A Different Virus - Laura's Story

Chapter 107

I giggled, "No, Diane wants help with that ladder she has been working on."

Todd perked up and dusted himself off, "Okay, I am game for that."

The rest of the group also stretched. One commented, "We will tag along as well. We need a break from this for a bit."

I didn't bother telling them that the help she was after involved packing those heavy wood and rope bundles to the top of a cliff that was as high as a ten story building. I wasn't big enough to carry the large bundles that were bigger than me, so it worked out perfectly as I led four men and three women to where Diane was tying up the last bundle.

It was a good thing that the entire group was fired because those six big bundles were heavy and we had to carry them all the way down to the small trail by the gate. Then we had to haul them up the steep rocky incline, things got easier once we were on the flat top. The group was curious and excited to see how well Diane's idea would work.

Todd dropped his bundle once we reached the clearing on top of the middle of the cliff. The gate was on the opposite side of the meadow now. "Okay, what now?"

Diane gestured away from the cliff edge, "Let's unroll those bundles into one long line on the ground and tie them together. Todd, can you fasten those chains to those hooks?"

We swiftly had the rope ladder tied together in one long section across the top of the cliff. Diane started rolling it up from the far end to form a massive bundle. Todd had the chains firmly secured to the hooks that Diane had anchored deep into the rocks days ago.

I took a few steps back, the bundle was taller than Diane as she neared the edge of the cliff. She stopped and looked down. Word of her activity had spread and no one was anywhere below. In fact, we had quite a crowd standing at a very safe distance watching in anticipation.

I moved to the edge of the cliff with the others to watch. Diane waved once before going behind the bundle and giving it one last push. The way it unrolled as it fell was fascinating. It was long enough that it reached the ground far below instead of the first ledge that Diane had been aiming for.

The thick reinforced rope was undamaged as the long rope ladder hung from the top of the cliff. Diane pulled a few tools out of her backpack and started to climb down the ladder. I took a careful seat near the edge where I could watch her work without the risk of falling down.

Diane stopped frequently to attach pegs to the ladder and secure it to the cliff face so it couldn't sway. The others watched with me. It took her almost half an hour to fully secure the ladder. Once she was done, she climbed back up and others climbed as they joined us on top. Few had seen the view from up here.

Amber joined us as she climbed the ladder, "That was a spooky climb. I didn't realize just how high this cliff was until I was climbing up here."

Someone examined the cliffs, "These cliffs have to be around the same height as a ten story building. We can probably make six levels of housing, but we will have to leave a lot of untouched rock between each one for support. The rock is very solid, so that is good."

Amber took a closer look, "I say we stick with the main three levels we are working on for now. There are already natural ledges there that are pretty easy to widen and they go almost halfway across this end of the cliff. As soon as Roland returns with the brace clamps, we can start working on that huge deck we have planned for the first level."

Everyone nodded. Some work had stopped just because we lacked certain supplies to build it properly. Roland had quite a list from everyone when he left. Those trailers would be packed on the trip back.

Todd sat on a big rock and commented, "That ladder was a good idea. We have quite the view from up here."

I agreed with him. It was easier to just climb up that rope and wood ladder to the top of the cliff instead of running all the way around. The height spooked quite a few people who refused to climb so high up on just a rope ladder. A couple to the side were discussing ways to rig up safety lines for people to use, much like rock climbers repelling down.

Diane nodded in response to Todd's comment, "Took a while to make it, but it sure beats running all the way to the gate and trying to get up that narrow path to the top of the cliff."

The sun glinted off of large arrays of solar panels that hung in various spots on the side of the cliff. Even more solar panels were up here where they were out of the way. We had lots of power and had huge batteries in a carved out electrical room where the converters and other equipment was stored.

I took the time to look at the other progress that had been made. Those with the Heartfire virus had put their extra energy to good use. Only three homes has been made so far, but those drilling tools had been going nonstop and we had carved out two big storage rooms large enough to require us to leave pillars of rock untouched for support. The mess hall was halfway carved.

Only three people were needed to keep each carving tool working though. One to use it, and two to haul the rock away. Roland should be bringing back more of those rock drilling machines. We already had five of those machines and the rest of the people had been quite busy as well. The first, second, and third ledge had been widened and railing added.

They had taken ladders meant for tall diving boards and used them to lead to the first three natural ledges. They were very sturdy and durable. There was a wide track around the cliff base to act like a running track and it had already seen hard use.

A large tin covered building was near the storage rooms. It was actually a parking bay that was large enough to fit all five trailers and trucks. Each truck stall had two roll loading bay doors, one to let the truck drive in, and one to let the truck drive out. We had just used logs for supports and put tin on the top and sides. We even added numerous windows to let the light and fresh air in.

There was no more worry about getting rained on during the night for those camping on top of the trailers. Some thoughtful people had bolted ladders to several posts supporting the roof and those with hammocks hung their hammocks between the rafter beams. Even a huge palisade and chain link fence surrounding the trailers was still not enough to convince anyone to sleep on the ground.

Every animal had shelter of some sort and plenty of room to stretch their legs. Only the cows, horses and goats were not secured behind some sort of fence. That was only because we had run out of fencing. The weavers had insisted that the sheep needed a separate pen to prevent any damage to their fleece and the sheep had a huge pen to themselves.

The goats were waiting Roland's return to signal their entry into confinement of fencing. It wasn't as if they could go anywhere with the gate closed. The main gate was always left closed. People were able to pass through an access door that they had cut into the wall. It wasn't much bigger than the door in a normal house, but it was made from metal with a tiny glass window that had steel mesh inside the layers of glass. The lone sentry on top kept a lookout for zombies, the traders, or any other company that may show up.

All in all, we had managed to accomplish an amazing amount of work in under a week.

The one guy stretched, "Well, I best get back to work. Those houses are not going to carve themselves and it has been years since I last had a dwelling to call my own."

He started climbing down the ladder with care. Diane watched him go and commented to no one in particular, "We practically need a zipline from up here. It would save a lot of time going down."

I had loved the zipline that Diane had built back at Wainright Fort! I looked at her in excitement, I wondered how hard it would be to build a zipline this big.

Brad snorted, "Good luck getting that idea by Roland."

Diane turned her eyes to examine the cliff and meadow carefully. I could see her mind creating and discarding plans before her eyes glinted in excitement. She grinned at Brad, "Thanks for the idea!"

He suddenly looked worried, "I am having no part in your plan. Do not even mention my name in this insanity to Roland."

Diane just chuckled as she returned her gaze to the valley, obviously elaborating whatever plan was running through her mind. She would have to get Roland's permission and work on it in her free time. I really hoped he gave her the go ahead. I loved ziplines.