Tepaz walked slowly up to the Star Priest Yak'tar, who was studying a scroll spread out on the stone table. It depicted the constellations as they appeared a thousand years ago. Next to it was a book of more modern construction showing more recent stars. He had a slate tablet to hand which he periodically made notes on. Scratching away at it with a stylus.
"Ah, Tepaz-Cuaqatec, my student. Have you finished that translation for me? It's been almost three weeks now. Olo'kor-Cuaqatec and Huatenq-Cuaqatec have already finished theirs."
Yak'tar continued looking at the map, shifting a couple of golden frogs he was using to keep the scroll open.
"I… I… Star Priest, I have been unable to make a full translations of the plaque. There are symbols I cannot divine the meaning of." the younger Skink quivered.
"Tepaz-Cuaqatec. I have checked the plaque you were assigned. We have been over every symbol that appeared on it, some of them, several times." The priest looked up and locked eyes to emphasis the last point. "You have not come to see me during the entire assignment. I checked your records at the archives and while you did visit it, once, you looked in entirely the wrong section."
"Oh, well in that instance-"
The Priest raised his voice in anger, cutting off Tepaz, "While learning the ways of the winds of magic, you failed to develop even the most basic illumination spells."
"But Star Priest, I have-"
His voice spoke even louder and more angrily, "And when giving a speech to the Temple Council as a part of your lessons in persuasion, you gave, by far, the worst oration I have ever heard from a student!"
The priest had absentmindedly picked up one of the golden frogs and was angrily tossing it up and down.
"And now, you come to me, a week late, and tell me that you are struggling with a simple translation!"
The Star Priest paced back and forth as he harangued his student.
"I am not one to question the gods," he continued, his words bouncing off the stonework of the study chamber, "but I do often question myself as to what I did to end up with a student like you!"
He thew the frog at the cowering Skink.
Huan-Ty snapped her eyes open. It had been a long time since she'd had that dream, or heard that name…
The first crack of dawn light filtered through the window to her office. The Skink's eyes opened and saw the grey concrete walls of her office, decorated with finely carved, gold plated mouldings set into the walls. A typical adaptation of an existing structure to the tastes of their new reptilian inhabitants.
The rusted light fixture was perhaps the one remaining indication that this building was a long-abandoned ruin before it became her workshop and office.
Her nictitating membrane blinked a few times before she pulled herself up from the nest of cushions she'd piled into the corner to sleep on. First things first was to review some of the new design notes from yesterday. A simplified form of the laser rifle technology to make the weapons easier to produce. She grabbed her datapad from amongst a pile of papers from her desk and went out to the balcony. With a nimble move she pulled herself up onto the tiled roof and laid down on her front. It was a perfect place to catch the warmth of Chotek's morning blessing.
By the time the sun had fully risen above the treeline the Chief Engineer finished the design revisions and was now trying to figure out how to schedule the most important things of the day. She needed to find time to oversee the restoration work at the steel mill. That was going to be vital to building and repairing these new weapons of war. A review of the current operating procedures in the mines would also be needed too. And also, she needed to go and see that tlazchomundi, Xi-Boc once again to convince him of the merits of Saurus in heavy industry. She'd see them out training, lifting useless lumps of rock to maintain their muscles. If only they could lift and move useful things. They were an untapped resource, to be sure.
"Uhh, Chief Engineer? Are you around?" a tremulous voice came from the balcony.
Huan-Ty put the datapad away and scrabbled across the roof to look down at the interloper
"What do you want?" Huan-Ty snapped. A young Skink stood, trembling on the balcony
"The, uhh, the Great Starseer, Tik'ol'tec has requested a meeting with you."
"And he didn't think to just message me?"
"I, I was just following orders."
They had unlocked all this wonderful technology during the time of the great exodus from the World That Was. The legacy of the great Old Ones had been furnished to them along with the mighty temple-ships they travelled within. Where once they made use of clay and stone tablets to keep records and complex weaves of string and beads to tally data, they were granted access to tablets of glass and light that could perform these functions and so many more. Where data was effortlessly transferred, copied and updated and messages could be sent instantaneously. Now that they had been planted again on firm ground, the old ways had come creeping back. Huan-Ty pinched the bridge of her snout, she would not let herself backslide.
"Tell him I'll be along directly"
The market was just opening up as the Chief Engineer marched through it. Cooking fires were being set up and various wares laid out. She mentally noted that the Turquoise merchant was back in town. She made a mental note to visit later to have her gold and bronze headdress encrusted to match her ceremonial robes. There was no official position of Chief Engineer in traditional saurian society so Huan-Ty was attempting to insert herself into the ranks normally held by Star Priests. With a combination of attitude and dress, it was currently working.
With the smell of cooking wafted above the market, the Skink crossed the Solar Plaza and acceded the stairs of the Temple of the Sun. On top stood a large and complex building. Before entering, she turned back to look at the Solar Plaza. The tiles materials and geometry were arranged in such a way that different patterns and colours shone through at different times of the day. It had been a long time since she had been up this early to notice this particular display. She nodded at the pleasing pattern of geometry and colours, she headed in to the temple proper.
Grand Starseer Tik'ol'tec, overseer of the capitol city Sotzalzan and therefor overseer of the whole civilisation on this world, stood in the temple's inner sanctum, waiting. Huan-Ty walked towards him, bowing her head and lowering her crest respectfully.
"Ah, my chief engineer. We need to discuss some urgent matters." he said to Huan-Ty's bowed form. The Starseer turned and started walking, indicating that she should follow.
"As you know, the quest to locate our lost Slann is moving at pace. Our observatory has already located some areas of interest in the heavens and construction of the Star Canoe fleet is well underway. We have however reached certain limitations…"
They descended deeper into the bowels of the temple, following increasingly ornate passage ways. They eventually ended up in a large, richly decorated hallway, with columns of sculpted limestone, inlaid with gold and many different kinds of gemstones. The flickering light of burning torches, set into crevices lent a strange and almost claustrophobic feeling to such a large space. Between each column stood two hulking Temple Guard warriors, clutching enormous halberds and wearing atop their heads, the skulls of some huge horned beasts of the Lustrian jungles.
Huan-Ty looked at each impassive face in turn. Each figure was almost twice her size and at least a century old. They stood in the same rigid pose, each one distinguishable only by its scars and gold adornments. As they reached the huge golden door at the end of the passage, the last two shifted, taking on a defensive stance. Huan-Ty heard Tik'ol'tec sigh loudly.
"Champion Yuk-Roq, must we do this every time?"
"Only those of the Star Priesthood are permitted to enter the Holy Chamber of Constellations." he said in a deep, throaty voice. The Temple Guard Champion was a brute among brutes. He wore ornate, golden armour inlaid with so many precious gems that the cuirass alone must have weighed as much as a Skink. The immense crest on his head had developed many spikes and protrusions over the centuries of growth and it was topped with the skull of a particularly fearsome creature. His small, yellow eyes were fixed on Huan-Ty and communicated the message that one step closer would result in her being crushed utterly by the huge Obsinite and gold pole-arm he held.
Tik'ol'tec closed his eyes for a moment, one hand rubbed his forehead in frustration.
"It's not even three measures past sunrise…" he muttered to himself. Then he spoke directly to the huge reptile, "I, Great Starseer Tik'ol'tec, proxy to the great Slann Lord Rarqamundalan, invest a exception upon this individual so that they may enter the Chamber of Constellations to attend to matters of the very Heavens themselves."
"Exception acknowledge." The Champion rumbled. After a moment the two Saurus returned to their simple guarding positions. The Starseer then pressed his hand to a small recess on one of the doors and they both began to ponderously swing open.
"I wish there was a way to reassign them. I don't even know where their barracks is. We've not had a Slann in the chamber for almost three decades now." the Starseer muttered as they headed inside.
Huan-Ty looked up and was, momentarily, awe-struck with the magnificence of the construction and ornamentation of the room. Stone bas-reliefs decorated with fine gold lines and inset gems covered almost every surface of the lower two thirds of the chamber. Strange lighting fixtures extended from the walls periodically, emitting a warm and steady glow. There were a few panels of mysterious controls placed at irregular intervals around the walls too. The thing that really drew in the Chief Engineer however was the gigantic hemispherical ceiling. It was finished is a finely polished dark stone and on it lay a star map of gems, each of which emitted a glow as if lit from behind. Connecting many of the stars were fine lines of gold and silver that painted an array of constellations that shone in the warm light against the black stone. Huan-Ty instantly recognised them as constellations as seen in the night sky above the World That Was.
She was about to turn her attention back to the Starseer when two things struck her. At first she noticed that the star ceiling was slowly moving, presumably in accordance with the movement of their current planet. The second thing was that the rotation of their current planet was somewhat perpendicular to the rotational axis of the Old World. It was a reflection of their position and orientation relative to their old home.The second, was that either the ceiling only represented a small part of the heavens, or there were some very clever mechanism going on behind the walls of this room.
"Chief Engineer? Chief Engineer!"
Huan-Ty snapped out of the reverie, the network of cogs and mechanisms that she was building in her mind collapsed.
"Yes, Starseer. For what purpose have you brought me here?" she asked.
"Well, there are a number of matters. The first of which concerns the stars, but not this star chart overhead. Impressive isn't it? Come over here."
The Starseer walked towards a large wooden dais where a hand-drawn star chart was sprawled across its entire surface. These stars seemed more familiar at least. They were a map of the heaves as seen in the night sky on this new world.
"The observatory has been upgraded many times and has been vital in locating a number of artefacts. We have, however reached the limits of what it can ascertain, at least on its own. Therefore, we have a proposal for the construction of an array of eight observatories. The Star Priests have drawn up designs for the layout of the array." Tik'ol'tec unrolled another smaller scroll, holding it in place with decorative golden frogs. The paper showed a series of nodes, connected by lines, forming complex geometric shapes. Huan-Ty began rotating such a network in her mind. Around it other, augmented ideas gathered, rotating like a mental solar system of interlinked thoughts.
"Well we would need to make sure there is enough land for such a wide array. Do you know how sensitive it is to geographic location?" The Chief Engineer asked.
"I do not, I will put you in contact with the Star Priest who has been in charge of the observatory's design. This will be your primary project over the next period. The architecture is being handled by another Priest, I need you to oversee the sites surveying and the mechanism designs for the observatory equipment."
"Of course."
The Starseer then moved away from the plans to stand further towards the centre of the room. Huan-Ty followed.
"What was the other matters you wished to discus, Starseer?" she asked.
"The other matters... Yes." He pivoted to look directly at the Chief Engineer. "It concerns the level of resources being spent on this steel mill project of yours and the efficacy of the work being done." He said in a more serious tone. He pulled out his datapad from a pouch on his belt.
"Progress is going well. We have already mapped at least fifty percent of the mechanisms and have restored some of the lesser machines to working order." She started.
Tik'ol'tec looked down at his datapad, pressing various parts of the screen. Huan-Ty felt the need to fill the silence, "The mine project was unexpected, yes, but it is a fortunate find. It makes the whole site more or less self-contained."
"Four dead and fifteen injured in the past moon cycle. Seven of them severely injured." Tik'ol'tec announced. He went on, "Twenty one dead so far this solar cycle, seventy three injured. Are these the kind of numbers I should continue to be seeing from this project?"
"It sounds largely within reason." She replied, lashing her tail but taking on the flat tone of someone discussing business, so as not to sound defensive. "The facility is at the very edge of Realmshaper Engine range. They are, of course increasing the range all the time so this number should decrease over time."
"The reports of shifts I've been told, eight to ten hours of exposure."
"Its a long project. There is a lot to do. You've read my reports yes? The Skinks have access to shielded helms that provides some level of protection."
"I have read those reports, but I am still asking if the level of sacrifice is worth the progress you have made so far."
Huan-Ty felt bile rise in her stomach. Her crest raised and reddened with rage. What would a mere stargazer know of the complex interlinked infrastructure and electromechanical workings of such a complicated facility? He said he read the reports, and yet he's questioning the necessity of the work? She then remembered the hallowed place they were in and the deference demanded by the Great Starseer's seniority. Her crest lowered a little.
"I am conducting the work the best way I can Starseer. "She said through gritted teeth, "Would you call into question the causeway construction projects if an errant block crushed a Skink foreman? Progress demands sacrifice and I am within the bounds you laid out for me."
Tik'ol'tec closed his eyes and breathed out. As the current rate of losses, she'd exceed that bound in the next two lunar cycles, but has not exceeded them at the current moment.
"Chief Engineer Huan-Ty. We have yet to activate the spawning pools. We have no way to replenish our numbers and we do not know how many of our number will be needed to retrieve the artefacts required to summon back the Slann. Keep this in mind as you conduct yourself on that project."
The sun was rising to its zenith as Huan-Ty marched purposefully away from the Temple of the Moon, having discussed matters with the Chief Astrologer there about the new observatory array. She made a short detour to the market to pick up some dragonfly dumplings before heading back to the workshop. She munched through them while looking over the shoulder of mechanics and engineers working on the latest vehicles and weapons that had been recovered. She pointed out mistakes and problems as she spotted them, before moving on to examine finished products that were ready to be distributed. The Chief Engineer then acceded the stairs to her office, passing by a large Saurus that stood next to the door. She called out to a young Skink, demanding it fetch her some Tlaxtlan coffee while holding out a stained ceramic cup. Huan-Ty then spent ten solid minutes reviewing designs on her workstation before someone knocked on the door. She called out for the interrupter to come in. It was the young Skink with the coffee. She took it from him.
"I've been told to let you know also that Ataxor one of Xi-Boc's Scar Veterans is here to see you about something." he quivered.
"Was it holding a sheet of parchment?"
"Yes, Chief Engineer."
"Then go fetch it! It's probably more change requests for the laser rifles..."
She didn't grumbled about the Old Blood Xi-Boc's use of antiquated messaging. The fact the Saurus could write and grip a scribing pen without crushing it was a miracle as far as she was concerned.
The Skink returned with the parchment. Huan-Ty took it and read it before taking a big swig of coffee. She made a groaning sound and carried the cup over to the window, pouring the rest of the contents out.
"This was not Tlaxlan coffee." she growled, thrusting the cup out to the young Skink.
"It was, it, uhh, I'll go get some more" he quivered in response.
"No! I'm going down to check progress on the steel mill. The Gods know they are always slacking when I'm not there. And I don't want to have Starseer Tik'ol'tec having another talk with me about progress!", she snatched up a bejewelled helm, her datapad and a tube of drawings before marching out the door. "Every day that goes by without that Mill operating is another day of toil like our ancestors!" she yelled as she marched down the stairs and out of the workshop.
As she marched towards the city's west gate, she looked at the gold helm. It was a thing of beauty and magic and status. But its primary use was the emission of a small ward that would protect the wearer from the toxic fumes in the edge zone. She thought about coming up with something that used conventional materials and could be mass produced. Magic could be unreliable. She had a couple of low ranking Skink priests in the work crew to help maintain these protective wards but the truth was that with no Geomantic Web, their once powerful magic was tenuous at best. She even doubted if the return of the Slann into a bodily form would do any good since their power was drawn from the deep magical reserves of the World That Was.
A work truck was driving past on its way to the Mill site. She hopped onto the running boards and clambered inside.
The work site was already busy when she arrived, hopping out the truck with the next shift. She placed the bejewelled helm on her head and secured it, touching the central crystal to activate it. This was the very edge of Realmshaper Engine range. The heavy pollution that blanketed the rest of the planet permeated through the growing jungle and made breathing unfiltered air hazardous.
The shift foreman ran up to her with a datapad. The chief engineer looked it over, comparing with notes on her own. They had made a lot of progress on the mining tunnels and equipment. There had also been issues in the main machinery hall however. A gantry had given way under a Kroxigor, killing it and two Skinks and seriously injuring several more. She gazed dispassionately at two stretchers covered in bloody blankets being loaded onto a truck. After transferring the data onto her own datapad, Huan-Ty entered the site proper. She visited the dozen or so teams working there, to advise on what to concentrate on and troubleshoot any issues. Finally she went to her own project on the site- the control office. Banks of computers lined the room on either side and several rows of control interfaces were positioned in the middle, all facing a huge display board. It had taken her two months to map out less than a quarter of the room and its equipment. She would need to get a whole team involved eventually if it was to be mapped out in any reasonable time but for now she busied herself with the intellectual purity of following wires and figuring out components from their inputs and outputs.
As she worked away, her mind began to wander. The work she was conducting was vital for the survival of their civilisation. Her kind were mortal however, and not blessed with the indefinite life of the Slann or Saurus. Skinks lived barely less than a century, for the non-magically inclined. She would have to start training an apprentice. Or a team of them. It'd mean that she'd start having to pay attention to the technicians and talk with them rather than just hand down orders. All those soft skills she had never been that good at were going to be needed.
"By Sotek!" Huan-Ty hissed under her breath. She had gotten distracted and lost track of the cable she had been following for the past fifteen minutes.
A mottled green and yellow Skink ran into the room, "Chief Engineer. The South Expedition team has discovered something significant and desires your instruction!" it quipped.
"A thousand curses upon you! I am never going to get anything done around here" she growled, extracting herself from the electrical access panel. The Skink messenger coward back as she advanced on it.
"I can tell them that you are busy?" It offered.
"No, no. Just let me gather my tools and we'll go see whatever it is they think is so important."
Huan-Ty stepped out of the truck and looked up at the tangled mass of pipes and smoke stacks. A path through the jungle had been cut but, at it's current rate of growth, would need to be cleared again in another week.
An alarm chimed from her helm, alerting her to high levels of toxic contaminants in the air. They were past the range of the Realmshaper Engine's range now. The air was hazy with ancient industrial pollution.
"This way" the mottled Skink said, leading her through the cleared path and into the enormous industrial building.
They passed by the towering hulks of dead machinery. Cables and chains hung like jungle vines. In amongst piles of junk and rust were discoloured bones.
A small gang of Skinks stood or squatted at the foot of a mass of pipes and cabled that stretched into the darkness overhead. The fell into line when they noticed Huan-Ty. One of them stood a little taller than the others and wore a slightly more ornate helm. It approached the Chief Engineer as she examined the scouts.
"Chief Engineer, I am Sutak, the squad leader. We have made an important discovery and require your advice."
"Do you know what kind of facility this is?" she snapped.
"I do not. But-"
"Then how do you know it is important enough to interrupt my work?"
"I, uhh-" Sutak stuttered.
"There is a switch yard on the other side of the facility. From your briefing, you said that this was the signs of a power generator." said one of the other Skinks in the squad.
"That's correct." Huan-Ty said. The crest of the Skink who spoke up turned a pale blue. "Well, let's not hang around here all day. Show me this discovery!" she then demanded.
"Of course, please, come this way." Sutak said.
The hall Huan-Ty was lead into, up a rusted stairwell was filled with semicircular devices. Thick coils of copper wire were visible through metal shrouds.
They were much larger versions of the small generators and dynamos she'd seen before. Much larger. The power just one of these could generate would be immense. There was a bank of twenty four of them.
"Did you find the control room?" Huan-Ty asked.
The other Skink nodded and pointed the way. The chief engineer pulled herself away from generators and followed along.
They move up a creaking, rusted stairway and then through a network of narrow corridors in various states of repair. Finally, they emerged into a crowded room, packed with equipment.
With the exception of the level of grime that coated every surface, it all appeared to be in a remarkably good condition. Huan-Ty wiped her finger on the glass of several gauges. But then something caught her attention. Deep in the gloom, something was emitting it's own light. She crept forward.
On a control panel, hidden behind some banks of machines a red light glowed unsteadily. A set of controls were arrayed out in a row on the panel. The labels were cracked and peeling off. They were in the old human script so they would not have been useful if they were intact. She should send for a translator, but it was getting late and her mechanical intuition was second to none. She wiped the grime off a few of the gauges, then selected a crank wheel on the left hand side. As she turned it, the gauge next to it began to move. She continued turning the crank slowly until the needle was within a green sector of the gauge. She did the same thing again with the crank wheel next to the first one. A deep rumbling came from all around. The other Skinks looked around nervously. Huan-Ty was deep in concentration. The next thing was to pull a huge leaver. It took some effort but it gave way at last and the whole room shuddered. The rumbling became louder and a whirring sound kicked in, its tone gradually increased. It seemed to correspond with another gauge, the needle crept up slowly, past different markings. When it got two thirds of the way around, the whirring had become a roar. Just before it started tipping into the red zone, she hit a huge button next to it.
The building shook again, violently.
"Chief Engineer, perhaps we should wait for a team of specialists?" Sutak trilled, clearly unnerved.
"Silence! I know what I'm doing" she snapped back.
The control room was coming alive with the whirring of ancient machines. A huge panel at the far end of the room lit up. There were many blinking lights, connected by faded lines of paint labelled by yet more human glyphs. She approached it, running a clawed hand over the pitted and rusted surface. In the middle was a large dial. It was turning at a steady rate anti-clockwise. A warning tone sounded from her helm of protection to alert her to an increase in dangerous pollutants. She dismissed it.
On one side of the dial was a rusted crank wheel, on the other a large knife switch. She crept over to the wheel. A clattering of clicks and hums were coming from behind the control panel. She gripped the crank wheel in both hands and started winding it. It resisted for a moment before turning in protest. The turning dial sped up. She paused for a moment and then started winding the crank the other way. The dial slowed. She kept turning, calling over to the other Skinks to help. After a few more turns the dial slowed and stopped in the upwards position. A light blinked on over the switch. There was clearly only one thing left to do. After a moment's hesitation, she punched it.
Sparks shot out of the tangle of thick cables on one side of the room. The sharp crackle and pop of lighting could be heard and every Skinks moved rapidly away from the equipment as more sparks shot out. They left quickly the way they had come. The huge generator hall was filled with a wall of noise. Sparks jetted out at random from several of them. It was only when they had gotten halfway down the hall that Huan-Ty noticed that she wasn't relying on the built-in light on her helm. The huge hall was lit dully with overhead lamps, as were the corridors they progressed through.
The Skinks squinted into the low-laying sun as it began to fade behind the treeline. Turning back to look at the building, several of the smoke stacks were now belching forth heavy black smoke. Dull red lights glowed on top of one. Light was glowing from several other ruins that lay about, shrouded in the gloom of the jungle's canopy. A few poles that lined the broken road they had travelled down were now also emitting light too. The Chief Engineer made a mental note for an idea to enhance the new causeways under construction. She hopped into the truck and instructed the other Sutak to drive her back to the steel plant.
"I need three shifts, around the clock at the northern industrial plant." she yelled at the site foreman as she jumped down from the truck. "Get me greasers, electrical specialists and a fire crew just in case. The steel plant is now second priority."
She looked up at the hulking vine-draped concrete forms of the steel plant. Unnatural light was glowing out from a few of the grimy windows. She smiled and then turned to one of the crew trucks.
"Are you heading back to the city?"
"Yes, sir, shift change"
Huan-Ty climbed aboard, squatting down amongst a host of exhausted and filthy Skinks. The truck rumbled off towards the city.
By the time it drove through the city gates darkness had descended. Huan-Ty leaped from the truck as it slowed to take a corner. She started walking rapidly back towards her workshop. Small crowds of lizardmen had gathered in various places to admire and speculate on the curious lights that had appeared. She marched into the main hall of the workshop, ignoring the questions asked by a few of her engineers. She went straight upstairs and shut herself into her office. The Chief Engineer slumped into the chair at her work desk and started writing up her findings. She looked up to see the flickering electrical lamp overhead. She tapped it a few times and it settled down to a steady glow. Finally, things were starting to take a positive turn. She hunched over her workstation and looked forward to a brighter tomorrow.