A Different Virus - Laura's Story

Chapter 44

I yawned as the morning bell sounded and wrinkled my nose. There was a terrible smell in the air. I got dressed and went out to see Diane lounging on a cushion as she gazed out the window. The smell was even worse in here. I wrinkled my nose, "What is that smell?"

"I painted some fire retardant on the house posts and bottom in case a grass fire occurs this fall. The smell should mostly fade today and completely disappear in a few days. I will be applying a few more coats later on."

I hadn't heard anyone mention a grassfire before. But if she had proofed the house against fire, then there must have been a reason for it. The grass was quite dry in the field between the fence and the forest, we hadn't had any rain for almost two weeks now. It would burn really well.

I shook my head, "It stinks."

Diane grinned at me, "Oh, I know. I was the one putting it on."

I grinned at her, acknowledging her point. We headed to the Fort for breakfast. I climbed down the ladder and did a double take at the posts supporting the treehouse. No wonder it had smelled. She had slathered on huge amounts of the black stuff. She had even painted the bottom of the treehouse. I couldn't see one hint of untouched wood.

I blinked as I noticed three fire detectors carefully camouflaged and hidden on the treehouse. One at the bottom of a post, one on the bottom of the treehouse hidden behind a post, and one on the side of the treehouse.

The ground all around the treehouse had been cleared of shrubs and bushes. I noticed a fire extinguisher attached to the post of the treehouse. That was odd, because I had also seen that Diane had put a second one inside this morning not far from the trapdoor. She must have really been worried about a grassfire.

I grabbed the zipline and let it carry me. I laughed as Diane ran below me, easily keeping up. I landed on the platform and exited the gate to grin at Diane. She smiled down at me and we started walking towards the fence.

I groaned a bit as I realized what day it was, "I have class today, don't I?"

"Yes."

We entered the fence and went for breakfast. I grinned at Trish, who was still on a high from her wedding last week. She wasn't even letting my teasing get to her. She was just too happy and Nathan seemed to be the same way.

I was reluctant to go to class, but that was simply because I was away from Diane. The teacher and I got along well enough after her first encounter with Diane.

We had a guest speaker today. It was a Mechanic Group Leader. We learned an important piece of information. They had been unable to get any vehicle to start for a week now. Many of the Mechanic groups were dispersing since every vehicle was now just a decorative lawn ornament.

Some of the more talented or ingenious members were banding together in new groups. They were changing existing farm machinery so it could be pulled by horses. Some were even working on more solar vehicles. I hadn't even been aware that we even had any solar vehicles, but apparently we did.

This news mostly crushed Mark's dreams of being a mechanic since he had been intrigued by the motors. Mark raised his hand. The Mechanic nodded, "Yes?"

Mark lifted his head, "What about steam? I know they used it in trains and stuff before. Would it work in trucks or buses?"

The Mechanic shook his head, "We did try that once or twice, but steam creates a lot of pressure and it tends to break most seals on the pressure chambers. The fuel and boiler also take up too much room for an average truck. It takes a long time to warm up and a long time to cool down, so it isn't particularly useful unless used for pulling farm equipment. Even then each tractor would take several people to work it."