30th Trial of Ashan during Arc 721
Earlier, it had been storming like Chrien herself was berating them. Now, it was freezing.
She looked at Lars, the ranger in Hopetoun who she worked with the most, and she spoke to him with a very genuine sense of calm. "Right. In this cold, people lose toes an' fingers. I want you to get everyone together so I can talk to them," Lars nodded. "Darius isn't here or he would. Astra is on the boats, an' I've got experience of this kind of stuff. I jus' want to help." He nodded and Vega added. "Bring them here, to my camp. I'll make sure we've got warmth." They did, because Vega and Arlo were very - very - prepared for this. While Lars got all the people together, Vega made sure that the orange sand bags were circling the outside of the camp and that the heated stones from the fire, wrapped in blankets and so on were there. Spare blankets, spare clothes - and, of course, hot drinks.
She kept herself busy getting that all sorted and then when most of the people were there, Vega stood up and started to talk. "I know this is right unnervin', an' some of you are worried. Darius an' Arlo are off protectin' the island, an' we need to make sure that Darius comes back an' we all have managed great. So, I'm goin' to explain to you about the cold." She paced a little, then turned to look at them. "Layers of clothes are what you need. Because heat is good, but if you get to the point where you start to sweat, then you're in more trouble. Because sweatin' cools your body down." She smiled. "An' also, it freezes an' eventually, you'll get stinky." There were some smiles there. This was good, she knew, it was what people needed.
"So, ideally, we'll all be wearin' four layers, what can be taken off an' regulated as needed." She nodded. One of the settlers lifted their hand, almost like they were in school, Vega thought. "Yes?"
"Do you mean four layers of winter clothes?"
Vega shook her head. "No, no I don't. That's a really good point. I mean somethin' thin. Somethin' that will keep your temperature cool against your skin. Then, on top of that somethin' a little bit warmer, an' on top of that is the big heat." She showed them, then, her own set up. "So, I've got thin stockin' on my legs, look. They're comfortable, not itchy, an' not likely to make me sweat. Then, a pair of thin leggin's, an' then thick trousers." And she was wearing skirts over that. "My socks are thick, too. You get it?" There were nods all around.
"Right. You need to cover your skin. As much of it as you can. Hands, face, mouth an' nose especially because you don't want to freeze internally, an' hats on your heads. You should keep movin' if you're outside, an' your body will get hungry in this cold, hungrier than normal." She looked around and spied Selena, then, the settlement's cook. "Selena, I want you to make a really big pot of stew an' as many Faldrass potatoes as you can. Hot chocolate, too, it's got loads of energy in it, an' we'll need that."
Thinking things through, she looked at Lars, "How are we doin' for supplies?" Lars thought about it. "Good. We could manage quite a few trials on what we have." Vega nodded. "I need volunteers to get on the plants. These bags, the orange sand. Lay them down an' make sure that the plants are kept warm. Reese," she looked at her cousin. "You take five people an' get on that. Animals, plants."
"Look after the chickens!" One of the settlers called and there were chuckles around.
"I love those chooks, they're my girls!" Vega grinned. People needed to be in good spirits, she had to make sure of that. "Alright. Selena, check on your supplies, an' make a list of anythin' you need. If you need huntin' trips, Lars an' I will go."
