Frozen Prospects by Dean Murray Read Free Book Online

one."
    Betreec
seemed slightly surprised at the offer. "As you say that's out
of our hands, but we'll be sure to pursue the possibility with the
Council once we're back."
    Once
the talk turned to the testing of the young men and women, Va'del
stopped paying as much attention, allowing his thoughts to wander
until he heard Jasmin say his name.
    "...Va'del
and I can go look at the cavern where you'd like to begin farming.
Possibly I'll have some suggestions on how you can maximize the
yield if you're able to obtain a strong enough light source, and if
nothing else it will allow us to report back to the Council
regarding the level of preparation you've already made."
    He'lo
held up a hand as Jasmin stood. "Before you go do that I
should tell you that there is a matter requiring your judgment."
The previously-confident Headman shifted his considerable bulk back
and forth from foot to foot several times before continuing.
    "My
boy was involved in a business dealing with the widow of one of the
miners who was killed in an accident last month. I'll be the first
to admit that the terms of the agreement are quite complex and
somewhat vague in a couple key parts, but when the two of them came
for judgment, I found in favor of my son. The widow is appealing my
decision to you."
    Betreec
nodded. "That is well within her rights, especially
considering the close relationship between you and your son. We'll
listen to both parties tomorrow and rely on the Goddess to guide
us."
    It
seemed as though Jasmin had heard all she needed to hear. She
gathered Va'del up with a glance and swept out of the room.
    Mindful
of the warning that he'd received before going out, Va'del tried to
remain alert to his surroundings, and ready for possible trouble,
but he found it somewhat difficult in light of the wonders he was
shown in the next few cycles.
    They
never let the youngsters see any of this back home. If I'd been
apprenticed, I'd have seen one of these areas, possibly two if I was
very lucky, but not everything.
    The
large cavern where the village wanted to start farming was the first
thing Jasmin asked to see. Once there, she showed him the clever
way in which the villagers were using lichen to break rock chips
down into soil. "It is similar to how they start the mushroom
farms below us. Once the mushrooms have had a go at the human and
animal waste, what is left would actually serve quite well as a
medium for growing grain. Notice how the rock here is lighter in
color than most of the walls you've seen in the village so far? The
lighter rock should reflect more light back to the plants, so a
weaker light source could be used."
    Their
guide took them through a large opening into another room, and
Va'del realized that there wasn't just one cave meant to be used for
growing, but two.
    "Won't
they need two light sources if they have two rooms?"
    Jasmin
shook her head. "Plants do best with alternate periods of
light and darkness. They can move a single light source between the
two caverns, and more than double the yield they'd otherwise get
from their crops."
    Va'del
nodded, struck by the simple genius of the idea and realizing for
the first time on a truly fundamental level just how self-contained
each village was. "Where does the village get its water? Do
they have hot springs like mine did?"
    Jasmin
shook her head. "They don't. Instead, some of the heat from
the village is allowed to escape up a slim hole to the outside.
That results in the snow melting and trickling down into cisterns
where it is stored until needed."
    "If
there aren't any hot springs, what provides the heat to keep the
village from freezing?"
    With
a smile that lit up her pale-blue eyes, Jasmin asked the guard who
was serving as their guide to take them to the heart chamber.
    When
the trio arrived, Va'del's breath was taken away by the sheer beauty
of the fist-sized sapphire resting on the stone pedestal in the
center of the room.
    Stepping
into the amazing heat of the room,