Chapter 107: Ploughshares
Chapter 107: Ploughshares
Reggie came to join her on the wall, as it was part of his cleaning duty.
"Plans, Boss?"
Kalli nodded. "We need to make a large plow and have the warriors pull it to drag all the accumulated ash out of the Academy. Then, we can clear the ring around the tuber wall, to make earthworks.
That will be our outer fortification, and if we get it all cleared before the ash solidifies, we have a real chance of keeping the essential areas alive and ash free.
The more bare soil and plant life we save, the better."
Reggie smiled. "Got it. I know just the thing. There is a plow here, the one that they used to level the grass of the sports fields. The tractor wasn’t kept on the grounds, but the plow attachment is here.
We can start with that and a couple of chains. We will clear near the gates first, and then work our way back until everything is done."
"Talk to the Tinkers as well. And anyone who took metalworking. If they can make a couple more plows, we can clear the whole area, and then work on expanded field area for the apartments.
The tuber ring is good, but ten acres of them in an open field would be better.
I just hope that they can survive the cold."
"The plants don’t seem too concerned. But neither are the heroes. Haven’t you noticed yet?"
Kalli looked around at the falling ash, then at Reggie.
"Noticed what?"
"It’s ten degrees outside."
Kalli focused, and realized that while the ground was still close to thirty degrees, thanks to the ash blanket, she could actually tell that the wind was frigid. But her body didn’t seem to mind the cold at all.
She hadn’t even checked if there was a temperature set in her office, she had simply passed out from exhaustion.
"You get the warriors on the plows, and ask the mages with wind or other useful skills to join them. I am going to grab breakfast, then check on the apartments."
"See you soon," Reggie agreed, and ran off to gather people for the task.
Having the Academy back to its full glory was much better than the "tunnels in the ash" plan. It would also give them back some green space. With everything outside being buried in volcanic ash, the greenery was not easy to find.
The others were surprisingly enthusiastic about the process, and Kalli found that not only had the front driveway been cleared before she finished breakfast, they had already begun on the major walkways to the dorm buildings.
"Did you gain a skill for motivation?" Kalli asked as Reggie passed by, holding a length of chain.
"Not exactly. They’re going for their ninety minutes of heavy exertion. Pulling the plows loaded with ash seems to be enough, and we’re building up the new plow to be much larger, so a ten-person team can work it."
With the ash being a metre deep, they were only able to grab a small section with every pull before the plow was loaded.
So, they had designed a new one that was much taller, to grab larger amounts of ash for the run to the hillside.
"Is the ash on the hill going to be a problem?" One of the healers asked as they watched the work.
"No. Once they get a bit further, I will ask them to keep piling it to create a cliff, so the back side of the Academy will become virtually impregnable to assault by monsters.
Then, we will have the loop of fortifications, the cliff, and a safe zone in the middle.
As long as we can get everything sorted, we will be alright."
The healer nodded. "The mages are about to start on their own part of the work, creating cyclones to blow the ash outside, or using earth magic to relocate it. Both seem to work, but in different ways."
"As long as the ash is outside the walls, and our defensive structures are built, it’s all good to me. But we’ll be at it quite a while if the ash fall keeps up like this."
Soon, there were three more giant plows being dragged around, made from spare metal sheets that had been stored in the Academy either for roof repairs, or some sort of technical training.
Kalli wasn’t sure which.
"They’re actually for the sewer upgrades. The City was going to upgrade the underground tunnels to create a larger overflow basin for the storm drainage cisterns. The materials were stored in a corner of the Academy until the work started, but I guess that’s not necessary now."
"That’s one way of putting it. I don’t think that the storm drainage cisterns even exist anymore. But if they do, they might prove useful in the future. We can send someone to look for them after the ash clears.
How are the masks holding up?"
"Not well. We’re going through them faster than expected, but we’ve been doing our best to knock them clean again."
"I will grab another couple of cases for the workers. We don’t need to make extra work for the healers by giving all the warriors black lung after their exercise."
That made the cleric laugh. "Thank you for that. They manage to injure themselves enough already. And giving them a massive snowplow to drag around the yard isn’t going to help.
But the mages are working now, and that is way more effective."
That was no joke. The Earth Mages, and other earth manipulation skill using classes, had created what appeared to be a fountain of ash at the back of the academy, pumping ash out of the area like a three-metre drain pipe flowing concrete.
The grey stream piled up outside, and one of the warrior teams plowed it to the hill, creating the cliff Kalli wanted without her even having to ask.
Clearly, they had thought about this.
One of the plows detoured to make a clear spot for their tubers, defining the arc much more effectively than shovelling holes, while the other two continued to clear the grounds.
And they were winning.
The metre of ash was down to a dusting in most of the front courtyard, though the plows had inadvertently ruined most of the carefully manicured bushes.
Not really their fault, they were invisible under the ash. But the plan was really starting to come together.