34
It was early morning and a light rain made things… safe.
Ianto was outside the compound with a wheel barrow collecting large stones from the fields around them, humming softly to himself as on the far side of the compound a large digger swung in an arc to bite out more dirt, and then place it on the ground on the same side as the wall's eventual build.
Mickey loved heavy machinery and once Ianto and he were up and moving, they were out there. It was the third day of work and it was moving along smoothly, the digger almost done while Ianto's work was not even halfway through, everyone else willing and able to help soon would be out there collecting as well. As the day rolled they would head in and the afternoon would be spent working on the verandah/lookout post while Ianto worked with what everyone had gathered.
Ianto rolled the barrow over to the long pile of dirt, tipping out the large assorted stones before looking at the three barrow loads waiting already and then he began to carefully place them along the bottom of the pile at a meter length, then he went over to the mixing area and pulled back a tarp to reveal some bags of quick drying cement. He soon had a bucket full of cement, placing a lid on it so the light rain didn't do too much damage. He then went back to the spot he was working on, the ten meters of wall behind him already at waist height.
He cemented the stones, and then placed more on top, the large football sized stones joined by smaller ones to fill space until he was happy.
"Hey, you gonna stop for a midmorning break?" Jack called out and Ianto peered over the pile of dirt to find his partner on the other side, the hammer in his hand he had been using to drive metal stakes into the back side pile in order to help it maintain some stability while the sheets of corrugated iron were slid in between the stakes and dirt as well. Jack had argued they could do this both sides but Ianto argued that the Bugs could see that too and knew it was both new and able to be damaged by yanking on the tin or spikes. Of course he was right. A stone wall was both impenetrable and impressive to see. Owen wanting it so he could have a castle wall to go with his moat.
"I want to get rid of this bucket first, you know I hate wasting cement when it was so hard to get" Ianto replied, the skirmish homestead they had visited had been sad to see, animals dead in their stalls and a feeling of death in the air. The Bugs had rampaged, the door slashed open and the black splatters up the walls had been human blood at some stage. Ianto had Noped out of there, not wanting to rummage.
"Need more stones?"
"I have another wheelbarrow full here waiting for me" Ianto replied with a soft smile, showing his appreciation for the offer when he knew Jack wanted to hammer something.
"Well, I can see the goblin king dancing about trying to get our attention" Jack said and Ianto looked past him to find Owen waving his arms from the middle of the compound while shouting that it was foodage time.
"You know… his obsession with making this place like a castle is crazy. Goblin King is a good title I guess but he still wants to push the Lone Wolf Pack thing" Ianto laughed, then turned and whistled, the dog exploding from a far tree line to run to her beloved master. She was their early warning system, her fear and hatred of Bugs making her run to him if one was in the area. Giving them plenty of time to get inside the compound and quiet.
"Mica is looking for you, I can hear her calling" Jack said and the dog seemed to understand, running for the compound and with a giant leap, she cleared the cattle stops and headed for the houses.
Ianto was soon finished and after he washed his hands on a bucket of water… several were peppered around outside in case of a sneak attack… he headed in with Jack, Mickey had already stopped and inside the compound as well.
As they passed an old tractor, Jack hit a switch and it chugged to life, lifting the cattle stops and basically closing the gates while also showing the ditch Mickey was digging would indeed make a nice wide moat.
"You OK?" Jack asked softly
"Yeah, just hot." Ianto replied.
"You certainly are Doctor Jones" Jack leered reaching his arm out and pulling Ianto close, deliberately letting his hand touch the burn scar. Ianto did not react, showing that there was no pain there. Jack inspected it while Ianto was asleep, the knowledge that those claws could provide such nastiness made him paranoid that he might wake up next to a pod person or something.
"We do need more piping" Ianto said after a while, "I actually think it might blow the entire thing apart."
"So, what do you suggest as a compromise that will please them?" Jack asked.
"Well… you know how some spouting is metal?"
"Hmmm."
"If we take the spouting from the next couple of homesteads that hopefully have metal flashing, and then lay it on the top… we can create like… a stream of oil. Light the entire thing up. Then we can keep pouring it in from a slightly elevated spot inside the compound." Ianto surmised, making Jack stop in his tracks.
"wow" Jack finally started to walk again "Owen will love that. Might dance naked while it all burns."
"Yeah, I know. He is… extra."
"Yeah, but he is cute enough to keep anyway" Jack kissed Ianto's' earlobe and they went inside to wash up and eat, Ianto always sure to scrub one more for courtesy even if he washed like a wild man outside.
So, they could need a couple more recons.
And that driptorch. Why not just go to the firehouse and pull shit apart there? Load it up and bring it all back? The extra fuel for the driptorches could do in the mini-moat on the wall too. By the time Jack realized this was Ianto's plan all along he had been th eone that said it out loud to everyone and been agreed with like it was all his idea.
Oh Doctor Jones… you do handle me too.