Chapter 148: Passing On What We Know

When Jack and Walter got back to the trading post, Elias was directing people as they sorted supplies beneath the canopy.

He saw them climb out of the CUEVs, and it didn't take him long to notice that Walter's face was set and that he clearly had no interest in talking to Jack.

"What's wrong with him?" Elias asked, curious.

Jack glanced at Walter and burst out laughing, but he didn't explain what had happened.

"Nothing. Go get everyone together. I have an idea, and I want to hear what you think."

"Everyone?"

" Start with the old hands." Jack thought for a second. "Don't leave out Oscar and Ruth."

Elias was puzzled but agreed, and he sent people to the shelter and around the trading post to let the others know.

Before long, everyone had gathered beneath the canopy. Oscar and Ruth came with Helen and stood at the edge of the crowd, waiting for Jack to speak.

Once most of them had arrived, Jack laid out his idea: everyone with specialized knowledge would take turns teaching.

Anyone who wanted to learn electrical work could study with Walter and Colt. Anyone interested in building and construction could go to Warren and Grant. Megan could teach basic nursing and wound care. If anyone else had something they were good at, they could put it together and teach that too.

"We can't go out during the day until the heat wave ends anyway," Jack said. "Instead of everyone sitting around waiting, we might as well use the time to learn something. People go to whatever lessons they want. What do you think?"

As expected, the moment Jack finished, everyone's eyes lit up.

Warren was already thinking about where to start with the basics, and the others looked at one another, clearly considering what they could teach.

Jack looked around at their reactions and grinned. "Looks like nobody objects."

Walter gave a grunt. "Who would object to something like this?"

They all nodded, and even Mort, who didn't usually say much, raised no objection.

It wasn't long before they left Jack standing to one side and started discussing it among themselves.

Warren and Walter were the first to put their heads together. They planned to teach construction and electrical work as a single course, starting with the simplest things like tools, materials, and safety, then gradually moving on to reading plans, installing wiring, and using equipment.

Elias, Henry, and Mort decided to train the younger people. Besides what to watch for when going outside, that would cover standing guard, handling emergencies, and how to work together when facing mutant beasts.

Hal quickly joined in. He would teach basic chemistry and how to apply it in daily life.

Megan, of course, would handle nursing. She didn't want to stop at wound cleaning, bandaging, and simple first aid. She planned to have all the women learn from her and, little by little, train them toward becoming nurses.

The more they talked, the more worked up they got. Some had already begun deciding what the first lesson should cover.

Jack listened for a while. Seeing that everyone was excited, he didn't interrupt and turned to head back to the convenience store.

He had taken only a few steps when he noticed Oscar, Ruth, and Leonard still standing where they had been. The three hadn't joined in, and all looked a little disappointed.

Jack stopped. "What's wrong with you three?"

Oscar hesitated. "What we know doesn't seem useful right now."

Ruth nodded. Filing, document preservation, and records retrieval had been important in the old world, but now the settlement had hardly any real documents, let alone a proper archive system. And Oscar's knowledge of printing equipment repair was just as useless for the moment, since there weren't any machines for him to work on.

Jack frowned. "Why would it be useless?"

Oscar and Ruth both looked at him.

"You can fix equipment, right?" Jack asked Oscar.

"Printers, paper cutters, binding machines. That kind of thing is what I know best."

"The basic principles of repair are pretty much the same," Jack said. "Even if the machines are different, there are things in common, like how you check them and how you work out where the problem is. Couldn't you teach that?"

Oscar stared at him, and the dullness in his eyes slowly changed.

Jack turned to Ruth. "It's the same for you. There's no way you have nothing to teach."

Ruth was confused. "What could I teach?"

"You could do it with Marlin," Jack said. "He's a trader, and a trader has to keep accounts and collect information on deals. Those are things you can teach."

He thought for a moment and went on. "He teaches everyone how to trade, and you teach them how to organize trade information, maps, and records from the different settlements. Isn't that a good fit?"

Ruth froze, then looked at Marlin.

Marlin saw what Jack meant. "I can teach trading, and you can teach how to organize the information. Put together, it really would be more useful than either alone."

Ruth thought it over, and a smile finally appeared on her face. "In that case, we should try it."

Jack turned last to Leonard. "As for you, I really don't see what you're disappointed about."

Leonard looked puzzled. "What else could I teach?"

"You could teach with Oscar," Jack said. "He knows how to repair equipment, you know how to design and improve it. You'd complement each other."

Leonard blinked. He turned to Oscar, who happened to be looking back at him.

They studied each other for a moment, and then both their eyes lit up. Before long, they had their heads together, discussing what each of them could teach.

Jack watched the excited group and found it funny. He didn't interrupt any further and went back to the convenience store alone.

The next morning, Jack woke up and didn't see Megan. He assumed she was still asleep, so he didn't call her and went to the trading post by himself.

The moment he stepped under the canopy, he saw that almost everyone who had been there the night before was still there. They were sitting together around a table covered in sheets of paper filled with writing. They had clearly been discussing it for hours. Even Megan was in the crowd, talking to Hal.

Jack stood to one side and watched for a while, then felt his patience run out.

"Is all this really necessary?"

They looked up at him, and Elias picked up one of the sheets from the table.

"We had Hal help us put together a schedule. Each day is split into morning and afternoon. Each lesson lasts two hours, with breaks for meals and rest. Nothing in the evening, since people still have to take turns on guard."

Jack opened his mouth, but Elias kept going.

"Warren, Walter, Colt, and Grant will handle courses on construction, tools, equipment, and electrical work."

"Henry, Mort, and I will do training on going outside, survival, and guard duty. That includes the younger people, but also anyone else who's capable of going out. We'll start once the heat wave is over."

Elias flipped his paper over.

"Hal will teach basic chemistry, mainly things people can use day to day. Megan will teach nursing and first aid, and everyone has to take it."

He paused and continued. "Marlin and Ruth will cover trading and organizing information. Oscar and Leonard will teach equipment repair, design, and improvement together. If anyone else has a skill, they can report it to Hal first and we'll find them a time."

"That's all for now. Once we begin, we'll adjust as needed. The agricultural supply center will use the same schedule, and we'll see who's willing to come over or have the teachers take turns going there."

Jack looked at the schedule in Elias's hand, packed to the margins, then at the still-excited group. He couldn't find anything to object to.

"Okay, you've done a good job," he said. "But shouldn't you all be getting some sleep first? Aren't you tired?"

It was as if nobody heard him.

Jack waited a while. When no one paid him any attention, he opened his mouth, closed it, and decided to let them be.

He left the trading post and went to the shelter.

The person on duty made room as soon as Jack arrived. He walked over to a CUEV parked beside it, switched on the communication system, and contacted the agricultural supply center.

"Hello? Anyone there?"

After a brief burst of static, Justin's voice came through.

"I'm here. This is Justin."

"How's it going over there?" Jack asked.

"Great." Justin couldn't hide his delight. " The whole warehouse cooled down completely last night. It's even more comfortable than before the heat wave."

Jack smiled. "Good. Any problems with the equipment?"

"Not so far. All eight units are running normally."

"All right. Keep an eye on them, and call us if anything happens."

"Will do."

When the call ended, Jack stood in front of the shelter for a while and realized he had nothing else to do.

He went back to the trading post.

They were still deep in discussion. Jack watched for a few moments and shook his head helplessly.

If he couldn't talk them out of it, he wasn't going to try anymore.

He turned and walked to the planting area, switched on the hose, and began watering the withered trees he'd sprinkled with the gray-white powder the day before.

Before long, the Dustchucks and Gray-Eared Jump Hares nearby crowded around him. They pressed close and rubbed against his legs now and then. Jack looked down at them and suddenly felt playful. He turned the hose toward them.

The water splashed over the Dustchucks and Gray-Eared Jump Hares, and they didn't run. They moved closer to the stream instead. Several jump hares lay flat on the damp sand and let the water run over them, and the Dustchucks gathered beside them, shaking their bodies and flinging droplets everywhere.

Jack laughed and kept spraying them for a while.

After some time, one of the Dustchucks suddenly left the planting area, ran to the edge of the nearby pit, and jumped in.

The others followed one after another, and soon the pit was packed with Dustchucks.

Jack thought for a moment, shut off the hose, and went back to the convenience store. He took a bag of potatoes from the warehouse, found an empty box to put them in, and carried it outside.

The heat was as fierce as ever. Sunlight beat down on the sand, and the whole wasteland seemed to be on fire. Far in the distance, the scenery warped in the rising heat, stretching and blurring.

On the horizon, a huge dark shape had appeared.

It was moving slowly through the rolling heat haze toward him. It was too far away for Jack to tell what it was. All he could see was a broad band of shadow, clearly made up of many things.

It kept moving, and dust gradually rose from the sand behind it.

Jack's hands froze on the box.