Bricks of Ash and Blood

Chapter 5: New Challenges

SIMON  

It was the first day of winter, but you wouldn't know it. It was warm. It had been getting colder and colder for weeks, to have a warm day was a blessing, and everyone was enjoying it. From my window, I could see the courtyard below. Everyone was going about their jobs, and everyone was smiling.

I looked over to my desk, where my work for the day awaited. Planning. Writing. Organising. A deep sigh escaped me. I couldn't let such a day go to waste. Besides, it might be the last warm day before a long winter.

I abandoned my work, instead walking outside. I decided to go check on the farm, it was a good enough excuse for me to go for a stroll.

I passed through the courtyard, skipping the canteen. I'd come back for breakfast later.

The farm was thriving. Carrots. Turnips. Radishes. They all grew quickly. Our farmers had a tough job, replanting, harvesting, keeping the farm growing, while producing food for the school. Three farmers were out there now, pulling vegetables from the ground, and placing them into a large sack.

One of them spotted me, waving to me with a carrot in hand. "Hi!"

I smiled, and called out to her. "How's the harvest?"

"There's a lot. We're getting good at growing stuff. What are you doing out here?"

"Not much right now."

"Come help then."

It was that simple. I walked out to the three, kneeled on the ground, and starting pulling up vegetables. It took us an hour to pull up every mature crop, before we sat down on the grass, and they showed me how to collect seeds from the leaves of the vegetables. Our scavengers had found a few packs of seeds a few months back, and the farm was doubling in size every month or so now.

I was pulling seeds from a carrot, when one of the farmers spoke.

"Can you guys smell that?" He sniffed the air a few times. "Smoke."

I sniffed. He was right. I turned my head up. The sky was blue, but for a plume of light smoke, rising high. It could almost have been mistaken for a cloud.

I jumped to my feet, and sprinted towards the courtyard. My chest pounded. Was the school on fire? As I got further into the school, other people were starting to notice it. I ignored them, and ran for the Guard roof, climbing the ladder as fast as I could. David was on guard, our newest member. He was asleep.

My eyes darted over the school. No fire. I was hit with a wave of relief. It quickly dissolved. I turned around, far past the school, was the reserve. A massive swathe of bushland, where we hunted and gathered. It was ablaze. What had always been a green mass in the distance, was red, black, dark. Fire. The smoke rose high into the air, I could smell it, and anyone for hundreds of miles could see it. I stood in awe.

"Simon?"

The voice took me out of my daze. Below me, on the ground, was Shannon. One of our cooks. "Simon. What do we do?" I had never seen a fire like this. I had no idea what to do.

I took a deep breath. "Shannon. Here's the plan."

ALEX

"Okay guys. How do we feel about going to the lake?"

Sarah smirked. "Is that a question?"

"Nope." I replied, folding the map and pushing it into my pocket. "It's going to be a long day. We're going all the way through the city, and out to the lake."