Tweet
Rorra woke early in the morning. It has been roughly two weeks since the Great Cataclysm occurred. While most of the world didn't know the details of who, what and why, they did know the effect it caused. Great chasms had opened the land like giant cracks in the rocks. These chasms have been estimated by Rorra to be roughly two miles or longer in their spans. She didn't know if it was isolated to just the Desert or if it happened world wide. Her town has greatly suffered over the last two weeks. Their water sources had become very scarce and the village was on the brink of migrating to a new area or simply eliminating their neighbors until the well could provide for the whole town. Rorra had recently taken it upon herself to focus on a new creation that allowed her people to have water without the necessity of a well.
She spent three days coming up with a design. Her design was to build a new stone dome-like structure that had an opening of about five inches facing the average wind direction. The opening would spiral downwards along a metallic lining. The concept essentially centrifuged the moisture out of the air until the water would drip downwards into basin at the bottom. From there, the townsfolk would be able to withdraw their water as though it were a well. The only foreseeable issue is dedicating the labor and resources to make the structure. Many of her people are becoming aggressive and agitated. Rorra fears that she may not have the time to complete the project before her town tears itself apart. The piping would travel above the basin where the water would trickle out of the pipe and the remaining air would travel upward out of the dome. She also decided to place a filter at the intake to help catch all the sand out.
This morning though, she would walk to the Council Hall where she would propose her plans. As she approached the building, many of her neighbors were out front protesting. Yelling was heard, and surprisingly, the use of violence hadn't commenced. Rorra pushed forward through the mob, eventually reaching the front where she could she the anxious Council trying to settle everyone down, with no luck. Rorra asked if she could take over for the leading Councilwoman and she took the stage. The mob continued to yell while Rorra tried getting their attention. Rorra let out a deafening whistle to get everyone's attention. Once the mob quieted, Rorra began to speak.
"Everyone! We all know about the water shortage from the Cataclysm. I have come up with a solution to our problems."
Rorra held up an image of her design. The mob tried to look at the design but the paper it was etched on was too small. A councilwoman approached to look over the design as Rorra explained the design for everyone. She spent several minutes explaining in detail the design, the resources, labor, and time involved to complete the project. She also explained that in order to quickly create the amount of water necessary, they would need to build several of these structures. She proposed that a minimum of five be built. One at each cardinal direction of town and the town center, all of them equidistant from each other. As things were starting to deescalate with the crowd, they began to discuss amongst themselves and the other women on the Council.
Rorra felt a sense of pride wash over her where she felt like she was important and contributing to her people's survival. As the council began to reach a consensus vote the crowd began to argue and debate the pros and cons, but it was a step forward in the right direction. The leading councilwoman approached Rorra, where the two women traded spots on stage. The councilwoman began to speak.
"We of the Council have reached a decision. While it is not a majority vote, we have decided to-"
Before the woman finished her sentence, a bolt was suddenly lodged through her throat. The councilwoman brought her hands to where the bolt was piercing into her neck. Rorra saw the shock in the woman's face as the dying woman fell forward, her body going limp and hitting the stage hard. A large portion of the group began to scatter and make their way to the door. The door suddenly became barred from the other side, trapping the town inside. Rorra looked into the rafters of the building and saw the assassin fleeing through an access hatch.
Rorra surveyed the design and architecture and traced a path back to her from where the assassin was. Rorra began to climb one of the support beams upwards when she looked down to see several torches were tossed into the building. In roughly a minute, the whole building was filled with terrifying screams and smoke. Rorra hustled faster as she climbed the rafters to the hatch. When she approached she looked outside and the town was empty. Whoever the attackers were, they had already fled the area. Rorra climbed down from the hatch on the roof and down to the entrance. She ran up to the large door and unbarred it, flinging open the large double doors. Smoke billowed out with the fire beginning to intensify inside and outside around the walls. The women poured out of the building, gasping for fresh air. Rorra smiled to herself, she was a hero today. She saved a lot of people from death. The women cleared away and watched as the burning building fell to the ground over the span of the next hour.
As the group gathered began to recoup, another councilwoman approached Rorra.
"We've agreed to your plans, Rorra. You have the resources of this town to get these new wells built. We're also sending out a couple people to scout for any other signs of water, in case if we can't accomplish our goals. I'm sure you understand."
Rorra nodded curtly. She understood why the Council wanted to have a contingency. Out in the desert, not everything is guaranteed.
She spent three days coming up with a design. Her design was to build a new stone dome-like structure that had an opening of about five inches facing the average wind direction. The opening would spiral downwards along a metallic lining. The concept essentially centrifuged the moisture out of the air until the water would drip downwards into basin at the bottom. From there, the townsfolk would be able to withdraw their water as though it were a well. The only foreseeable issue is dedicating the labor and resources to make the structure. Many of her people are becoming aggressive and agitated. Rorra fears that she may not have the time to complete the project before her town tears itself apart. The piping would travel above the basin where the water would trickle out of the pipe and the remaining air would travel upward out of the dome. She also decided to place a filter at the intake to help catch all the sand out.
This morning though, she would walk to the Council Hall where she would propose her plans. As she approached the building, many of her neighbors were out front protesting. Yelling was heard, and surprisingly, the use of violence hadn't commenced. Rorra pushed forward through the mob, eventually reaching the front where she could she the anxious Council trying to settle everyone down, with no luck. Rorra asked if she could take over for the leading Councilwoman and she took the stage. The mob continued to yell while Rorra tried getting their attention. Rorra let out a deafening whistle to get everyone's attention. Once the mob quieted, Rorra began to speak.
"Everyone! We all know about the water shortage from the Cataclysm. I have come up with a solution to our problems."
Rorra held up an image of her design. The mob tried to look at the design but the paper it was etched on was too small. A councilwoman approached to look over the design as Rorra explained the design for everyone. She spent several minutes explaining in detail the design, the resources, labor, and time involved to complete the project. She also explained that in order to quickly create the amount of water necessary, they would need to build several of these structures. She proposed that a minimum of five be built. One at each cardinal direction of town and the town center, all of them equidistant from each other. As things were starting to deescalate with the crowd, they began to discuss amongst themselves and the other women on the Council.
Rorra felt a sense of pride wash over her where she felt like she was important and contributing to her people's survival. As the council began to reach a consensus vote the crowd began to argue and debate the pros and cons, but it was a step forward in the right direction. The leading councilwoman approached Rorra, where the two women traded spots on stage. The councilwoman began to speak.
"We of the Council have reached a decision. While it is not a majority vote, we have decided to-"
Before the woman finished her sentence, a bolt was suddenly lodged through her throat. The councilwoman brought her hands to where the bolt was piercing into her neck. Rorra saw the shock in the woman's face as the dying woman fell forward, her body going limp and hitting the stage hard. A large portion of the group began to scatter and make their way to the door. The door suddenly became barred from the other side, trapping the town inside. Rorra looked into the rafters of the building and saw the assassin fleeing through an access hatch.
Rorra surveyed the design and architecture and traced a path back to her from where the assassin was. Rorra began to climb one of the support beams upwards when she looked down to see several torches were tossed into the building. In roughly a minute, the whole building was filled with terrifying screams and smoke. Rorra hustled faster as she climbed the rafters to the hatch. When she approached she looked outside and the town was empty. Whoever the attackers were, they had already fled the area. Rorra climbed down from the hatch on the roof and down to the entrance. She ran up to the large door and unbarred it, flinging open the large double doors. Smoke billowed out with the fire beginning to intensify inside and outside around the walls. The women poured out of the building, gasping for fresh air. Rorra smiled to herself, she was a hero today. She saved a lot of people from death. The women cleared away and watched as the burning building fell to the ground over the span of the next hour.
As the group gathered began to recoup, another councilwoman approached Rorra.
"We've agreed to your plans, Rorra. You have the resources of this town to get these new wells built. We're also sending out a couple people to scout for any other signs of water, in case if we can't accomplish our goals. I'm sure you understand."
Rorra nodded curtly. She understood why the Council wanted to have a contingency. Out in the desert, not everything is guaranteed.