The large half-dome was full of chattering settlers. The Amilikut women had set up a buffet. They had a talent for coming up with new recipes, and the long table offered a variety of local foods prepared in different ways.
Everyone knew the Commander would speak, and most thought he would explain what would happen to Salguodir and his followers. Old habits change slowly. Many still acted like Tridonians, accustomed to following the rules and taking little initiative.
After most had eaten, the Commander walked to the front of the room. Some of his crew had set up a small platform there to make it easier for everyone to see him. Standing on the riser, he raised his hands to get everyone's attention. The Commander looked over his audience, wondering how his community would react to the cold weather news.
“Good evening. The news I have tonight is mixed. We face a challenge, but I am confident we will succeed together. Let me explain what we face and then share our plan.
For several weeks, our scientists noticed clues that the seasons here are much more pronounced than those we experienced on Tridon. You are likely aware the daylight is shorter and the evenings are colder.
We started taking more precise measurements and, from them, have concluded we must endure a period of frigid weather – weather much colder than anything we experienced on Tridon. During the next 80 days, we expect temperatures will drop to freezing or below. Moreover, we don’t know what weather conditions will result. This cold season is the challenge we face.
The half-dome habitats we are using now will not be warm enough. So, we plan to build log shelters with a fireplace for heat. This work is a big undertaking and will require everyone's help.
I have assembled a group to manage preparations. They have already devised a plan for a simple log structure that we can mass produce. They have defined a series of tasks and will assign groups to each one. Tomorrow, come here to join one of the work parties. One of our team will give specific instructions. Meet here after the morning meal.
The log shelters or huts are small and designed for a family or group of four. However, many of you are single and must choose your hut-mates. Remember, there will be many cold days when much of your time will be in these confined quarters.
We hope these log cabins will become permanent homes. When warmer weather returns, some may wish to enlarge and customize them to fit your needs.
We also have to build a food reserve. We estimate we will depend on this reserve for about 80 days. Some of the workgroups will gather food and preserve it for later use.
Third, each small log house will need a supply of firewood. The wood has to be dry enough to burn. Some of you will have that job.
Together, we can get through this cold season. Tomorrow, work begins. We are in a race against time! Together, we will survive.”
As the Commander stepped down, he could see the shock on the faces near him. No one was expecting his blunt words.
Conversations tested what they had just heard, and many didn’t know how to react. Walking through the crowd toward Gergin, standing on the far side of the room, the Commander overheard phrases like live in log huts and Laka in a workgroup.
“Sir, you didn’t hold back. I doubt many have experienced anything like that.”
“Gergin, it's time they took responsibility for their survival. We were all dazzled by the beauty and abundance here when we landed. Now it's time for reality.”
Eteppon, Retepin, Enaida, and her friend Aterga were in the big room to recruit workers the following morning. Nevetsin had already organized two hunting parties and a group of Amilikut women to process the meat and hides they brought back.
Eteppon stood on the raised platform and called the colonists over for assignment. Some came immediately, but some stayed back.
Retepin explained, “We need men to do the physical work getting materials for the log shelters. Women will gather dry wood and search for food.”
Enaida and Aterga organized the women. Each food team had an Amilikut woman familiar with the plants and nuts they had been gathering. Once formed, the groups left to start collecting.
During a break, Enaida sat down with Aterga.
“Did I see you with Nairben last night?” She asked Aterga.
“Yes,” she replied, blushing.
“And?”
“After we landed, he came to me for a painful blister, and we became friends. I started taking evening walks with him. I really like him, and last night, we talked about sharing one of the shelters.”
“Gergin and I are doing the same. We all need someone to share our life here. So, I am happy for you.”
One of Nevetsin's builders instructed the men how they should cut the logs for the shelters. Initially, they would select trees of the proper size, cut them to the prescribed lengths, and trim off unneeded branches.
Eteppon had found several power saws on the lander, and each group had one for the heavy cutting. The next step was to cut notches in some logs and thick planks from others. Finally, work groups were to stack the pieces to build a cabin at each building site.
As the teams left, more of the settlers came over. The process lasted all morning. Finally, Enida noticed several women who stayed back and just watched. She walked over to them and asked them to join them.
“We are Mamlaka, one woman replied in a very uppity tone.
“Here, there are only two classes. “Those who work and survive and those who don’t and freeze,” Enaida said bluntly. “Which class are you in?”
The women looked at each other, astonished that anyone would speak to them so rudely.
“ I don’t care. It just means fewer huts to build,” Enaida continued and walked away.
Nevetsin and his builders spent the morning laying out the building sites for forty homes.
First, they divided the hillside in front of the large half-dome into long, narrow rectangles running from the bordering woods on one side to the other. Each rectangle encompassed two lots with a generous common space in the middle. Next, they staked out the footprint for a house near the center boundary of each lot.
The broad public area ran down the hill between the building sites to facilitate movement and a sense of community. In addition, the area behind each cabin stretched close to the woods, providing room for a future garden.
The settlers walked around, watching the outlines of their new community take shape. It wasn’t long before some approached Eteppon, telling him which site they wanted.
Eteppon's reply was simple. Lot selection will be in the order you joined a work party. When some challenged that process, saying they were Mamlaka or Rabizut, he used Enaida's words. There are only two classes: Those who work and survive and those who don’t and freeze.
At the Second Settlement
Ecurben had returned with his men and brought news of the anticipated cold weather. The colonists were dismayed when they heard about the crude huts Nevetsin's men were building in the first colony. But gradually, they recognized the time to prepare was short, and they could enlarge the primitive cabins later.
The big challenge was the location. When Descent Vehicle Two landed, it was near a river but not close to a large stand of trees. So, Ecurben sent out parties to identify alternative sites. The community finally decided on a place convenient to dense woods and slightly farther from the river. Their half-dome village was over a hill out of sight.
The second group of colonists had a significant advantage over the first. Their lander's power source could charge up all their power tools every night. When the first group's lander crashed, its main power supply was damaged, and they lost some of the tools they had brought.
Ecurben called a meeting of his advisory council. Cariden, Drachcirn, Adnilla, Odraciron, Retlawon, and Esojon, the oldest Mamlaka, met in the large half-dome.
“We have to move quickly to prepare for the coming cold. We have to build out the shelters and gather a food reserve,” Ecurben said, starting the meeting.
“I’ll meet with the Amilikut women to help them gather berries and edible plant material that we can preserve, “ Retlawon offered. He had experience in food preservation.
Adnilla asked, “What about those tree nuts? They are everywhere up in the wooded area.”
“They are a good food source too but require special preparation. Eaten as is, they will make you sick. Hold off until I’ve done some tests.” the scientist advised.
“Cariden. You are responsible for organizing the building sites and the teams building the shelters. That's the hardest job. Odraciron help get the work process as efficient as possible.”
“Yes, sir. Any guidelines?” Cariden asked.
“ Envision the log huts as the start of a new community with lots large enough for a garden and comfortable family home. And there should be a central place to meet and store part of our food supply.”
“I understand. We’ll lay out the lots while the men cut the wood for construction. I have the sketch you brought back.”
“Adnilla. Recruit work groups to collect food and firewood.”
“Will do.”
With that, the meeting broke up.
Drachcirn, the senior navigator, set up a recording device to log the daylight hours and the sun's radiant energy. He knew there would be questions about how long the cold weather would last. Many decisions would depend upon the timing of seasonal changes. He had previously set up equipment to log each day's temperature range, and the data showed advancing cold weather.
Cariden started with a vision of their new community around two broad public commons set perpendicular to each other. They crossed in the middle of the community. One ran in the direction leading to the river, which he called the River Way, and the other was on a line running from the forest-covered hill to their original half-dome village – the Forest Way.
The forests, the river, and their first half-dome village were still a substantial walk from the town. Cariden's design placed the lots closer to the village center and created a large central common.
The lots were long, narrow strips parallel to the River Way, with its cabin adjacent to the Forrest Way. Then, he had his men move three smaller half-dome structures to the new village. They placed one in the space where the public strips crossed and one midway down each half of the Forrest Way.
Then Cariden's team staked out each lot and the footprint for its log shelter. Everyone watching marveled at how the men worked with automation-like efficiency. He was proving to be a natural leader.
Ecurben moved around constantly, checking on progress. The hunters brought in T^Neiswa almost daily. The Amillikut removed the hides, scraping them clean. They stretched them over frames and worked to make the leather soft. At the same time, other women were cutting the raw meat into strips and drying it.
Everyone felt good about their progress as the days passed, and the weather remained pleasant. But how long would it last? That was on everyone's mind. The excitement and energy grew as their new village started to take shape. The work was exhausting, but the desire for family homes refreshed tired bodies.
Treveon, an Amilikut on the Landing Advance Team, was walking up the river, looking for pools that likely held fish. He already had two in a lightweight backpack he wore when away from the settlement. Periodically, he would cast out into the current and let his lure float down over rocks and across eddies. Then, he would reel the line in for another cast. Each rhythmic sequence started with several steps upstream.
An experienced hunter, he was always looking for tracks and other helpful clues. That might explain why his eyes spotted an unusual shape protruding from the muddy shore. He dug the object out with a stick and washed the dirt away. Cleaned up, it was a bony object, round like a broken bowl. Treveon decided to take it back and see if anyone knew what it was.
Odraciron monitored the workgroups that were cutting down trees and reducing them to the parts needed for building. He observed each step in the building process, looking for ways to streamline the work and solve problems the builders encountered. He had refined the work to an assembly line process.
That night, Treveon and several Amilikut friends were sitting around a fire. He brought out his unusual find and asked if anyone had seen anything similar. The men passed the bowl-shaped bone around. One noticed two smooth segments in the broken edge on one side. Give it to the scientists, another one suggested. The others laughed.