video; un: Hob

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[The video shows Hob, sitting at home on a balcony of his apartment. He smiles, but there's a little uncertainty to his attempt at pleasantness. Something is bothering him.]

Hello, all. Uh, I don't mean to alarm everyone, but...

[That's usually how people cause alarm. Good work, Hob.]

I noticed something strange during my recent walks. I have a path I routinely take as I explore the city, walking different areas each day in case there's something out of the ordinary. Well, I typically stop in the same shops for some water or food, or to carry something home. When I went into one of the stores I frequent, I noticed the things I helped myself to previously haven't been replaced. It always was, before.

[It's hard to mask his concern.]

As more people typically arrive about once a month, if resources get scarcer... shouldn't we think of something?

[A quick smile.]

Or maybe it's all a fluke! A temporary disruption in services. That's all.

[That could be it, right? Hob doesn't have to eat to live, but starving is not a lot of fun.]

Comments

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[Now Hob is certain of it, since Kim noticed it, too. He already thinks Kim is quite an observant man.]

We'd also have to get everyone to agree to it. What if not everyone wants to work together? When food starts getting scarce, people can become ugly.

[aceslow]

I can't help but agree. Most people I've met here have been reasonable enough, but that's with all of our resources amply provided to us. In its absence, I can only imagine how they'll react.

We need to start securing some sort of food sources for ourselves, but maintaining a farm from scratch to feed this many people would take time that we may not have. And there's no wildlife we can slaughter. [ He frowns. ] But I think our most important resource will be clean water, if we're looking that far in the future. Is there some sort of nearby water source that you know of?

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Not that I've seen, but so long as the tap keeps running, we could drink from it. As long as it's safe.

[ That's still a few too many ifs, though. ]

[aceslow]

I suppose it's a little alarmist of me to immediately jump to that conclusion, [ Kim admits with a small smile. ]

Still. I have seen no indication that the tap water is unsafe to drink. We could rely on that now, and put away the bottled water in some sort of storage, just in case. In fact, we could do that with non-perishables as well -- clean out the stores before we expect them to be replenished and build up our own.

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I'd rather be prepared for the worst than not be. We'll have to see how this all unfolds and manage as best we can. At least so many are willing to work together. Thank you.

[ He wishes there was less uncertainty, but whoever is running this place doesn't seem bothered by that. ]

[aceslow]

Of course. I have a vested interest in things going well here as well. I do live here, after all.

Though I have to wonder why this is happening, exactly. A breakdown of administration, or something more deliberate.

[100more]

It seems a little soon for everything to suddenly fall apart, but anything is possible.