Production had gone incredibly well so far.

It had only been a few hours since their arrival, but already the Migrant workers had completed the crane and scaffold from the White Monolith and begun hauling up the large crustaceans and their handlers from the desert floor far below. The heights were staggering, and the fishing net bulged with the forms of lobsters, crabs, and the tiny Migrant races as they pulled them up two at a time. Even with the intricate system of pulleys Shorr had devised out of braided fishing line and carved driftwood, it still took several hundred Brachycea working in unison to lift and lower the device. 

Still, they worked tirelessly, their shared past making them a dauntless and hardy race. As the large beasts were dropped carefully to the hard floor, they were taken by their handlers to a hastily prepared stable yard, where they were fed and watered with some of the remaining provisions the Migrants had brought. To everyone, especially Shorr’s, great surprise and elation the small group that they had left behind carried more than just the provisions they had when they left. It seemed that while they were waiting for word, they have been actively scavenging the area. They carried many bundles of driftwood, seaweed, and shells from the desert. They also had a large amount of strangers things: metallic cylinders that dwarfed the small creatures, plastic utensils of a wide variety, and a great supply of glass in a variety of colors. Flotta had checked the numbers, and despite the recent influx of supplies from below she was worried. They were getting very low on provisions. Foraging in the desert had been almost nonexistent, and while careful planning had gotten them this far, they would soon be starving to death if they did not find food and water soon.

[color=39b54a][b]“Mother Flotta!”[/b][/color] A young Ithscies girl called, her webbed feet sticking slightly to the cold floor. She was breathing hard, hands on her knees when she reached the old matriarch. [color=00aeef][b]“Catch your breath child there’s no rush,” [/b][/color]Flotta said calmly, laying a caring hand on the girls shoulder. [color=39b54a][b]“We’ve found something you must come quick!”[/b][/color] 

Flotta smiled, her confidence boosted by the young girl’s enthusiasm. It never ceased to amaze her how resilient these people were. After all they had been through, they could still find excitement in the world. 

[color=00aeef][b]“Alright alright I’m coming,”[/b][/color] Flotta said softly, and followed the girl towards the second gigantic structure that completely covered one side of this realm. White like the other strange device that stood across from it, this one was far more massive, and had been the subject of several Brachycea and Ithscies groups trying to climb the smooth surface to see what lay over the rim. They had managed to build ladders and scaffolding out of thin papery sticks, the ends of which were covered in a soft downy fur like a ball. They found hundreds of these sticks inside of a wooden cavern just adjacent to the White Monolith, and found that they were flexible and very sturdy. She climbed the ladders slowly, her old bones creaking, and it was a long time before she reached the top. Leaning against a railing, she surveyed the new scenery. 

What had first appeared to be a massive wall was in fact much more. It was a bowl, like the one they had climbed out of to enter this world yet this one dwarfed the other by a hilarious comparison. A metal pipe jutted out on one side, and she could make out the shapes of several Ithscies and Brachycea around the pipe, climbing over it and figuring out its workings. The large form of Foreman Shorr was wish them, and he turned his body and scuttled over to meet her as she pushed up off the rail. 

[color=f7976a][b]“I apologize for sending for you Flotta, I would not have asked you to make the climb if I did not believe it was necessary.” [/b][/color]The large crustacean like being said, his voice deep but wet sounding and his mandibles clicked between the words. Flotta waved a withered hand at him. [color=00aeef][b]“Nonsense Shorr, I may be old but I’m not dead. Now tell me what’s so special about this place? It looks almost like the other, except this one has no water we can use.”[/b][/color] She looked over the edge to the bottom, seeing the smooth white substance gradually even out into a flat barren plain. She heard Shorr chuckle, his manidbles clicking and his large body shook slightly. 

Floota raised her eyebrows. Well this certainly must be something, I don’t think I’ve ever heard Shorr laugh. [color=f7976a][b]“I see your eyesight hasn’t completely gone Flotta. Yes, there is no water here. [i]Yet…[/i]”[/b][/color] He said as he gestured for her to follow him. They had build a pathway and railing along the rim of the bowl, making it easier to walk without slipping and falling to your death. Flotta staggered along behind him, clutching the rail as they made their way closer to the metal pipe. When they were just beneath it, Shorr looked up at the several Itchscies straddling the metal surface, fishing line tied around their waists. 

[color=f7976a][b]“Show her,” [/b][/color]he said, his large claws opening and closing with anticipation. The fish-man reached then down, the others hold his feet so he wouldn’t fall. He reached a small hand inside the opening of the elbow joint in the pipe, and pulled his hand out, a look of satisfaction and success on his face. Flotta squinted, trying to see what was in his hand. 

[b][color=00aeef]“Shorr what are you talking about…I don…..WATER!”[/color][/b] She gasped, suddenly focusing on the droplets falling from the fish-mans webbed fingers. [color=00aeef][b]“Shorr you’ve found water! Does it flow out of the pipe? How do we get it to come out?”[/b][/color] She was talking excitedly now, looking up at the large Labor boss and then back to the pipe. Shorr nodded, “We were just about to try something actually, I wanted you to be here if it worked. That lever there seems to have some connection to the pipe based on my examination. We were just about to try and lift it.” With that Shorr nodded, and about 50 Brachycea braced themselves, putting their large claws up against a metal lever on the top of the pipe. The leader of the group called out, and they heaved, moving the lever up slowly, a steady hissing and gurgling sound being heard deep within the walls around them. They pushed up more, the gurgling intensified, and suddenly an onrush of water burst through the hole at the end of the joint. The group cheered and clapped, watching the water flow out of the pipe, and the Brachycea used a large lever made of driftwood to lift higher, making the flow of water even faster. Flotta watched as the water filled the bowl, but her face fell in disappointment as she watched it disappear down the hole in the base of the white substance. 

Shorr noticed her look, and signaled the workers again. They moved to a second lever device, this one smaller and below the large one that controlled the water. Much easier to manage, they pushed up on it and Flotta heard a loud [i]*shunck*[/i] as something shifted in the walls. Instead of disappearing down the hole, now the water started to build up inside the giant white bowl. 


She clapped her hands excitedly.[color=00aeef][b] “Shorr your genius never ceases to amaze me! This is perfect! If we fill this completely we will have more water than we could ever need…”[/b][/color] her eyes shifted down to the bowl again, her mind racing through the possibilities. [color=00aeef][b]“Wait! This could be so much more….Shorr we still have some of the live minnows from our supplies…and with the seaweed we brought back from the desert we could turn this into a farm! We could make our own food and water right here…never have to worry about foraging for supplies again. Tell your men to start layering the bottom with sand and rocks. I’ll have the fish and seaweed brought up when the water is high enough,”[/b][/color] she finished with a big smile on her face, beaming. 

This was the answer to their problems. If they could get a good crop of seaweed going, and allow the small amounts of minnows they had left to breed and multiply they would have more food than they knew what to do with. Everyone would be fed and safe. 

[hr]

[i]On the bathroom floor[/i]

[color=7ea7d8][b]“Get that palisade up! We need to seal off this Gateway before we can really do anything else!”[/b][/color] General Gnash commanded out to his troops. Companies of Carlachii Warriors and Brachycea Engineers had taken the vast majority of driftwood from the new supplies and were building a palisade wall in a concave arc from the edges of the vast gap in the massive barrier. Scouts had reported that these barriers seems to separate sections of this world into smaller bits, and just the brief glance outside had proved there was an incredible amount of territory left unchecked. Gnash still had one group out, sneaking along and looking for signs of danger. He trusted his men, he knew they would not let themselves be discovered easily. But he needed to be ready incase anything decided to come looking. Perhaps those small pink creatures were a foraging party making camp, and the rest came to investigate. Well, they would be ready if it came to that. The palisade was nearly complete, and Gnash had already spoken to Shorr about building more permanent and formidable defenses. They could gather rocks from the desert, and the wooden cavern which was being emptied of supplies could be dismantled. He had taken stock of the findings, confiscating anything with a vaguely military application. He had a team breaking down the plastic that held together five razor sharp blades, with more of the strange items waiting for deconstruction nearby. Plastic boxes filled with waxy thread provided him with ample amounts of resources to tie his palisade together. 

His hand slid along the edge of the new sword he had created out of one of the razors, testing the edge. It was brutally sharp, and he had filed serrations along the blade for an even more vicious bite.

Yes, whatever came through this Gateway would receive a nasty surprise. The Migrants weren’t running anymore.