Jul 29 06:11:49 106 PA - Gym Chat

From Chronicles

The current game time is: Fri Jul 29 06:11:49 106 PA.

Morning at the gym is a busy time, dozens of people milling about and using the equipment. The level of strenuousness varies, but for Vixen its a light day today. She sits on one of the weight benches, doing slow curls with a light dumbbell in one hand. Not too sweaty, signifying the lightness of her workout thus far. But she approaches it seriously enough, her arm working the weight in smooth, measured movements, her attention drifting a little as she does so.

Alistair should have waited - too many people and stuff at this time of day. Regardless, now that he's here, he goes to the locker rooms and returns in an outfit more appropriate for working out. On the way he greets one or two people that he is familiar with, before making his way towards the weight machines. "Hello miss Vixen" he smiles when he sees the woman, "Did Leonard survive beaning Miss Tirzah?"

"Yeah, she just played some prank in return." Vixen replies, her attention moving towards Alistair. "Didn't figure she'd do anything too crazy over that, but you never know with her. She don't seem to have no normal sense in her. And keeps proving it over and over." She shrugs a little. "How are you doing? Got it in hand and all that?"

"Oooh ... that makes sense. She is somewhat predictable though, despite the oddity" Alistair comments, brows hiking up a touch. "I'm doing alright, things are getting a little busier in this season for me" he smiles, "Lots of things getting used and breaking down. Busy time for Cali too I think."

From afar, Leonard is, surprisingly, not bombarded with pages from Tristan. "Yeah, shit's getting real busy," Vixen agrees. "More and more refugees.. and it don't look like its stopping. Gotta think up some way to keep them fed until they can do it themselves.. but there ain't many ways to do it without breaking the bank. And I ain't looking to do that." A slight frown comes to her as she continues to work the weight. "You don't got no bright ideas, do ya?"

"We cannot really have a city outside the city, it will cause a more exacerbated haves and have nots situation" Alistair replies, nodding, "And we can't put them all in the dregs either, that would be cruel. The city cannot afford to simply feed them for nothing, and it will be a long time before they are all gainfully employed. I don't think bright ideas will solve this. Diplomacy and good old administrative work will. Do you know of any projects the city might use people for?" he inquires. "And then, there are other cities and villages which could deal with a few people coming in. Spread the wealth so to speak, make it more manageable."

""THe city ain't doing shit to feed them," Vixen notes, eyeing Alistair. "They only got food cause they can find some, some people donate a bit and Leo can make wood to trade for food and some supplies. You can try talking to 'em about breaking things up, but I don't think that's going to fly." She pauses her curls to add, "Tirzah was taking some crap about salvage, but I don't think that will do anything. Or not enough at least. Just need to find the right angle. Which involves something they can do for the city."

"Of course not" says AListair, nodding his head a little, sitting down at one of the weight machines. "I don't think salvage is the solution either. Right now harvest might help them find simple work, but this is seasonal. There is probably a lot of repair and things that could be done on the roads inside the city, and perhaps some upkeep on the outside as well. This means the city pays them if they do work here, but it also means they're competing for work with citizens so that won't fly either...hmmh..."

"I already worked that angle before, man," Vixen notes. "Got as many as I could jobs out at the farms. If the people around here wanted to work out there, they'd have been doing it already." She pauses, considering a little. "That sort of work might be ok, but something more independent is likely what they'd like better.. the refugees." Her head cants a little and she wonders, "Maybe a trade route.. food troubles around here, why not have them add to the food stores that way? I was hoping to get them to start their own farming enterprise out there before.. but this might be a new way to go about the same ends."

"Trade might work, but how will they do that? Do they have their own vehicles?" Alistair asks, and nods, "Farming might work but then you need to extend military patrols ... or they could form their own village nearby, it would be a while but they could build houses and whatnot. Turn themselves into a small trading outpost or ...well, better than living in a refugee camp."

"Unless they all walked here," Vixen murmurs. "I'll ask Emily about that." She then smirks at Alistair. "My first plan was to make them a village. But the Council said no dice. That would have been a hundred times better than trying to stuff them into the Dregs.." She pauses, a thought dawning in a snap. "Why the hell didn't I think of this before?" A slow grin develops as she notes, "I can so fucking take out two birds with one stone."

"Emily?" Alistair inquires, and hms, blinking his eyes. "The Council needn't be involved in this" he smiles, "What, which? Putting them in the dregs? I don't get it ..." he stares at Vixen blankly for a few moments, tilting his head a touch. He starts to pull down on the handle, hauling one a hundred and fifty pounds behind him like it was more or less nothing.

"The Council involved itself, man. They gave me an ultimatum. No building in Kingsdale territory. But that don't matter now. Listen up.." She leans forward slightly, her tone dipping a little. "The Family,, they're the ones that control the territory that he refugees are in.. and they want the usual. Cash, cause that's what they're about. been worrying about how to deal with them fucks, but get this.. the Family's got the resources to start a trade route for food. And the Refugees could provide the manpower. THe Family gets a cut, the refugees get a cut, everyone is happy, yeah?" She grins, seeming to find the idea promising. "Heck, maybe I can get a little cut too." She shrugs her shoulders as if that potential didn't matter so much.

"Family?" Alistair asks, and hms softly, holding onto the bar. "Um, well, if the business works out, sure, why not?" he smiles, shrugging his shoulders a touch. "But it sounds like they are bad people. I suppose that could work out nicely, at least for a little while. What happens after things stabilize?"

"The Family is one of the most powerful gangs in the Dregs. But they're real simple. They like money. You make them money, they like you. They want money to let the refugees be where they are.. which I expected. Now, I think I know how to deal with that." She then notes to him, "And they have to be dealt with.. fighting ain't an option." She then smirks and notes, "I'll worry about what happens after stability when things actually get stable. If the refugees keep pouring in, stability ain't something that'll be happening."

"Fighting isn't? It's good when things have a peaceful solution" Alistair smiles and nods. "I guess they wouldn't like me, I don't ever really make neough for myself ... well, barely" he murmurs, looking sheepish. "But anyway, are the refugees growing restless yet? Organizing some sports or something might well work I think."

"Feel free to do so if you want, just make sure you meet Emily first. She's their leader, of sorts. Or most look to her anyway." Vixen shrugs a little. "They seem fine enough and pretty soon there will be plenty of work for idle hands, getting the spot in the Dregs ready for living and building more places to sleep."

"The - um, Emily is the leader of the refugees?" Alistair asks, looking confused for a few moments. "Yeah but, life without entertainment is not much fun either" he chuckles, tilting his head a touch. "The dregs though - they are a pretty dangerous place to live in, aren't they? Are they really any better than being out there?"

"They listen to her and I run things by her before I do them, so yeah.. she qualifies," Vixen replies. "Here they have allies and ways to make it. Out there they have a whole lot of nothing," Vixen adds. "So yeah, they're better here, rather than trying to make it outside of Kingsdale's lands."

"Oh" Alistair nods again, and hms softly. "I suppose so ... how many are there altogether, do you know?" he frowns faintly, some through or other crossing his mind now apparently. "And how is the war over there going?"

"A few thousand now," Vixen replies with a faint grimace. "But that's just something we gotta deal with, don't we? Cause they're here." She shakes her head a little. "You want to start sports with 'em, go ahead. But make sure you go to Emily and talk to her about if first. They're still twitchy about other people and their ranks are firm against outsiders."

Alistair ahs softly. "I guess so, but - I mean a few thousand...the city people will not receive them kindly ... anyway, okay" He nods his head a little. "If they're twitchy about outsiders they need a knock on the head, or they need to leave. Really" he murmurs, apparently suffering alittle bit of white-and-black-ism.

"Listen, Ali. When you've had everything you know taken away from you, been forced to run out on your home with the deadboys looking to kill you just cause you live someplace and have to come to a strange city like this one, where no one wants to help you and probably plenty of people want to take advantage of and use you, you can comment on who needs to get a knock on the head." Vixen given him a level look as she says this. "They don't got much, so they gotta hold what they got close to make sure they got something and won't get it taken. Tirzah seems to think the same too.. that they should just 'lighten up'. Easy for us to say, you know? Me, I at least got a little sense of what they're going through cause I tasted a lesser version of it before."

"I know it isn't easy" says Alistair, "But - well, I suppose that is how it is" he smiles, shrugging his shoulders a little. "Hopefuly it'll all end good for them" he comments, his smile fading a little - maybe he knows better. "Other than that, how are you doing? Other than dodging miss Tirzah's fireballs that is."

"Things will change slow.. Tirzah won't be helping it, though, since she got rebuffed for moving too fast and decided she don't want to help no more. Or to wait until the refugees act like she thinks they should act." She rolls her shoulders slightly. "People gotta learn, everyone else don't always act like you think they should." She shakes her head a little and says, "I'm fine.. a little stressed, still got a little headache, but other than that I'm fine. Will be better next week once my head's all back together again. Got some new cyber, still recovering."

"Cyber? Isn't that like ... stuff for ... long distance relationships?" Alistair asks, blushing at the mention of such things. Oh the humanity! Who would've expected? "Good thing you are recovering then, um ... " he nods a few times.

"Cybernetics," Vixen clarifies, eyeing Alistair for a moment. "Got some new sensors, amped up my ear.. stuff like that. Going under the knife is pretty rough, but the gear is useful. Even got a nice little toy here.." She lifts her right hand, her index and middle fingers extended. From the tips of both a short, slender needle extends, lingering for just a moment before they slip back into her fingertips, showing no sign they'd been there moments before. "A little sleep sting if I ever need to quiet someone down."

"Ooooh..." Alistair's eyes widen for a moment, looking those things. "I see ... " his brows hike up a touch, and he quiets down for a few moments, pulling on the bar again. "Are you going to get more?" he asks after podering it for a few moments.

"A few. But if you're wondering if I'm going to go partial, nah.. that ain't me," Vixen replies. "I like being flesh. Don't really want no limb, though I do sorta wish I could get some claws that could cut armor. But I'd have to get some bionics to anchor that stuff. And that ain't happening." She grins a little. "But I suppose if I ever have to get a limb, I might get i t tricked out if I have enough creds."

Alistair smiles, "A Vibroknife will do in a pinch, but, armor tends to be thick these days..." he comments, and hmms softly, "A Party limb?" he jests, looking sheepish for a moment. "I wouldn't want to replace anything either if I could help it."

"A knife can get taken away. And people know you got one. Claws that can slip into your fingers when you don't want no one to see 'em can't be," Vixen notes. "Unlike most around here, all I got is my tech. That gets taken away, I don't got nothing to fight with. THe more I can conceal in me, the better off for me, you know?"

"Mmm ... that makes sense" says Alistair, nodding, "But then people steal people's arms and legs too now ... I think" he points out, brows hiking up a touch, "Really nasty business that, I think - cruel, too. But I guess they mostly go after people with visible things."

"If I ever do have to get a limb, I'll want it to have some synthetic skin. I don't wanna have metal poking out of me or showing." Vixen shrugs faintly. "I think some people get off on showing off that sort of thing. Anyway, I should get going. Check you later man." With that she rises, then takes the dumbbell to drop it off before going on her way.