Chapter 271: Depth Concerns

The first thing that Kalli needed to do was to work on the underground cistern and drain system that she had considered during the flooding.

If she added enough storm drains within the city, they could receive a massive amount of rain without this level of flooding, and a little standing water in the streets was no real threat to Marimgar.

The only issue was that she did have to be careful about how the cisterns were constructed.

She couldn’t put them too deep because the hangar and hive city were beneath the whole city, and if she went deeper than that, it would be so far beneath the water table and ocean level that they would get constant backfilling.

While that might work if they needed questionably drinkable water, it would not help with the flooding situation, and they already had plenty of water supply for the hive city.

So, the cisterns would be created just beneath the city, and heavily reinforced, using the building creation feature.

They didn’t have to be the full width of the city by any means, just a pair of large chambers running the length of the city underneath a road. They would store water for general use, with a large storm drain door that could be mechanically opened when they needed to be emptied during a flood.

That would work out very well for them, and they would be able to dump a massive amount of water during major storms.

The design would require some additions, as the current street storm drains led to the common drainage system, with all of the other wastewater. But that shouldn’t be too big of an issue for the system.

Kalli sent the message to the civil engineers. Professor Tymon, Nigel and Fara.

They could work out the small details based on the design sketches that she had made, including the improvements to drainage rates and other considerations. That was their area of specialty, and it would keep them busy enough that they wouldn’t feel neglected.

In fact, they were likely already working on it, if they weren’t in the middle of helping clean up.

That was what almost everyone in town was doing, if they weren’t outside the city walls checking on the crops and collecting fish. Those teams were bringing a steady stream of cargo back to the Hall of Heroes, as nobody trusted fish that had been out in the sun after the flood, unless they were processed by the machine.

But many were also bringing back dead sea monsters that hadn’t been eaten.

Resources were resources, even if they weren’t food.

Overall, Kalli decided that they hadn’t taken any major damage today, other than to their outdoor food supplies. None of the greenhouses had suffered any damage, and the rainwater had filled their storage tanks, so they wouldn’t need to rely on the city’s water to account for evaporation in what was otherwise a closed system, with the water constantly recycled.

Kalli sent a message in the app, to get the attention of the runners.

{Need additional transport teams to bring fish to the hive city warehouses. Supplementary shipment to spread the windfall.}

That should bring people fairly quickly.

If not because the heroes were sick of cleaning, but because the people cleaning beside them would start begging soon. Everyone had seen the fish coming in by the wagon load, and even those who didn’t have a class assignment could feel the power radiating from them, despite the fish being hours dead.

In fact, Kalli didn’t even have to wait for the teams before people started coming to the hall.

A middle-aged man in green locally made coveralls took off his hat as he entered, and bowed politely to Kalli.

"Madam Coordinator, might it be possible to get some fish heads, bones and other scraps? I would like to make fish stock. It stores well, and if I make a large enough batch, we will be able to distribute it all through the hive city as soup stock. And then I can make fish sauce for seasoning, it will be wonderful."

His voice was a bit wistful, and Kalli chuckled a little at his earnest expression.

"Where are you from? Northern Kalka is my guess."

The man looked confused, then nodded. "Yes, Kayli in northern Kalka. A port city known for our vermicelli noodle soups and fish broth."

"Thought so. Where do you live now?"

"I just moved when I got approval to start a shop. So I’m in unit 103 of building 417 in the 48th sector of the hive city."

Kalli nodded. "Alright, can you carry what you need? Or should I have someone assist? You can likely head back to the shop with the next cargo delivery. Or I can earmark the supplies for you."

"If it’s possible, can I pick them now and carry them back? I’ve got a clean canvas bag to put them in, and they won’t go bad between here and the shop. Getting just the right ingredients is key to the flavour."

Kalli would take his word on that, all her sauces came from bottles.

At that moment, a group of twenty entered the Hall of Heroes. A five-person cargo escort team, and then fifteen Hive City residents who had been helping with cleanup.

"Ah, good timing. Gents, I’ve got plenty for you, just bring the carts here."

The warrior leading the team nodded, "They’re outside already. We stopped to grab them from the elevator area."

Then he gestured to the others with him. "These are new candidates for topside. They’re all level 0 now, according to the System."

"Congratulations. I will arrange the transfer. Do you have family in the hive? If you do, you can stay, it’s not mandatory to move. But your status will change, and you’ll be able to take the quests for points.

I’ve got a guidebook on the best ways to reach level 1."

The warrior looked startled. "When did you get time to make that?"

"I didn’t. The computer compiled it from the comment threat of the apps’ chat groups."

It had come to her as part of a daily activity summary, and there were dozens more like it, just waiting for someone to check them for validity.