It wasn't really so much the fact that he hadn't personally impressed her, it was more just a certain weariness involved in having such opinions levelled at himself when they weren't actually entirely his fault to begin with. He's weathered them well enough, and he can keep taking it, but when both natives and Immune alike are both mad at him - if not with him, per se - for things that technically he more or less agrees with them about but can't actually say so... It gets tiring.
He has a lot to thank Bifrons for, really. He knows everyone who lives in the dome has them to thank for that, among a literal multitude of other things, but at the same time, he can't help but wonder about whatever it is they're doing lately. He doesn't recall having had such issues with them before, although who knows, because apparently their memories are being tampered with, and that's still yeah really bothering him, but whatever. Even aside from that - he's not sure why they would be doing... anything to stop him in the first place? It's been turning his job into less and less of the militia leader and more and more of this... just this guy who has a dull pair of scissors and a lot of red duct tape to sort out. He doesn't have the vantage point to see precisely who this is benefiting, and Alpha got into the militia - Athos got into the militia - to help the people in the dome.
So he doesn't understand it, but. That's been within the last few months. For the decades before, that? Bifrons has done nothing but care and protect those within the city, as far as he's ever known. As dissatisfied as he's become with that, he's not to any point that anyone could describe as 'drastic' or even the like. At this point, it's still just patient confusion, if tempered with the exact kind of distaste for bureaucracy one might expect from a soldier.
Anyway, Alpha goes out with her, playing along - because even if Hob were as old as she's playing to be, there's like. If anything he knows or has heard about the woman is true she'd never be showing it like this - limping? Please. The small talk is ... yeah it's pretty crappy. Unless his somewhat displaced 'nobility' form of the shit meshes well with a general 'militia' form and actually allows for some passable communication, then... Yeah.
And regardless, this is the conversation they've both been waiting to have anyway. Given her diction, he's going to trust that whatever it was she just turned on is operating, but... It's not just caution that makes him speak less than plainly. He's just also not always good at it. Sometimes, yes, but. "It's becoming increasingly difficult to push through actual projects and programmes. I'd recently had an opportunity to help rebuild some commerce in District 4 and now the Immune who was going to be spearheading that in name is disappeared. 'Gone home', apparently. I'd like to find something else to even the living conditions, or at least raise those in the same district, keep more regular patrols, perhaps even organise light, fast scouting parties, or outposts beyond the dome, given containment breaches and the danger of sudden dysthrope attack at the moment being as... Frankly we're ill-prepared. But I don't have enough manpower to do the latter without balancing what's already happening within the dome, and I can't-"
Wow, he's way more frustrated about this than he thought. He cuts himself off and takes a breath in. "There must be a reason I'm hitting so many roadblocks in regards to what feel like either common-sensical actions or just initiatives that could provide easy benefits, but I don't know what they are, which makes working to get around them that much more difficult." He finally glances at her, and wow, oh god, he's just. Like. Complained about a ton of stuff to Hob Ravani. At some point he'd resisted putting a hand through his hair but now he just shoves both hands into his pockets. "A few things have worked, I've gotten them through, but. There's so much paperwork."
He would apologise, but. That would be even more embarrassing than the vaguely styled word-vomit you just got that literally neither he nor I thought was about to happen i'm so sry, so. He'll just shut up there and look down where they're walking.
haha yeah i still dk how u phone post i can barely tolerate talking on plurk w my mobile
He has a lot to thank Bifrons for, really. He knows everyone who lives in the dome has them to thank for that, among a literal multitude of other things, but at the same time, he can't help but wonder about whatever it is they're doing lately. He doesn't recall having had such issues with them before, although who knows, because apparently their memories are being tampered with, and that's still yeah really bothering him, but whatever. Even aside from that - he's not sure why they would be doing... anything to stop him in the first place? It's been turning his job into less and less of the militia leader and more and more of this... just this guy who has a dull pair of scissors and a lot of red duct tape to sort out. He doesn't have the vantage point to see precisely who this is benefiting, and Alpha got into the militia - Athos got into the militia - to help the people in the dome.
So he doesn't understand it, but. That's been within the last few months. For the decades before, that? Bifrons has done nothing but care and protect those within the city, as far as he's ever known. As dissatisfied as he's become with that, he's not to any point that anyone could describe as 'drastic' or even the like. At this point, it's still just patient confusion, if tempered with the exact kind of distaste for bureaucracy one might expect from a soldier.
Anyway, Alpha goes out with her, playing along - because even if Hob were as old as she's playing to be, there's like. If anything he knows or has heard about the woman is true she'd never be showing it like this - limping? Please. The small talk is ... yeah it's pretty crappy. Unless his somewhat displaced 'nobility' form of the shit meshes well with a general 'militia' form and actually allows for some passable communication, then... Yeah.
And regardless, this is the conversation they've both been waiting to have anyway. Given her diction, he's going to trust that whatever it was she just turned on is operating, but... It's not just caution that makes him speak less than plainly. He's just also not always good at it. Sometimes, yes, but. "It's becoming increasingly difficult to push through actual projects and programmes. I'd recently had an opportunity to help rebuild some commerce in District 4 and now the Immune who was going to be spearheading that in name is disappeared. 'Gone home', apparently. I'd like to find something else to even the living conditions, or at least raise those in the same district, keep more regular patrols, perhaps even organise light, fast scouting parties, or outposts beyond the dome, given containment breaches and the danger of sudden dysthrope attack at the moment being as... Frankly we're ill-prepared. But I don't have enough manpower to do the latter without balancing what's already happening within the dome, and I can't-"
Wow, he's way more frustrated about this than he thought. He cuts himself off and takes a breath in. "There must be a reason I'm hitting so many roadblocks in regards to what feel like either common-sensical actions or just initiatives that could provide easy benefits, but I don't know what they are, which makes working to get around them that much more difficult." He finally glances at her, and wow, oh god, he's just. Like. Complained about a ton of stuff to Hob Ravani. At some point he'd resisted putting a hand through his hair but now he just shoves both hands into his pockets. "A few things have worked, I've gotten them through, but. There's so much paperwork."
He would apologise, but. That would be even more embarrassing than the vaguely styled word-vomit you just got that literally neither he nor I thought was about to happen i'm so sry, so. He'll just shut up there and look down where they're walking.