Thread: Under the ice
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Old September 10th 17, 07:47 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.community
cshenk
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Posts: 2,427
Default Under the ice

cshenk wrote in rec.pets.cats.community:

Community Kitties wrote in rec.pets.cats.community:

Once everybody has teleported back to the Antarctic community's
main

tunnels, Lars dashes off. A few minutes later a large, very fluffy
kitty appears.

Lars: Hi, efurrybody. Dis is Fernando, him is da mayor of
IceVillage.

Fernando, dis is Francesca da
Fierce, an dis is Rebecca, an Aed, an Morgana, an Ranger, an

DaisyChan, an Iowna, an Cash. Dey all
rescued usses!


Fernando: Hihi, firiends. Fangu for bring dem home, We had been

trying to fink of ways to get them
home, but hadn't come up wif any ideas yet. Ms. Fierce, Lars says
dat

you flew da big catacopter. Is dat
da Harri Roadcat logo I saw on da side?


Francesca: Yep, dat is one of the late Harri Roadcat's fleet. We

bringed it cuz it was big enough to carry
a lot of kitties and a lot of supplies. We din't know of you guys
was

ok wif your food supplies, an we
bringed some tools too.


Aed: Fernando, I come from the Second World Community - we live in
a

realm under the earth and we
have visited most of the known kitty communities. Our legends
mention

a community that lived under
the ice and snow, but it also says that we lost contact many

generations ago. Would that by any chance
be your catmunity?


Fernando: I fink so! Our history tells us about a time when we
were

free to leave this world of tunnels
and caves and visit all over, but the ice tunnel that we passed

through to get out of this area collapsed
a furry long time ago. Our historians haf found what dey fink is
da

tunnel that was used, but no matter
how much digging we do we never clear away enough ice. We has

colcanic steam heat to keep our l
iving quarters comfy, but when we try to run steam hoses to da

collapsed tunnel da steam gets too cold
to help by da time it gets to da ice wall.


[Francesca disappears quietly]


Did I hear one of youz talking about holding a party or somefing

here? We duz haf a great ballroom dat
we luv to use. Would it be big enuf for youz?


[Moments later Francesca returns, dragging a couple of portable
teleporters with her ]

Fernando: Mz Fierce, what is doze fings?

Francesca: Call me Francesca, please. Deze are teleporters. We can
use dem to allow you to melt the collapsed ice out of your tunnel.

Fernando: Really? Do dey get hot?

Francesca: Nope. I'll show you. Please lead the way to shere your
collapsed tunnel is.

[ Fernando leads the assembled group deeper into the ice shelf. The
air remains reasonably warm, as an overhead pipe seems to be
radioating some heat. Several turns later, Fernando stops at the
foot of a whole lot of fallen ice.

Francesca whistels a little bit as she sets up and adjusts one of
the portable 'porters then makes some notes.]

Francesca: Ok, that end is done. Now please lead the way to your
source of your steam.

[ Fernando again leads teh group of kitties through what feels like
miles of tunnels. As they walk, the kitties see side rooms with
sleeping pads, rooms set up with kitten toys, workshops, some rooms
with scientific equipment, a couple of machine shops, and other
rooms with closed doors. They finally walk into a large room with a
steamy atmosphere.

Francesca see some pools of steaming water with kitties soaking in
them, and near the center of the room a large pipe disapperas into
the ice floor. The large pipe splits into several smaller pipes, one
of which has a hose fitting. This pipe has a heavily insulated hose
attached to it.

Francesca set up the second portable 'porter just in front of the
coiled-up hose. She makes a few adjustments and makes aa few more
notes.]

Francesca: Ok, Mister Mayor, we'z ready to go. I see some worker
kittehs over there. Could you perhaps spare them for a little while?

[Fernando whistles to attract the attention of the worker kittehs,
then gestures for them to come over. ]

Francesca: Hi! Could you please pick one end of dat hose and follow
me?

[The first worker kitty grabs the end of the hose. Francesca steps
into the mouth of the 'porter. The worker kitteh looks surprised,
but follows her. When he comes out the other side immediately in
front of the collapsed ice wall he is startled.

Francesca steps back through the porter, and when she emerges on the
other side she signals to the other worker kitty to open the steam
valve. As the valve is opened, everybody hears a startled meow from
the first worker kitty. When Francesca steps back through the porter
(with everybody tagging along behind), she sees the first worker
kitty directing the steam hose at the collapsed ice wall, quickly
melting the ice.

Fernando opens a catellite phone and makes a brief call. Moments
later a burly large kitty comes running up to the group.]

Fernando: Miz - er, Francesca, dis is Angus. He's our chief
engineer.

[Francesca and Angus touch noses.'

Angus: How is it that this rig is getting hot steam all the way over
here? When we;ve tried this before the steam always cools before it
travels this far.

Francesca: Itz simple. We use dese teleporters. Da hose goes in da
far side then comes out dis side, and when it gets here da steam has
only travlled the distance from the source to the first 'porter,
then distance from da second 'porter to the ice wall. Voila, hot
steam!

[Angus draws Francesca aside to talk about teleporters. ]

Fernando: Wow, we might akchooly be able to use dat tunnel again
soon - cool! While dey are working on dat, can I show all of you
kitties around?


Zoot, Clem and Cleo follow Daisy-Chan to a melty spot along the
tunnel. They start digging. Soon others join in. Zoot is
particuarily good at moving melty snow to the side to make rails.
Iowna checks and has them reinforced as they go along.

Cash meantime works with 2 local kittahs to shape the ice to fit along
the walls and make a rail for the outer viewing chamber that looks to
the sky.

Others snag the freed up ice and make stairs along the slope to the
tunnel.

Slowly a stair well with steps develops down to the tunnel that
collapsed. It has one addition it never had before. A sort of slolum
channel to the side and ready to go so the Penguins can make a visit
in their own style!

As the steam works from the inside, more and more melty slush becomes
available...

Iowna shivvers though as a bit of ice falls. They need to reinforce
the tunnel. She thinks hard then an idea appears. She grabs
Franchesca for a consult.

They need an arch with hard ice in wedges, cut just so, to keep the
new opening able to hold the weight of the snow/ice above. Iowna
draws out plans and rhwy start cutting the right ice to angles and
keystones.


Zoot gathers some buddies around Iowna. They help cut ice to blocks.
Iowna explained they need old hard ice, not new snow ice.

They chop it and scoot it with their feets. Daisy-chan and bitty
kitties use their claws to shape it. Keystones are carefully slid in to
hold it all in place then they start the next set. This tunnel will
not collapse again once they dig it out.

They now have 12 feet of an estimated 20 archway that needs to be done.
They can hear kittah feet on the other end removing slush as steam
warms it.

Cash as emergency deputy doggie uses a cataporter to the other side and
explains arches. A very important kittah inside has him bring Iowna in
to show arch stones.

Iowna and Daisy-chan port over and show it and production starts on the
inner side.

Iowna shivvers and the venerable kittah notes it. He's a bit chilled
too. 'Hi, I am Roscoe. We've been here so long, that I am not sure
what you are but maybe old legends say you are a rescue doggie?'

Iowna sniffs Roscoe in a friendly way then a bare lick at the nose and
nodds. She starts to speak but a big sneeze happens first then she
shivvers a bit.

Roscoe takes her to a warm pool of water for a drink, then a soft bed
of blankets made of cat fur pounded to felt and covered with a knitted
blanket. Roscoe yawns as Iowna cuddles in and decides he's not a
racist so cuddles in with her to keep her warm. His last thought that
night as he cuddles into her warmth (and her into his) is that the
tunnel will be safe and open when they wake up. The music of their
purrs and snores is unique there but it fits.

ssnnnooozzzeee


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