don't tell me you're in Portofiro for the phone sex."

"Are you worried it's coming to Portofiro?"

Portofiro stretches up the mountain, a shining mess.

"I see. I've heard of recreational domestic violence among the peoples of Portofiro but never imagined it to be so... effective."

Portofiro's classic Cinema Kosmos, now abandoned and missing a letter.

"Because it isn't native to Portofiro, or really this part of the world at all. The old Luzians planted it back when this place was a penal colony."

"Must be just over a decade at this point. It's actually the last payphone in Portofiro to still be running the old way now they've all gone wireless."

"Do you like living here -- in Portofiro?"

"So what are you doing in Portofiro now?" (Proceed.)

"There are no non-Renotel payphones left in Portofiro. Mr. Reno has an exclusive contract."

Renotel. A diversified communications company local to the state of Portofiro. Immediately recognisable by its dolphin logo.

From this distance, Portofiro is just a cluster of dim lights in early daylight. Mist clings to it.

Carabineros: Portofiro's sanctioned police investigators. They report directly to the Prefectura and deal in actual crime -- murder, grand larceny, rape.

'RITE OF PASSAGE' -- it's an exit visa. Permission to travel freely out of Portofiro.

You recognise the patch sewn into his pants. It's the Carriles de Portofiro's logo -- the oldest transit company in the city.

A faded patch sewn into his pants, below the pocket. Twin black lines set against a yellow background -- Carriles de Portofiro, the oldest transit company in the city.

The job listing goes forever un-circled in the back pages of Portofiro's weekly rag.

Here, it could be anyone. All the world powers have a finger or two inside Portofiro.

"You are through to Portofiro's most reliable photographique lab. How may I be of assistance?"

"If I do my job correctly there will be no evidence I was ever even in Portofiro."

"That's understandable -- it's been a while since you were last in Portofiro, hasn't it?"

"You picked an interesting time to come back to Portofiro. It's not the same city it was five years ago."