Dimitri Popov

**Dimitri Popov** is a character in The Smoke Room. He is miner under CSCG and a frequent patron of The Stag who often appears alongside his coworkers Paul and Felipe.

## Appearance

Dimitri is a tall, broad black bear with black fur and a brown snout. He has blue eyes offset by bushy eyebrows and a "beard" of black fur. Dimitri wears a gray button-up shirt and a pair of navy blue pants held up by suspenders, as well as a soldier's cap. Outside of the mine, Dimitri often wears a navy blue coat with a prominent collar.

## Personality

Dimitri is one of the older and more experienced miners, granting him a bit more wisdom and patience than many of his peers, and he is a quick thinker well-known for his reliable competence. Dimitri is generally very friendly and understanding, especially when compared to his friends. He is good at defusing tension between his fellow miners, and sets a genial, welcoming example for others to follow. There is a pragmatic side beneath his warmth, mostly demonstrated through his central role in organizing the union, but he also has a tendency to give people the benefit of the doubt, which can occasionally backfire on him.

## Story

### Before The Smoke Room

Dimitri emigrated to the States from Ruthenia at a young age and eventually became a soldier in an unspecified conflict. When his deployment was up, he came to Echo in search of a job that would allow him to create things rather than fight. He was hired on as a miner for CSCG and placed under the command of foreman Beckett Moore.

Dimitri has worked as a miner for over ten years. At some point during this time, he was joined by Felipe and Paul and became good friends with the pair. He also eventually joined the miner's union alongside his friends, Nik, Yao, and Chang. Dimitri's strong work ethic, cool head, and experience led to him being extremely well-respected by many of his peers in the mine, in turn making him an integral part of the union.

### Nik's Route

Dimitri first appears at The Stag alongside the other members of the miner's union. He tells Felipe and Paul about the way Ben recklessly endangered his team in the mine earlier that day, but empathetically blames Ben's youth for his carelessness. During the ensuing conversation Dimitri listens to Nik explain that Sam's CSCG interview was unusually conducted by both bosses of the mine, and that intimidation tactics were used against him in order to target Nik for his association with the union. Dimitri promises to spread the word of this to the other miners. When Ben arrives moments later, he and Dimitri exchange heated words about Ben's earlier behavior.

Dimitri next appears the following day, stepping in to defend Sam by reminding Ben that he is equal to any other miner, despite his authoritative posturing. Later, he works alongside Sam, Paul, and Felipe to extend the rails. He welcomes Sam to the mine and trades stories with him about their pasts, then invites him out to The Stag after work.

The next day, Dimitri continues to labor with Sam and his friends, this time working with explosives to expand the tunnels. On Beckett's orders, he allows Ben to borrow his dynamite pack. When Sam and his other coworkers express distrust of Ben, Dimitri urges them to have faith in him, feeling that he is simply young and hot-headed rather than malicious. Moments later, Sam lights a faulty stick of dynamite from Dimitri's pack and Dimitri notices immediately, smacking it out of Sam's hand and then shoving him out of the way of the blast. The resulting cave-in causes part of the ceiling to collapse onto Dimitri's foot, badly injuring it. Felipe and some other men then escort him back to town for medical attention.

Paul later reveals that while Dimitri will live and is already attempting to continue his work for the union from his bed, he is expected to be left with a permanent limp at minimum and require amputation at worst. The rest of the union discusses how they will go forward without Dimitri as a familiar face to organize the men, and decide to hold a general strike the next day.

During the strike, Sam, Nik, Felipe, and Paul visit Dimitri at the clinic, and Sam notes that although he looks well and his spirits are high, Dimitri's voice sounds hoarse from screaming. Upon learning that Beckett assumed Sam was the one who tampered with the dynamite, Dimitri is bemused, and theorizes with Nik that if the foreman is truly in the dark, then Ben may have performed the sabotage at the behest of the mine's upper management out of desperation for a promotion. He resolves to get back to working and supporting the union as quickly as possible. Dimitri then proposes that all the men go to The Stag to meet up with Yao, overruling the concern that Paul and Felipe express about his condition, and promises to buy everyone drinks.

Some time later, Nik and Sam step away from The Stag and return with a delirious Murdoch in tow. Dimitri quickly recognizes him as Red's son, and says that it would be 'irresponsible' not to know the Byrnes family since they are the primary supplier to Echo. He urges Murdoch to relax and helps him recover enough to share his ordeal, which included a seemingly supernatural experience down in the mines. Dimitri appears invested in Murdoch's account of what happened and prompts him to continue at one point, saying he can tell from Murdoch's expression that he is holding back details. The talk about the supernatural then leads Dimitri and his fellow miners to begin recounting their own stories of inexplicable happenings. Dimitri shares that he often sees windchimes suspended in pillars of light.

Afterward, Dimitri lightens the mood by reminding everyone of the drinks he promised them, and partakes in the night's festivities with his fellow miners and friends.

### Will's Route

Depending on the order in which Will chooses to conduct his investigation, he may encounter Dimitri alongside Paul and Felipe. If Will goes to The Stag at night, Nik will introduce him to Dimitri, who quickly offers his assistance and cooperation. In the ensuing conversation, Dimitri informs Will that James does not get along with The Hip's barkeep, a key piece of evidence for furthering the investigation. Before Will departs, Dimitri encourages him to come share a drink with them some other time.

## Relationships

### Paul

Paul is a close friend of Dimitri's, with the two often cracking jokes at each other. Dimitri typically tries his best to calm Paul's vicious temper and is more than familiar with his violent side. Though Paul's pessimism is often at odds with Dimitri's more forgiving outlook, the two seem to have a mutual respect for one another and get along well.

### Felipe

Felipe is another close friend of Dimitri's and is typically seen alongside him. Dimitri appears to be familiar with Felipe's more dry sense of humor and constant "arguing" with Paul, and he trusts the jackrabbit greatly.

### Ben

As an older, more experienced miner, Dimitri tends to find himself at odds with Ben, who is something of an incautious upstart and expresses disrespect toward Dimitri for working at the mine for so long without rising up the ranks. Dimitri is not afraid to put Ben in his place when he acts above his station and considers him to be an "asshole," though he expresses to his friends that he feels Ben's behavior can largely be chalked up to his youth and that he is a good man at heart.

## Trivia

* If Sam chooses to name Dimitri as one of his companions in the mine, Porter calls this a "golden" piece of information.
* Dimitri is gay, although this has not yet been made explicit in the story.