57 Vhalar 719 – Gated Community (Part 2)
Continued from Part 1...
While they had begun the project of the bridge gate on the clear day of the 55th, the 56th was dismal and rainy. Only two of the volunteers showed up, and Ted didn’t want to work on the door to the gate in the rain because it would damage the wood. Even though they knew what they were doing now, they probably only got half as much done as the previous day.
But Brent thanked the spirits when the next day dawned clear. It was getting colder and the last of the harvest was in full swing in preparation for the Svarielle Harvest Festival, but it was only further motivation to get this next stage of the defences complete.
However, when Brent and his brother Ted returned to the construction site at the bridge, Brent was aghast to see what had happened. They had previously managed to get the frame of the gate in, along with several paces of timber wall on either side. But now some of the wooden posts were bent this way and that, as if people had actively tried to break apart the work they had done. There was even one timber that was completely flat with a mess of dirt where it had been originally lodged in the ground.
Who would have done such a thing?
Fortunately, the massive frame that would hold the gate was unscathed, although by the torn up earth around the main posts, it looked like there had been an attempt to ruin it too. Instead, there was a note nailed into the wooden column.
May our Aesir guide us, the Ragnari protect us, and the Spirits bless us. F*** your stupid wall!
Brent paced the ground fuming. How could they be so ignorant? The wall was not some barrier meant to divide the village, it was a means to protect the people should another raid happen. Did these people care more about their ideals than keeping their neighbours safe? What if the Ragnari weren’t here when the next raid happened? They might arrive and people could already be dead!
Brent clenched and unclenched his hands appalled that the people he was trying to help were the ones doing the backlash. Ted surveyed the condition of the wall and assessed the damage. It looked worse than it was, which was a testament to the strength of it so far.
“Brent,” the elder brother said in a serious tone. “You can’t win with everyone, and besides, we already have the Aesir’s blessing for this. If a bunch of villagers can do this much damage to the gate and wall, then it just shows that we need to build it better and stronger with more reinforcement. Afterall, if it can’t withstand a bunch of righteous villagers, what chance does it have helping us defend against southern raiders?”
By now Brent had calmed down, and he could see the wisdom in his brother’s words. This had been their first test and they could have done better. Now was their opportunity to improve.
As their small group of half a dozen volunteers trickled in, Brent explained the situation and how they were going to build the wall stronger than they had before. He left the note on the massive frame as a reminder of what they had to contend with. It was time to get to work.
Brent rallied the men to fix the damage that had been done. Some of it just involved straightening the wooden posts, but in certain places they had to dig out the foundations again and pack down the soil so it would be stable. The rain had also muddied the earth around the timber posts, so Brent made and effort to reinforce the foundations by packing down more earth where it wasn’t as strong.
As Ted separated himself to make measurements for the door and lay out the boards, he asked Brent to start nailing smaller cross-bars to the vertical timbers, so that they would be connected horizontally. This way a single post couldn’t be bent out of shape, unless the entire wall was pushed over.
Using smaller pieces of wood that used to be tree branches, Brent lined it up horizontally and began nailing it to the wall so that each vertical post had at least one nail connecting it to the cross-bar. He directed the other volunteers to do something similar to the wall on the other side of the gate. Brent tried his hand at adding another form of resistance and angled a branch so it would dig into the ground but be connected to the wall at an angle. This way, it would act like a brace in case the raiders tried to tip the wall over from the outside. It was hard to get the angle and length just right, but eventually he managed to wedge it up tightly against the wall and secure it with a couple of nails.
By now Ted Forrester had fashioned most of the big wooden double door that would serve as the gate. Brent was a little disappointed that he hadn’t been able to help much, but it was Ted who was the better carpenter and knew how to join boards together in a precise and accurate manner. Ted was just finishing up fastening the enormous hinges to the sides of each door as Brent arrived to help.
“We’ll need it level, and off the ground just enough so it can swing but not so much that people will try squeezing underneath.” Ted explained.
Brent lifted one of the wooden doors along with another volunteer and held it so that the edge with the hinges was next to the gate’s frame. After a bit of eyeballing and Ted making gestures for them to adjust the orientation of the door, the elder brother finally attached the hinges to the frame. It swung! The door of the gate swung!
Almost giddy with their success, Brent aligned the other door next to the first. It was a tight squeeze, but he was glad that Ted had made the appropriate measurements to ensure it would fit. Plus, it was better to be snug to ward off anyone attacking. With both doors on, it was looking far more like a gate. Brent helped his brother attach the iron cross bar with the iron holder thing so that it could be locked. There weren’t exactly handles for the door, but normally the gate would be open, except when it needed to be locked down in an emergency. Brent checked that the ground was smooth under the gate, and tried swinging it a few times to check that it wouldn’t catch on anything.
The gate to the bridge was up and working, now all they had to do was finish the semi-circular wall to tie into the river bank. The team worked with renewed effort wanting to complete this portion before letting anyone have a go at ruining the wall. Deep trenches were dug and new timbers were put in place. Brent used an axe, this time, to help sharpen the wooden posts so they would go deeper into the ground. Cross beams were added on the inside, nailing the posts together, and when the curvature was especially tight multiple rows of short but overlapping cross beams were constructed.
As they got to the river’s edge, Brent wasn’t sure how far to go. What if the water level went down? And what if it went up? At least he had planned to continue the wall along the river’s bank to account for this, and any potential attackers who decided it was better to cross the river than mess around with the bridge and the gate.
Ultimately, they added timber posts about six feet into the water, beyond the river’s edge. That should account for any fluctuations in the water level and also not block any normal water passage of boats or rafts. It was trickier to work in the water, not only because it was submerged but also due to the soils being weaker. Hence to compensate, they dug the trench deeper and added extra wooden braces that dug into dry land.
They had done it. The gate was up. And if anyone was still opposed, they could speak to the Aesir about it. Plus it would withstand any simple vandalism from disgruntled neighbors. With a grand gesture, Brent swung open the gates. They would remain open for anyone to cross the bridge, but now Alivilda had the option of protecting herself, the ability to seal her gates, and the promise of safety and sanctuary.
As Brent and Ted packed up the tools for the construction, Brent found himself looking forward to the upcoming Harvest Festival. They were by no means done with Alivilda’s defences, but they had made great progress. The rest of the wooden wall was the last step and might take the longest. Still, with almost a skip in his step, Brent made his way home from the long day of work.
Continued from Part 1...
While they had begun the project of the bridge gate on the clear day of the 55th, the 56th was dismal and rainy. Only two of the volunteers showed up, and Ted didn’t want to work on the door to the gate in the rain because it would damage the wood. Even though they knew what they were doing now, they probably only got half as much done as the previous day.
But Brent thanked the spirits when the next day dawned clear. It was getting colder and the last of the harvest was in full swing in preparation for the Svarielle Harvest Festival, but it was only further motivation to get this next stage of the defences complete.
However, when Brent and his brother Ted returned to the construction site at the bridge, Brent was aghast to see what had happened. They had previously managed to get the frame of the gate in, along with several paces of timber wall on either side. But now some of the wooden posts were bent this way and that, as if people had actively tried to break apart the work they had done. There was even one timber that was completely flat with a mess of dirt where it had been originally lodged in the ground.
Who would have done such a thing?
Fortunately, the massive frame that would hold the gate was unscathed, although by the torn up earth around the main posts, it looked like there had been an attempt to ruin it too. Instead, there was a note nailed into the wooden column.
May our Aesir guide us, the Ragnari protect us, and the Spirits bless us. F*** your stupid wall!
Brent paced the ground fuming. How could they be so ignorant? The wall was not some barrier meant to divide the village, it was a means to protect the people should another raid happen. Did these people care more about their ideals than keeping their neighbours safe? What if the Ragnari weren’t here when the next raid happened? They might arrive and people could already be dead!
Brent clenched and unclenched his hands appalled that the people he was trying to help were the ones doing the backlash. Ted surveyed the condition of the wall and assessed the damage. It looked worse than it was, which was a testament to the strength of it so far.
“Brent,” the elder brother said in a serious tone. “You can’t win with everyone, and besides, we already have the Aesir’s blessing for this. If a bunch of villagers can do this much damage to the gate and wall, then it just shows that we need to build it better and stronger with more reinforcement. Afterall, if it can’t withstand a bunch of righteous villagers, what chance does it have helping us defend against southern raiders?”
By now Brent had calmed down, and he could see the wisdom in his brother’s words. This had been their first test and they could have done better. Now was their opportunity to improve.
As their small group of half a dozen volunteers trickled in, Brent explained the situation and how they were going to build the wall stronger than they had before. He left the note on the massive frame as a reminder of what they had to contend with. It was time to get to work.
Brent rallied the men to fix the damage that had been done. Some of it just involved straightening the wooden posts, but in certain places they had to dig out the foundations again and pack down the soil so it would be stable. The rain had also muddied the earth around the timber posts, so Brent made and effort to reinforce the foundations by packing down more earth where it wasn’t as strong.
As Ted separated himself to make measurements for the door and lay out the boards, he asked Brent to start nailing smaller cross-bars to the vertical timbers, so that they would be connected horizontally. This way a single post couldn’t be bent out of shape, unless the entire wall was pushed over.
Using smaller pieces of wood that used to be tree branches, Brent lined it up horizontally and began nailing it to the wall so that each vertical post had at least one nail connecting it to the cross-bar. He directed the other volunteers to do something similar to the wall on the other side of the gate. Brent tried his hand at adding another form of resistance and angled a branch so it would dig into the ground but be connected to the wall at an angle. This way, it would act like a brace in case the raiders tried to tip the wall over from the outside. It was hard to get the angle and length just right, but eventually he managed to wedge it up tightly against the wall and secure it with a couple of nails.
By now Ted Forrester had fashioned most of the big wooden double door that would serve as the gate. Brent was a little disappointed that he hadn’t been able to help much, but it was Ted who was the better carpenter and knew how to join boards together in a precise and accurate manner. Ted was just finishing up fastening the enormous hinges to the sides of each door as Brent arrived to help.
“We’ll need it level, and off the ground just enough so it can swing but not so much that people will try squeezing underneath.” Ted explained.
Brent lifted one of the wooden doors along with another volunteer and held it so that the edge with the hinges was next to the gate’s frame. After a bit of eyeballing and Ted making gestures for them to adjust the orientation of the door, the elder brother finally attached the hinges to the frame. It swung! The door of the gate swung!
Almost giddy with their success, Brent aligned the other door next to the first. It was a tight squeeze, but he was glad that Ted had made the appropriate measurements to ensure it would fit. Plus, it was better to be snug to ward off anyone attacking. With both doors on, it was looking far more like a gate. Brent helped his brother attach the iron cross bar with the iron holder thing so that it could be locked. There weren’t exactly handles for the door, but normally the gate would be open, except when it needed to be locked down in an emergency. Brent checked that the ground was smooth under the gate, and tried swinging it a few times to check that it wouldn’t catch on anything.
The gate to the bridge was up and working, now all they had to do was finish the semi-circular wall to tie into the river bank. The team worked with renewed effort wanting to complete this portion before letting anyone have a go at ruining the wall. Deep trenches were dug and new timbers were put in place. Brent used an axe, this time, to help sharpen the wooden posts so they would go deeper into the ground. Cross beams were added on the inside, nailing the posts together, and when the curvature was especially tight multiple rows of short but overlapping cross beams were constructed.
As they got to the river’s edge, Brent wasn’t sure how far to go. What if the water level went down? And what if it went up? At least he had planned to continue the wall along the river’s bank to account for this, and any potential attackers who decided it was better to cross the river than mess around with the bridge and the gate.
Ultimately, they added timber posts about six feet into the water, beyond the river’s edge. That should account for any fluctuations in the water level and also not block any normal water passage of boats or rafts. It was trickier to work in the water, not only because it was submerged but also due to the soils being weaker. Hence to compensate, they dug the trench deeper and added extra wooden braces that dug into dry land.
They had done it. The gate was up. And if anyone was still opposed, they could speak to the Aesir about it. Plus it would withstand any simple vandalism from disgruntled neighbors. With a grand gesture, Brent swung open the gates. They would remain open for anyone to cross the bridge, but now Alivilda had the option of protecting herself, the ability to seal her gates, and the promise of safety and sanctuary.
As Brent and Ted packed up the tools for the construction, Brent found himself looking forward to the upcoming Harvest Festival. They were by no means done with Alivilda’s defences, but they had made great progress. The rest of the wooden wall was the last step and might take the longest. Still, with almost a skip in his step, Brent made his way home from the long day of work.
Imagery
