Refuel, Recharge, Relax [Open]

[Nikita Fischer]

The worst thing about being a Stalker was the way she never quite got used to her feet aching.

Sure, she could ignore the way she never quite felt like she could catch her breath when she was topside - there were obviously long moments where she didn't feel fatigued or pressured or anxious or filled with adrenaline, but after the fact, regardless of whether she had actually been out of breath, she felt like she just couldn't catch her breath or get a break. She could ignore the long travel times; she was now used to the distances some would call unbearable, though it was much easier now compared to when she first started working as a stalker. However, the biggest trouble for her (all things considered) was the way that, by the time she reached her destination, her feet would start aching, her energy would flag, and she would just want to be home. It was a strange sensation, as that she didn't really know what that felt like anymore. Just a fuzzy recollection of warmth and welcome from when she was a child. 

Now, though, as she came back into Polis territory (not her home station of Alexandrovsky Sad of course, she might get recognized there despite being older now, with some new scars; she'd headed for Arbatskaya instead), she just wanted to find a place to sleep and feel safe again. Not that it was guaranteed even here. As a Shudra, should anyone have to check her caste, while not necessarily treated poorly, especially with her medical/stalker experience which often got her a good amount of money if she brought books back for the Brahmin, she wasn't exactly the type that would class as a VIP.

Regardless, she pushed herself despite those aching feet to the market to drop off some books for the Brahmin and to sell her more minor goods (outside of whatever portion she was keeping for herself), and buy some more of the essentials - like gas mask filters, ammunition, food, you name it.

Maybe she should go hunting sometime, see if she could bring back a few live rabbits. She was sure people would go ballistic over the quick to breed and mature food source after they'd bred them enough to get a stable population for regulated slaughtering... the fur would be nice too... and how long had it been since anyone had had anything besides mushrooms, a few limp vegetables that had adapted poorly to low sunlight conditions, and chicken or pork?

She sighed as she sat down, her gear between her legs in the middle of the market on a convenient bench. She still looked every bit a stalker and a medic - with her medic symbol plastered on her large bag between her knees, and patched on her sleeves - and her gas mask hanging around her neck atop her shemagh, with the parts of her face the mask covered cleaner than the rest of her exposed skin. Her tired expression was part and parcel, even as she took off her boots one at a time to rub her feet and roll her ankles to try and reduce the lactic acid built up in her muscles over the couple of days she'd been travelling.

Edited June 10 by TrustyasHeck

[Mykola Dalco]

The last few weeks had been rough. The surface seemed more dangerous than usual, even with bouts of bad weather keeping the mutants in hiding. Mykola was aching by the time he finally made it down the steps and into the station. He had deliveries to make to vendors, but at the moment the pay didn't feel worth being rushed. He just wanted to find a place to rest for a while. 

He ended up seating himself on a bench in the middle of the busy station. 

"You look like you just came off the surface yourself," Mykola remarked conversationally once he had settled. 

@TrustyasHeck

[Nikita Fischer]

Having someone approach as she recovered some from her journey had Nikita straightening slightly in surprise, a small smile playing at her lips.

"You'd be right," she agreed, nodding to Mykola. "I just came from Tsvetnoy. Been going out further and further these days to see what I can find. Some of the areas out there look like they could have wild animals again, been thinking about seeing if it's possible to head out to the Belarus area and seeing if there's anything there I could pick up surface-side. I'm sure people would be ecstatic about it if we managed to find a miracle and bring some kind of great haul back... well, that's a bit of a pipe dream," she murmured softly, so as to not let it carry too far. "Thinking of heading out after I get some rest, but I don't know if it's just me trying to think of another crazy scheme to keep myself busy again. I do that sometimes - coming up with reasons to go back out there. What about you? You ever get lonely out there, end up having to convince yourself that it's useful because it's probably the one place nobody has ransacked, or that there's some kind of crazy find out there?"

She dug in her bag and pulled out a bottle of vodka with a slightly peeling but otherwise intact label, and held it out to him. "Looks like you could use a break regardless. Found it topside, one of the original bottles made in an actual factory back in the day, still sealed. Probably a bit spicy," she said, referring to the radiation it might or might not have soaked up, "but, if you wanna split it, you can have the first swig. Label says twenty-something, can't quite read the last two numbers."

[Mykola Dalco]

She spoke softly, but quick. Mykola listened attentively, picking up what she meant to say and the small details that came along. When she offered the bottle he grinned, "I reckon that's worth the risk," he said as he accepted. He cracked open the seal and then passed it back to her. 

"Name is Mykola," he said as he waited for her to take it, "sounds like we're both in the same profession. It's been rough up there lately." 

@Morrigan

[Nikita Fischer]

"Nikita, but you can call me Kit if you prefer," she responded glibly, perking up a little with good company. She took a mouthful of vodka herself, eyes slipping shut at the pleasant, familiar burn before putting the bottle between them as a standing offer. 

"Yeah, it does seem that way. I'm a little different though - stalker that has medical training enough to be proficient with surgery on the field if need be. Enough to keep a man alive out there when by rights he shouldn't be, usually. Crazy what decent first aid will do to prolong a life."

She smiled at him and sat back a little, resting her hands on the bench somewhat behind her as she crossed her legs and tipped her head back to look at the ceiling. "Miss the green up there. I think that might be why I'm tempted to head out towards Belarus. They say there are farm areas out there somewhere, but I haven't heard yet whether it's the usual underground, or if it's by some miracle topside. What do you think?"

@Dragon

Edited June 10 by TrustyasHeck

[Mykola Dalco]

"Good to meet you Nikita," he said quietly as they shared the bottle. He listened as she spoke, nodding as she reached the end, "I think you should keep pushing. I've heard a lot of rumor, recently, about a group that left out of here in a train and broke out of Moscow altogether." 

@TrustyasHeck

[Nikita Fischer]

Nikita blinked twice as she processed what he said, tilting her head to the side and frowning. "A group broke out of Moscow? I feel kind of bad for them. Maybe there's a safe place out there somewhere, but I bet if they ever reach it, it's going to be a hell of a lot of pain and trouble to do it. Unless something changes, going to the outlying stations just beyond the ring is about the most I'm willing to do."

She glanced over at him, eyes narrowed slightly. "Plain and simple, I don't really have any family or friends that would join me, let alone miss me, if everything went to hell out there. I'd just be another poor stalker out in the snow, with a name lost to time. Wonder if there are any miracle rabbits out there? If I brought a couple back alive somehow, they'd be bought off me for my body weight in military grade by the Polis Council, hm? Could maybe make a name for myself that way. Be remembered for a generation - Nikita, the girl that brought the bunnies." 
 

She facepalmed tiredly. "I think I need a nap. I've been out there so much lately the snow is messing with me. Dreaming of rabbits.... chort."

Edited June 11 by TrustyasHeck

[Mykola Dalco]

"Doubt anyone would miss me either," Mykola muttered in agreement as he looked over to her, "still makes a tempting prospect, I think. Just venturing out to see if there's anything else. Friend of mine left with the train. She was a cautious sort. Spartan Ranger, actually," he glanced over to Nikita, "a medic, like you. I wonder every day how that turned out. Where they are now. I remember the day the train left. Caused a lot of chaos." 

@TrustyasHeck

[Nikita Fischer]

"Hm. Sorry to hear that. I hope you hear word back from her someday. That she turns out alright. If you ever wanna talk about it, I'm here."

She quirked a little grin at him, though it was tempered by the shared experience of knowing what it was to not have someone around anymore - and the knowledge of what it was to feel lonely.

"If you're looking for your next trip, maybe if we head out that way together for as long as it appeals to us? You could share in all of my rich spoils as part of the infamous duo that brought back the rabbits, an entire stash of genuine potato vodka and Jack Daniels whiskey and military grade ammo, and a stash of ... I don't know... some other veritable treasure trove. Maybe some seeds for genetically altered vegetables so that we have a wider variety down here. It could happen. Maybe. If we managed to crack the code of the universe and inherit all the good luck everyone else has lost along the way."

@Dragon

Edited June 11 by TrustyasHeck

[Mykola Dalco]

"You have lofty ambitions," Mykola laughed, "not sure I have that much faith in my own luck." 

@TrustyasHeck

[Nikita Fischer]

Nikita leaned forward again with a small grin. "Well, I don't actually think that would happen, but we can still take a look, eh? But either way, I'm about to buy a sandwich. Y'know, mushroom flour bread, with mushrooms, lichen, and pork or chicken with mushroom sauce," she said, more to complain about the low variety in their diet. "Do you want anything? First person to humor me in a while deserves a snack."

She stood and stretched a little, causing a couple of vertebrae to pop satisfyingly in quick succession, prompting a sigh of relief from the tension released in the act.

@Dragon

Edited June 11 by TrustyasHeck

[Mykola Dalco]

"I could use some good company." @

@TrustyasHeck

[Nikita Fischer]

Nikita grinned. "Sure, great. Good company it is. You need to do anything, go anywhere? I'm planning on getting at least some sleep before I go back out either way, so whatever you want to do is fine with me."

 

@Dragon

[Mykola Dalco]

"No. I'm just looking to rest up a bit before heading back out."

@TrustyasHeck

[Nikita Fischer]

"Alright then, say we meet back here in about ten hours?" Nikita asked, grinning. "One sec." She headed off to a nearby stall, though she left her back to him to do so with her bag left at the bench next to him, and bartered with the stall owner and asked for two servings of their egg and bacon slice with a side of mushroom, potato, and rat stew meal, a rather hefty price tag for two meals considering the foods were largely unavailable depending on station and recent trades between that station and other stations, due to not having enough chickens or feed, light and vitamin D supplements (or an aboveground radiation-free area to visit) for those chickens to successfully lay many eggs, or a lack of a trading partner or hydroponics area to get the potatoes, or hell, not having enough food, period. All things considered, she paid the bullets happily enough, chatting with the store owner briefly as the food was prepared (in the case of the rare treat of bacon with eggs fried in its grease) and ladled into bowls (in the case of the stew).

@Dragon

Edited June 11 by TrustyasHeck