Tales of a Worker's Son
This is a day in the life of a normal child of a completely unremarkable worker - Kimmer
Waking up in the early morning
Kimmer woke up early, long before sunrise, the chill of the night still creeping under the thin blanket he covered himself with. His mother had lit a lamp on the table across the room, preparing a sparse breakfast from the meal the previous evening. It was a good thing Kimmer liked seared Graffen both cold and reheated. The root vegetables had a sweet taste that was even more intense the next day. He got up, put on his vest and jacket and reached for his shoes. As he did most days, he wrapped some old rags around them, to isolate from the cold. Kimmer crossed the small room which made up most of the small living quarters of his family. An even smaller room next to the kitchen was used by their mother as storage room. Just a short glance to the jars of pickeled vegetables and a rare sweet was all Kimmer could get, before his mother closed the door with a knowing look. Breakfast was a quick affair, but Kimmer enjoyed the minutes next to the warm radiator pipes that went through the whole building. A single boiler is used to warm all the families in this building of multiple apartments. His friend Zoeren once explained to him how hot water was pumped through the pipes. It was as fascinating new construction and one of the few perks Whitesteel Inc provided their workers in the Junker Villages.Finding a job for the day
The best way to get from the village to the Factory Plaza is of course by Worktransit Carriage. However, since Kimmer did not have a proper fulltime job yet, he also had no Transit Token to actually ride in the carriage. His solution, just like so many other youths did, was to hold on to the outside of a carriage and endure the ride in the cold wind. The carriage conductors had long since given up to disband the groups of kids traveling this way. If it were summer, those rides were actually quite pleasent. However, when it was autumn like on this day, it was certainly less enjoyable. When looking for a job for that day, the best place to go usually would be the Factory Plaza. While the market was setting up, several recruiters roam the plaza to gather additional helpers for various jobs. A quick glance showed Kimmer that only few recruiters he didn't like to work with were in the area. So he took the time to look across the market for other opportunities. by Vertixico using StableDiffusion AI
Work in the early day
Kimmer eventually found work hauling boxes for one of the smaller factories. Nobody ever bothered to tell him, what was in those boxes, but it did not matter to him anyway. Only with much effort he could properly lift the boxes to carry them from the carriage into the loading hall of the factory. It was hard work, especially when you were as thin and scrawny as Kimmers. Zoeren usually mocked him for this, but they both knew it opened up other possibilities for Kimmer. The Foreseher did not joke about Kimmer's stature, however, but looked less pleased by his work. Even though Kimmer hauled as many boxes as everybody else, the Foreseher still gave him less money, claiming he endangered some of the goods. It was unfair, but Kimmers saw no person being able to intervene on his behalf. He disgruntedly took the reduced pay and memorized this place to not return to, if it could be avoided. At least he earned himself a token for the carriage ride for another day. His payments were only three Copper Pieces, which he knew would be helpful for his family nonetheless.Midday Break
The work was done around midday, so Kimmers knew he had a short break before he had to search for a new work again. Together with others, he gathererd at the shrine of Vitukua at the edge of Factory Plaza. Sometimes the acyoltes here give out food, a small charity given by the richer people in the town. Usually this consits of scraps or almost poerished foods that the chefs of a richer family saw no longer a valuable use for. There was some kind of dance the days before so today the offerings were special. There were many baked goods, lots of fruits and even some pieces of cooked meat given out to the workers gathering. Kimmer did arrive a bit too late for the meat, but he managed to get a few Cidercakes. While he had no interest in this dessert, he could well use it for bartering. Quickly, he had traded several pieces of the sweet-sour cake against a bundle of Graffen and some Taburas. Both were a satisfying trade, since Kimmer was certain, Mother could grow these in their garden. Maybe she could even sell the produces on the market some day. With his newly acquired treasures, Kimmer makes his way to the cemetary. Behind a certain grave stone, he had his hiding spot where he could store his money and the vegetable safely. He did not worry about thieves, because noone would ever steal from under the eyes of a Vitukua's statue. In case of some very desperate people, however, he had befriended some of the local Dirt Dragons to keep an eye on the area. The acolytes of Vitukua are a rough group but they had taken a liking to Kimmer. It always pays to befriend an acolyte, Zoeren always said and Kimmer agreed.Working the Afternoon as Moss Scraper
The break was long enough and in the early afternoon Kimmer went straight to a factory where he often works as Moss Scraper. He already heard from people that the big machines were halted for production earlier in the day, as several gears were severely blocked. He accepted the Telescoped Scrape Rod with the magical jewal affixed to it from the foreseher and turned to the machine he had to work on today. He had no idea what they produced but it had something with pressing and forming tin cans with heavy presses. With such a large machine, Kimmer expected a lot of Myridias Moss having collected in the gears, and he got a bit excited by the prospect of gathering it. by Vertixico with StableDiffusion AI
This was really interesting! You really made the world come alive with that story :D