POWERLESS.

[Chandra Panesar]

Their deal had worked out best for David and the stranger with the fish seemed content with it as well; always a bonus. David removed the Spam and the yams from his backpack before closing it again and slinging it over his back. Then he just watched the stranger clean the bucket; it was really a one man job so there wasn’t anything for him to do but watch. Only when the guy mentioned building the fire did he roll closer, setting down his end of the trade in order to grab up some of the scrap lumber, chucking in bits as the fire grew. Eventually it was blazing along merrily and the stranger impaled the fish on makeshift spits for cooking. David was quietly impressed; it seemed like the guy knew what he was doing. It made the younger man wonder what this stranger was like back before the power went out. Was he one of those survivalists that always knew something bad was going to happen? Did he just really like camping? Was he a boy scout once upon some years ago? Maybe he just learned really quickly and had good instincts. Unlike David, the other guy asked his question aloud and the blond considered it for a moment as he lowered himself into a comfortable crouching position. Typically he just told people he was doing fine, no matter how untrue it was. Most people asking didn’t really want to know; how are you was just a greeting. But the more specific question of how he was getting along after the loss of power seemed like it expected a real answer. ”I’m getting by, but the truth is I know it won’t last. Not if things stay like they are. Too many people, too few resources; I’m only scraping by because there’s still just enough to go around that someone will give me a little extra here and there to carry what they need delivered. But I’ll figure something out.” Or he would wind up dead, but David didn’t like to be morbid even when it was realistic. He was probably going to die soon; no need to ruin the mood over it. ”What about you? You sure seem to know what you’re doing.”


(@DraculasLittlePrincess IV: Welcome, welcome! The more the merrier!)

DraculasLittlePrincess IV

High_Assassin

 

[High_Assassin]

Alex smiled. "Well. Dats due ta my Southern Upbringin.We used to go fishin all the time out in the Gulf o Mexico. In fact, I'm headed down that way in a little while. Winters way to cold fer me up in these parts." Okay, so maybe he had been laying the southern accent on a little thick before, but he still really didn't know this guy, so he had used the accent and typical stereotype of Southern Folk as a sort of shield. Now that they were actually talking, he was adopting a more normal manner of speech, though there was still some Southern Inflection in his speech, it wasn't quite the backwoods redneck slang he had been using earlier. He knew some people who actually did speak like that, that was how he had managed to pull it off. But he was from a city, and was more used to city southern, which wasn't quite as full of bad grammer and mispronunciations as it's true country counterpart.

Flipping the fish, he turned back to his companion. "Say, ya wouldn't happen to be interested in comin down south with me would ya? I could use a trail buddy out on the old Appalachian." The foot trail, which extended from Georgia to Maine, wasn't all that well known, except to hiking enthusiasts, but if they didn't want to run into police roadblocks, it was probably the only way through. Major cities like New York had pretty much given up, but smaller towns were still trying to cling to some sense of normalcy, and the police were closing off roads to prevent gangs of looters from ransacking the small towns. The Appalachian Trail, though, should have escaped their notice. At least, he was hoping so.

Chandra Panesar

 

[Chandra Panesar]

David smiled a little, though he tried not to. He didn’t mean to laugh, but it was just a little funny to hear this guy, with his thick accent, speak of his Southern Upbringin. David had only ever talked to maybe one or two people with an accent as prevalent as this guy’s. Of course that accent seemed to recede a little as they continued to speak, though the blond didn’t notice right away. He was more interested in hearing what the guy had to say. ”I haven’t gone fishing since I was just a little kid…” David murmured quietly, remembering a couple of summers, years ago, when his father used to take him camping. They would fish and swim and hike; it was a lot of fun. But it was too long ago; he didn’t really retain very much from those youthful trips. And he definitely didn’t have his father’s camping and fishing equipment. David almost wondered if he was even able to use that stuff anymore, or if he would be all thumbs and wind up hooking himself instead of a fish.

The blond reacted with a little surprise when asked if he was interested in coming down south. David had not ever thought about leaving the area, but that was in large part because he didn’t dare to set out on his own with no idea of where he was going or how to get there. The only choice he had really had was to make do with his life where he was. But maybe if he was going with someone who actually knew what he was doing and where he was going, then it could be a good idea. He didn’t have anything keeping him in New York and his prospect for survival in a place where he had no real friends was low. “I think it would be a good idea, actually. My current situation is probably temporary, at best. But you’d be toting around, well… me. I haven’t been hiking since I was eleven, in a National Park.”

High_Assassin

 

[High_Assassin]

Alex grinned, glad he had found a trail buddy. When going out in the Wilderness, it was always a good idea to have a partner, someone who could go get help if you fell and broke your leg. Traveling alone was a risky prospect, whic was why he had waited so long before he would even attempt it. He had been planning to take his bike, which, like almost everything else he "owned" was actually stolen post blackout. But unless his new friend also had a bike stuffed away, a mountain bike capable of riding down a rough mountain trail, they would have to actually hike the whole way down. He would have to find a way to ask, without revealing that he had such an asset.

"Well, then, what say we set out at first light tomorrow mornin," he suggested. "The train used ta cross the trail on the way here to the city, and it was a popular jumpin off point for people who'd had enough. So we can jus follow the track till we come upon a station in da middle o nowhere. That'll be da trail, and then its south ta Georgia, or maybe even Florida. I could hit Panama Beach again. There's a lot worse cities one could wind up stuck in." He didn't mention New York specifically, but it was clear this city was one of those worse cities he was talking about. "Oh, an the fish is ready." He handed one of the fish to his new travel buddy, and took one for himself. He would save the third one for tomorrow. Once the fish was cooked, it should last a day r two, but not much longer than that. It was probably best to have it for brunch tomorrow, after they were out of the city.

Chandra Panesar

 

[Chandra Panesar]

The guy didn’t really seem bothered by the fact that David didn’t have the experience or knowledge that he did. Maybe he just really wanted somebody to tag along, even if it was some city guy whose idea of the wilderness was when a raccoon was digging in his trash. Well, whatever his reason, if he didn’t have a problem, then David was on board. He didn’t even mind the prospect of walking a lot; he was used to spending a lot of time on his feet. It was too bad that he really didn’t think there would be much use for his skates, though; the going was bound to be way too rough for that. And David didn’t own a bike; he didn’t own much that wasn’t on his person at that very moment. The truth was that by the time he’d even realized he should make a grab for something like that, the area had been picked pretty clean.
“Like this one.” David added on with a laugh when the guy said that there were worse cities to get stuck in than Panama Beach; the indication was clear even if the man hadn’t said it. David had loved New York when he had first arrived, it had been a dream of his to come, but without power the city had become a prison. He was just waiting for death here. He didn’t really know how much better it would be anywhere else, he was sure he would have frozen to death even more quickly in his New Hampshire home town, but at least as long as he was moving then he was trying to stay alive, right? He wasn’t just sitting and waiting for the end. It made sense to him, anyway. “My name’s David, by the way.” He offered up as he accepted a now cooked fish. The blond felt silly having forgotten to introduce himself and only thinking to when he realized how awkward it was to agree to travel with someone he thought of as that guy with the fish. Would the stranger give him a name in return? David cooled the fish, blowing over it gently and ignoring how his mouth salivated at the now rare scent of cooked food. No sense in ruining a good thing by burning his tongue on the first bite.

High_Assassin

 

[DraculasLittlePrincess IV]

(Great, I'll join once i get back from spending a few days at my friends house 3nodding )  

[High_Assassin]

"Yeah, like this one," Alex said. He hadn't wanted to insult the boy, since most New Yorkers were emminently proud of their city, though he couldn't for the life of him figure out why. Everything was higher here, the rent, the taxes, the crime rate, the smog, the number of cars on the roads, the number of absolutely stupid ordinances and regulations, everything, and very little of it was a bonus to the city. Of course, all that had changed when the power had gone out, except maybe the crime rate. That had probably gone UP, especially after the police walked off the job.

He was torn from his line of thought when the boy introduced himself as David. He figured he should introduce himself as well, since they were no longer strangers haggling over a few fish, but rather traveling buddies that were headed south tomorrow. "Nice ta meet you, Dave. I'm Alexander. But you can jus call me Alex." He cut his fish in two, and scooped out a bite with his knife. "Hmmm... needs salt." Actually, he was pretty much convinced everything needed salt, it was his favorite condiment. He doubted there would be any left in the stores, but the bay was right there, so he dug a cup out of his bag, went over to the dock, and pulled some water out of the bay. Bringing it over to the fish, he poured the water over it, and then put it back on the fire. Who knew what was in that water, though with all the rusting container ships lurking about, he had a pretty good idea. Best to cook the fish a little more, and kill of any nasty buggers that may have been in that water before he ate any more of it.

He also made a mental note that he would need to dry out a lot more salt water from the bay, since salt was going to be kinda hard to come by once they made their way inland. When he was convinced the fish was again safe to eat, he took another bite. There was some salt on it, but not nearly enough. Still, he didn't want to be here all night trying to perfectly salt his fish with seawater, so he made do with the modest improvement. He would have to find a larger container to boil water in, since he knew that it took a lot of salt water to make a little salt. But it would be worth it, when they could eat perfectly salted meat out on the trail, while everyone else was eating bland, unflavored food.

Chandra Panesar

 

[Chandra Panesar]

”It’s nice to officially make your acquaintance, Alex.” It was definitely nice to have a name to use since he would be travelling over a long distance with the guy. It would have been really awkward trying to remain strangers during that length of time. At the very least, he would think of Alex as a partner. Maybe they could even become friends? That seemed like wishful thinking with the state of things as they were; most people had realized long ago that they couldn’t afford to have friends. It was every person for themselves; no one could afford to feel any attachments to people who were not utterly essential to them. But David didn’t like to fully give in to that mindset. After all, he had met genuinely caring people, even after the power went out. That old couple could have saved themselves the bourbon and left him bleeding out on the street, after all. He had done what he could to repay them, but they hadn’t done it to have him in their debt. It just hadn’t occurred to them that they could, or maybe even should, put themselves first over the welfare of a stranger. He thought of those two as friends, so it wasn’t impossible to meet any. It was just very unlikely. And Alex would be utterly essential to his survival through unfamiliar places; he just hoped he could be half as useful to the older man in return.

David fished out a small pocket knife from his backpack to cut into the fish with; it was a bit dull and wasn’t much use as a weapon, but it had a few small tools that came in handy, from time to time. As he scooped a bite of his fish to eat, David watched Alex curiously. The man had said his fish needed salt, then proceeded to pull out a cup and head for the dock. That… was unexpected. And maybe a little crazy, David thought. It was true that, under ideal circumstances, the fish could have used some seasoning, but not if bay water was the only option. Besides, David was sure he already had so much salt in his system that his organs were pickled; he had been eating out of cans for so long now. Well, at least Alex was cooking the fish again… it would really suck for his travel buddy to fall horrifically ill before they could even get started.

”That’s pretty resourceful. Probably a little risky too, though.” Not that Alex didn’t seem to know that; otherwise he wouldn’t have made sure to cook the fish again for much longer before risking another bite. David was already close to half done with eating his portion. Honestly, he might have finished it more quickly had he not had to navigate tiny fish bones. Salt or no salt, it tasted great to him. David knew that was because any such rare treat had the benefit of his appreciating it more; fish had never tasted so good when it was readily available.

High_Assassin

 

[High_Assassin]

Alex smiled. "Well, maybe right ere aint the best place, but I didn't feel like travellin too far just to get some seasoning for my meal. We really oughtta find a beach or something, where there aren't likely ta be as many chemicals an stuff." He took another bite of his fish. It still didn't taste quite right, but trying for any more salt would be risky, at best. He hoped this wouldn't cause too much of a concern to his companion, but there was no way he was going to survive solely on unsalted meat for the entire trip down South. In his mind, everything tasted better with salt, and was practically inedible without it. Just how much salt he would be able to dry out of Seawater remained to be seen. He could only afford to spend an hour, maybe two, on the process, before they had to set out for the trail, if they wanted to reach the remote train station by nightfall.

Chandra Panesar

 

[Chandra Panesar]

”Sounds like a good idea.” David replied, though he admittedly let his thoughts drift to how nice it used to be to visit the beach just for fun. He never used to think about how he could gather salt from the water. David used to love swimming, but there wasn’t any time in life for a frivolous activity like that; not any more. Every waking moment was spent just trying to survive another day without power. David finished eating his fish before giving a satisfied sigh; it felt good to have such a full belly. ”Hey, should we meet up here again, tomorrow? Or would it be easier if we slept in the same place? Then we could get moving as soon as we woke up.” Of course David didn’t know where Alex was staying and he didn’t ask. The guy seemed a little secretive and David couldn’t blame him; it was the safest way to interact with strangers. The only difference between them was that David didn’t really have any secrets to keep.

High_Assassin

 

[High_Assassin]

"Ah, well, I wan't planning on going anywhere tonight. These docks are full of containers and warehouses, meanin that there's plenty of places to camp out, an the likelyhood that anyone is going to barge in on us is rather low. Come to think of it, we could take my boat down the coast, rather than walkin the whole way down the trail. Might be faster too. Plus, we'd ave plenty of access to fish, as well as salt." He honestly hadn't thought of that before, and he wondered why. Then it came to him.

"Of course, the weather on the coast can get kinda rough this time of year, an my little boat aint exactly the safest craft ta be out on the water in rough weather. The trail would probly be safer, but we'd ave to really watch our food supply, since I ain't got a lot of huntin quipment, an there aint a lot of stores along the way." Either way presented it's own challenges, both of which could wind up with him and his partner dead. One from slow starvation out in the wilderness, and one from capsizing in some winter storm. Then again, they could just pull into shore and wait out any storm, if the weather looked like it was getting to rough. Besides, if they did capsize, at least it would be quick, a matter of minutes at most. He decided the coastal route was better after all. "Ya know, on second thought, I think I will stick to da coast. better chance of survivin that way. Do ya get seasick, by any chance?" It was probably better to find that out now, rather than when his companion was pukin all over the side. Of course, they would be sticking to shallow water, relatively close to shore, but the waves would still cause some discomfort to anyone who wasn't used to it.

Chandra Panesar

 

[Chandra Panesar]

”A boat? Really?” David repeated with some surprise. He should have expected that possibility, he realized after a moment of thought. If the guy was fishing for his dinner, then it stood to reason that he might have a boat. And using such a craft might make things a lot easier on them and quicker, as well. Alex had a good point. But he had another good point as well; the weather could really bite them in the rear if they were on a boat. The boat could flip right over and drown them both. But was that really so much more likely than freezing or starving to death under similar conditions on land? Alex mentioned that it might be safer on land, but he also acknowledged that the added time would mean having to keep a tighter control on their food supply. It really was a quandary and there were risks, either way. The real question was what risks were they willing to take?

David grinned when Alex came to a conclusion on his own. Truth be told, he had made the same decision himself. He didn’t know if he had the same reasons, but he wanted to take his chances on the water. “I don’t think I get seasick. It’s been a while since I’ve been on a boat, but it’s never given me problems. I definitely think by boat is the best way to go, too. I mean, it’s like you said, we can really shave some time off of our travel. Maybe we can even beat the worst of the weather instead of being stuck on a trail somewhere in the dead of Winter. It’s worth a shot.” David had almost forgotten what optimism even felt like and he had to remind himself to temper his expectations. Nothing ever went as smoothly as planned. Still… it was nice to have a plan, at least. It was more than he had earlier in the day.

High_Assassin

 

[High_Assassin]

Alex grinned. "All right, then. It's settled. We'll leave by boat tomorrow. So now, the question is. Are ya goin to go back to yer place, or stay wit me tonight?" His southern accent was still popping up here and there, but it was nowhere near as ridiculously overblown as it had been when he had first started. He continued to eat his woefully under-salted fish, and made a mental note that he would need to find a way to not only boil saltwater, but to carry the salt around as well.

In the meantime, he wrapped the remaining fish up in some plastic bags he had. Old grocery bags had proved to be quite handy for carrying things, and they hadn't exactly been a top priority item for the looters that has plagued the city ever since the police had walked off the job. So he literally had dozens, maybe even hundreds, of the things, all tucked away in the small briefcase he had brought with him on his business trip. He would have to leave the bicycle, since there simply wasn't room for it on the boat.

Besides, they would have to load the boat up with wood for the fires, and something to carry drinking water in. They couldn't exactly drink seawater, and it was unlikely that any city water mains were still working. They would need at least a gallon each per day, so he would have to find something to store it in. From what he remembered from various disaster survival manuals, soda bottles were better than milk jugs, as they were easier to wash out. They would have to find some, and make sure not to load any wood on top of them, since they couldn't afford to be digging around for them, or worse, punching a hole in one with a nail or something. As he was going over all this in his mind, Alex realized they were more likely going to be leaving the day after tomorrow, as they would probably spend all day gathering everything they needed for their impending journey.

Chandra Panesar

 

[Chandra Panesar]

David very nearly cracked a joke at the way Alex had worded his question, but thought better of it in the nick of time. Somehow he had a feeling that it was one of those jokes that would be a lot funnier in his head than it would be if he said it aloud. Besides, he had an answer already as he had actually given it a little thought before Alex had even asked. ”I think I’m better off staying close; then we don’t have to worry about me travelling back here to meet up with you in the morning. I don’t own much that I don’t keep on me. And nothing that I think would really be useful on a boat.” There was nothing he couldn’t replace, really. David had certainly learned not to place too much sentimental value on anything he owned; he couldn’t eat sentiment so he didn’t need to be carrying it around with him.

David found himself watching Alex more than he really meant to. He didn’t want to make the man uncomfortable, he didn’t mean to stare, but he did think that he could learn a lot from the man. He wouldn’t have even thought to carry around plastic bags, but they did come in handy for wrapping the fish. He would have never thought to keep a boat or go fishing! It was a wonder that he had survived this long, really. He had managed to skate by living on what others were willing to spare in exchange for services, but that couldn’t last forever. And he was honestly surprised that more people had not done the same, if only for an easy way to stay fed and relatively healthy without a lot of work.

”So… is there anything else we should do before we take off tomorrow? You seem to really know what you’re doing, way more so than I do, so I’ll follow your lead.” David was not the man with the plan, but he could take directions well enough. He would definitely take direction when he knew that it could very literally be the difference between life and death. It may not have been much of a life any more, but David wasn’t willing to give it up just yet.

High_Assassin

 

[High_Assassin]

Alex chuckled. "Oh Yeah. There's a bunch we need to do. We need to gather wood to make fires with, sometin ta carry water in, an it wouldn't hurt to ave a few lifejackets on board, jus in case." Really, the lifejackets shouldn't be much of an issue, since he could probably get them from the same place he had gotten the boat, from one of the abandoned cargo ships. He had been bunking in the captains quarters on one, and he was certain that there was enough room for his companion. Finishing the fish, he got up and brushed himself off. Then he dumped the fire bucket, and stomped out the remaining flames. "All righty then. Our hotel room awaits." He pointed at the cargo ship, and headed towards the gangplank that still led onto the ship.

Chandra Panesar