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The Fossil

I’m not going to lie, chooms, I’ve been so bored working all the time. I can’t believe that next week, there’s a show at the Fossil that’s not during my shift! It’s Thursday Night at 7pm-11pm. A couple local bands called Copaganda, Blaring Sirens, Tactical Duke, and Tamandua are going to be playing. They’re all punk bands but I guess Tamandua has a surf punk vibe or something. I’m not sure I’d be into it, but it might be different live.

I’ve been to The Fossil a couple times before over the years. They hold All Ages shows sometimes, so I was 13 the first time I went. The place used to be a gas station back before CHOOH2, and a hideout for a couple gangs since then. Somehow, it survived without being demolished, and eventually was fixed up into being a pub in 2028. Instead of rows of merchandise, it’s full of tables just like any restaurant and a small stage. They serve stuff like “Chicken” Tenders, Pizzas, Hot Dogs, and other cheap food you’d expect to see in a gas station. The booze is bottled or canned, mostly, but they do mix cocktails. Their most popular is the Dino Egg Slush (10eb), which is a concoction of Green Apple Smash, Rainbow Bits Candy, and Vodka that comes out of a Slushie machine. I never said these were classy cocktails.

Outside, you’d be forgiven for thinking the place was still abandoned on slower days. The pumps are completely covered with stickers, graffiti, and large “out of order” signs. The windows are very tinted, and the entrance is separated from the rest with a black curtain. There’s a bulletproof glass-covered ticket booth in that area during shows, but it doubles as a front counter and register especially during the day. The entrance has a couple shelves of merch, snacks and drinks, and a cigarette vendit. It’s not uncommon for people to come in just to buy snacks and cigs, but it still gives them business. I mean, I do it too sometimes. I can’t wait to go back. It’s trashy, but it’s part of the local music scene. Night City wouldn’t be the same without it.

[unauthorizedmethods]

Retail

Work got in the way of posting, but maybe I could use that to my advantage. What is it like working in retail in Night City? One thing that’s never changed is the supply shortages. It seems like every month, something new becomes scarce. If you can track it down, it’s selling at a Night Market for twice its normal price. For the last couple months, it was rechargeable batteries for flashlights, cyberdecks, and other portable tech. And I guess whatever techs use instead of nicotine sticks for an alternative to smoking. I heard them called “mods” a couple times, but since they’re homemade, the look varies. Luckily, the batteries eventually came back in stock, albeit still at an elevated cost for now. Instead of 5eb each, they’re 10eb each now. You’d think that would be no big deal, but some things take 2-4 of them. 

It’s not just technology related things that become unavailable. The word on the street is that one of the popular clothing companies (Dangersign) had to deal with a scandal about the CEO siding with Arasaka over the Arasaka HQ Bombing, which is a real big problem if you’re trying to sell your stuff in NUSA or NC. I haven’t seen a new shipment of their clothes since then, and was told to dump the ones we had out back in the dumpster. It’s a shame since they made good jeans, but the whole brand is out.

This wouldn’t really be an issue if it weren’t for the customers. You’d think they would be used to things randomly becoming scarce by now. It’s been like that for almost as long as I’ve been alive. But no. It’s a travesty every time it happens. I’ve been threatened by uptight corpo wannabes more times than I can count, but it doesn’t change the outcome. The stuff’s just scarce. I don’t know what to say. Come again in a couple weeks.

We’ve been robbed a couple times, but I’ve only been there one time it’s happened. They took all the eddies in the register, a couple 12 packs of Smash, and some clothes. Dangersign clothes. Sucks to suck, gonks.

[unauthorizedmethods]

How the Legion Stole Christmas

My little brother is a sophomore at NCU, and is back at my parent’s apartment for winter break. He said he was glad to be back-not just because of the holidays- but because the protests near campus were making him uncomfortable. There was a Holiday Fashion Show last Saturday that drew the attention of the Red Chrome Legion. The RCL is a Neo-fascist skinhead gang that started decades ago, and in recent years they’ve become even more militarized. An increasingly worrying fact, however, is there is another branch of them active in Night City that is more subdued. This was who was organizing the protests.

They’re called the LOYALS, otherwise known as “Legion Of Youth Against a Lying Society.” They recruit teens and young adults into their group through propaganda and memes on the Data Pool instead of their violent lifestyle like the regular Legion. They also don’t have a uniform, but dress a lot more conservatively. This leads to kids being part of LOYALS but not actually knowing they’re part of RCL until it’s too late. When I was a student myself (before I flunked out and lost my scholarship) there was a LOYALS member in my anime club who got kicked out for ranting too much about Japanese Imperialism. The unfortunate truth is they’re growing.

Why did the Fashion Show draw their attention? That’s really a good question. My brother said some signs protested the fact it was for multiple holidays and was “against Christmas,” and others seemed to protest the fact it was gay. Since the protest wasn’t allowed on the campus itself, they stood outside the gates. Once the Holiday Fashion Show was over, the amount of people trickled down over the next day, but he said he would hear some of the edgier students ranting about how it wasn’t canceled. I’m not really all that surprised. These Nazi Punks are trying to infiltrate everything. I’m just glad my little bro didn’t get hurt.

[unauthorizedmethods]

The Holidays

It’s finally almost Christmas, and I can’t wait for all this Christmas music to be over. Corps really push Christmas hard, and the Holiday season kicks off in October. Even before then, some businesses had already set things out in September. Since we still have supply issues, some people get their Christmas shopping out of the way before the summer is even over. Once things run out, burglaries and muggings skyrocket increase to levels not seen the rest of the year.

It’s not all bad, though. There’s events around the city for every holiday celebrated around this time of year. I hear rumors that the Afterlife even holds a lot of them, but I wouldn’t know.

One thing I do know about is the Carol-In-Chrome parade. It’s a Christmas parade that zig-zags through the main streets of the Glen. I can’t make it every year because of work, but the times I can, it really reminds me of the parades I saw as a little kid. The difference is I’m now old enough to buy booze at the stalls surrounding the parade. The floats are usually corp owned, but there’s also Scout Troops and other organizations. I think it’s tomorrow.... But I have to work.

[unauthorizedmethods]

Kerry Eurodyne (2023)

[unauthorizedmethods]

An Early Lunch

I just grabbed some early lunch, and that reminded me that I was planning on writing about some of the fast food around here. For about 10eb, you can get an entree, side, and drink at a lot of them. A lot of people survive off of fast food so they don’t have to just eat kibble, but it’s pretty expensive to just buy meals. Sometimes, I’d buy the individual items. That way, it’s just 5eb for a burger and 2eb for a drink. I don’t always eat all the fries, so saving that extra 3eb is worth it. If I’m really strapped for cash, I’ll just get the burger and drink the drinks I already bought at the bodega.

The exception is if I go to Taco Star. The chain originally came from The Republic of Texas and is pretty crappy overly processed Tex-Mex, but sometimes that’s exactly what you’re craving. Or the special Shooting Star flavor of Cirrus cola they only carry there. It tastes like a tropical punch.

Their 10eb meal is called their Barato Meal. It has 2 tacos, some churros, and a drink. They also have a more expensive meal at 14eb called the Estrella meal, which adds a burrito to it and a bigger drink. If I can afford it, I’ll get that one. Of course, you can always buy everything individually. It’s 2.50 a taco, 3eb for a burrito, 3eb for the churros, 3eb for chips and salsa, or 5eb for small nachos. Damn, now I’m just getting hungry again.

[unauthorizedmethods]

Net Cafes

A funny thing about the Time of The Red is that old things became popular again. For example, there’s this guy a couple blocks from me who sells mystery VHS tapes. They’re supposed to be anything from home videos to re-runs of Doctor Who, and he charges 1eb each. I’d be too nervous I’d get some creepy porn vid, but I don’t have a VHS player to try it out. The point is that people still buy them. Old is new again, or more accurately that people are sometimes too broke to pay for modern forms of entertainment.

Net cafes are some of those old things that have returned. Yes, it’s the Ziggurat- owned Data Pool this time around, but there are cafes that charge an hourly fee for use of their computers and other amenities. Some people even live there, and bounce between different cafes when the owners say they’ve reached the maximum amount of time they’re allowed to. It costs roughly the same as living at a cube hotel if you only stay for 8 hours (500eb a month/about 16eb or 17eb per 8 hours depending on the cafe), but you just sleep in an office chair. Still, nerdier people feel safer there. Hell, Elflines events are run out of them.

One of them I’ve been to is called RGB cafe, which charges 2eb/hour for general use and 4eb/hour to use a private booth. It’s lit up with red, green, and blue neon lights around the walls, which are all painted black. The place is split up between the lounge area, and the private booths at right-hand side of the building. The lounge is full of rows of computer desks, tables to sit at, and a few TVs to hook up your game consoles to. There’s also a couple of vend-its carrying snacks, drinks, cigarettes, nicotine sticks, and generic prepak next to a microwave. The restrooms are also near that area as well, but there’s a 1eb fee to use them. They also have shower booths that charge 1eb per minute, which are becoming more common in other public places due to the high homeless population.

The private booths at RGB contain a computer desk, an office chair, an LED lamp, and a small shelf. Like every PC in the cafe, the computer itself is contained in a clear cage attached to the desk that can be unlocked by the staff. It’s sort of like what they have around the electronics in hospital rooms. The booths are pretty small, but if you’re really engrossed in what you’re doing it won’t matter. 

As far as the safety, it’s not that much of a violent place to be. Sure, I’ve seen a people beat each other up for winning at a trading card game, but that’s to be expected. Weapons are taken at the door and locked up until you leave, so getting beaten with someones’ bare hands or theft is really your main risk. If you’re not vigilant of your belongings, they will get stolen. They have lockers for your stuff you can rent for 1eb an hour.

Notice how the place is really cheap to be, but the amenities are more expensive? That cheap price is what gets people in the door. Lots of techs and netrunners work out of them, and that brings in other customers. It’s a neat place to be, but it sure does reek like BO and feet. If you can get past that, it’s part of the backbone of the geek community in this city.

[unauthorizedmethods]

Following the hype for Edgerunners, I created a little pamphlet to introduce the concept of cyberpsychosis to my players. It's visually entrenched in the universe's style, but has actually useful information!

[unauthorizedmethods]

What’s Night City Like?

Hey, chooms. This is Luke A. I decided to create this blog as a way to spotlight the cool things that happen in my city. It’s true that it really sucks to live here for the most part, but that’s all that anyone ever tells you. I won’t sugarcoat anything here. I’ve had dead friends like the rest of us from some stupid bullshit caused by boosters around the city. Hell, I knew a guy who crossed a corp once. Knew.

But there’s so much shit going on in the city. The Night City Holocaust didn’t destroy the music scene, despite the reputation of producing a terrorist. It didn’t kill the art scene, the bar scene, or anything else you could think of. Sure, it all needed to be rebuilt, and that took time. The constant construction is still proof of that. But most of the focus is on what Night City was-or what’s in store for its future. And that’s perfectly fine, but what the city needs most is a spotlight on the here and now. What really is Night City like now?