By the sixth day, hunger stopped being abstract.
It wasn't a thought anymore.
It was a presence.
The Morning That Felt Longer
People woke slower.
Not because they were tired—
But because standing cost energy now.
Movements were careful.
Voices lower.
Arguments shorter.
Calories had become currency.
💬 [LiveWatcher]: Everyone looks… slower
💬 [SurvivalVet]: This is the point where mistakes multiply
Opinions Start to Shift
The same people who'd called Aria's prices immoral two days ago didn't look uphill with anger anymore.
They looked with calculation.
"How much water do you have left?"
"Can we pool for one fish?"
"If we buy today, we save energy tomorrow."
The language changed.
From judgment
to logistics.
Aria Watches the Change
She noticed it immediately.
Not in words.
In posture.
People stood closer together now.
Leaders stopped posturing.
Silence replaced bravado.
"…Good," she murmured.
The cameraman frowned.
"Good?"
"…They're thinking," she replied.
A New Kind of Buyer
A group of three approached her camp.
Not desperate.
Prepared.
"We want to trade," one said.
"Not just for food."
Aria looked at them.
"…Continue."
"We'll gather firewood.
Maintain your drainage.
Carry water."
She considered.
"…Labor is acceptable," she said.
"…But food prices remain."
They nodded instantly.
No argument.
No pride left to protect.
The chat reacted in unison.
💬 [EconomicsProf]: The labor-for-goods phase has begun
The First Service Economy
The arrangement worked.
Wood arrived stacked neatly.
Channels cleared efficiently.
Aria supervised briefly.
Then stepped back.
She didn't micromanage.
She evaluated.
"…Adequate," she said once.
That single word became approval.
Resentment Fades
Not gone.
But quieter.
Hard to sustain anger when your hands are full of useful work.
People stopped whispering black market.
They started saying supply.
Producers Realize the Curve
In the control tent, a producer whispered:
"This is stabilizing."
The director nodded.
"She moved them past panic."
"By charging them?"
"By being predictable."
Aria Eats Last
That evening, she served everyone else first.
Only then did she eat.
Not ceremonially.
Not to make a point.
Because systems came before comfort.
The cameraman noticed.
"…You waited."
She nodded.
"…I am not the variable."
Closing Beat
As night settled, fires burned steadier across the clearing.
Fewer arguments.
More quiet work.
Hunger hadn't vanished.
But it had taught.
Aria sat by her fire, watching people move with new intent.
"…Scarcity reveals priorities," she murmured.
"…And priorities reveal people."
Above her, drones hovered calmly.
Below her, opinions had changed.
Not because they were persuaded—
But because reality had spoken first.