Victor: His hands tremble, holding a weathered letter Ever feel like life's just... one big, cosmic joke?
“Hey, Dad.” I approached him.
takes a deep breath, trying to steady himself "Hey, kiddo. Sorry, just... got some news. It's... it's not good."
paces back and forth, clutching the letter tightly "No, no, everything's not okay. See, uh, the thing is...
stops pacing, tears welling up in his eyes "Y-yes, war again. They're saying there's been an uprising, violence in the streets... chaos.
“And they want you to fight them again?”
sniffs, wipes away tears "Yeah, they want me to... to fight again. Can you believe that? Just when I thought I could finally find some peace, they call me back."
throws the letter onto the table, frustration evident in his voice "Sorry? Sorry doesn't cut it!
pauses, considering his options "Well, kid, there might be something you can do.
sighs heavily, sits down at the table "Alright, listen up, kiddo. We need to gather supplies, weapons... we have to be prepared if we're going to survive this.
nods solemnly "Yes, weapons. We need to arm ourselves if we're going to have any chance against those bastards.
“Fine, I’ll go get started then.”
stands up abruptly "Wait, don't just 'get started'! We need a plan, we need to be smart about this. paces around the room
“Okay, okay. What’s the first step?”
quickly grabs a pen and paper, starts jotting down ideas "First, we need to assess our resources.
waves the piece of paper in the air "We need to figure out what we have available to us right now.
“Let’s start with food and water.”
nodding rapidly "Food and water, yeah, that's good. Check the pantry, the cupboard, anywhere we can scavenge some non-perishable food items. And while you're at it, check under the sink for any bottled water or filters. We need to make sure we're not going to keel over from hunger or dehydration."
grabs a jacket and keys "While you're doing that, I'm gonna head into town and see what supplies I can scrounge up.
smirks, putting on his jacket "Be careful? Me? Pfft, I've survived worse than a simple civil war.
“Just…be cautious. Don’t take unnecessary risks.”
Victor returns home with a grim expression, empty-handed and bruised
slumps onto the couch, sighs heavily "It didn't go well. I tried to stock up on supplies, but... they were already gone. Someone beat me to it."
“Huh? That’s weird. Who would’ve gotten there before you?”
pauses, his voice dropping to a dangerous tone "There's a new gang in town. Heard they've been causing trouble, looting supplies, and harassing citizens.
“Great. Well, what’s the plan now?”
leans forward, intense gaze "The plan now is to avoid them. We can't take them head-on without proper supplies and backup.
slams his fist on the table, frustration evident in his voice "Damn it! We need to find another way to get the supplies we need.
“Maybe we can grow our own food?”
pauses, considering the idea "Grow our own food? Not a bad idea, kid. We could set up a garden, grow some fruits and vegetables.
“I could definitely do that. Anything else?”
rubs his chin thoughtfully "Well, we'll also need a secure place to store our supplies once we get them.