1st Day of Spring,523A.V.
Quzon the Mill Operator arrived at work early in the morning, performing chores necessary around the sawmill to maintain an aura of cleanliness. The bulk of his chores consisted of cleaning up errant piles of sawdust that piled up around the mill’s carriage from the prior days’ work which could disrupt the movements of the carriage that guided uncut logs forward into and away from the spinning circular sawblade.
The typically semi-nudist Half-Isur forwent only wearing a loincloth and vest today by instead wearing layers of clothing. The legs of his moisture resistant Isuas pants were tucked into his boots, his long sleeved Isuas shirt tucked into his pants, and the sleeves of his sleeves were likewise tucked into the wrists of spiked gauntlets that protected his hands. He maintained a sense of normality by wearing his leather vest over the top of his shirt. The only skin he had on display while working was that of his broad neck and face.
The Mill Operator never knew when Lars wanted to take him along with groups of Ashta into the jungle on short trips to scout out or retrieve suitable lumber, but he was dressed for the occasion as his work uniform was also his survival attire. Quzon’s gauntleted hands held the haft of a shovel as he scooped up a small pile of sawdust to turn on his heels to toss the wood shavings into the larger sawdust heap.
He set the shovel aside while glancing over at Lars to watch as the human male laid atop the back of an Ashta, lazily hugging himself against the back of the hulking creature’s head while it playfully marched around the Sawmill. Quzon continued to clean as he left the typically very busy Lars to enjoy his free moment of bonding with the Ashta. Half of a bell passed before Lars rode over atop the Ashta to watch Quzon clean. The Ashta lifted its long trunk to tussle at Lar's hair causing the human to pat at the trunk to shift it aside.
"Rot develops when the wooden foundations of the mill come into direct contact with a source of moisture. Rain and humidity are not a big problem for wood deterioration with adequate coverage." He said while pointing to the overhead canopy. Quzon glanced up to the ceiling for a moment after the gesture before setting the shovel to listen to his milling mentor. "The real problems come from Mill debris. Wet sawdust for example, if allowed to accumulate, becomes spongy moisture farms that over time lead to rot. That's why I have you remove sawdust regularly from around the mill foundation before we get to work."
Quzon nodded, double checking around the foundation of the sawblade before giving an nodding gesture to his boss to show that things were all clean. He struggled with the common tongue and chose not to speak it if he did not need to, which Lars knew well enough of his often strong but silent employee. "Run the carriage." Lars said with a cant of his head towards the mill controls while sliding off the side of the Ashta to dismount it.
The Ashta in the area distanced themselves from the sawmill proper as Quzon walked to a lever, then pressed it forward by a few inches. A loud clanging of chains spooling up began to emit from the underside of the carriage as the waterwheel spun, transferring power along various axles and pulleys, until it forced ones linked by metal chains attached to the carriage to pull it slowly forward roll it forward towards the circular saw.
Lars gestured a hand for Quzon to send it backwards as the Master Miller examined the machinery for any problems. Quzon pulled the lever backwards into a neutral stance then continued to pull it backwards. A metal click happened as gears shifted distant axle to spin in the opposite direction. The carriage in response moved back to return to its previous position. "All good?" Quzon questioned with in common with a voice thick with a heavy Myrian accent while shifting the lever back into a neutral upright position. "Looks all good to me." He said while waving Quzon over to look at the wheels of the carriage. He walked over to take a knee right next to where Lars pointed at the tracks. "I was watching for any deviations in the path. For accurate cutting, the carriage must travel in a straight line past the saw along a singular plane."
Quzon squinted his eyes at the mention of planes, "Explain, word. Plane?" His mind had a hard time finding the translation of it in common from his first language of Myrian. "Lars then just held his forearm up in a diagonal angle. "Level plane." He said while shifting his arm to run parallel to the ground. Quzon grunted to himself while nodding his head, "Ah, no rise or falls. Ground, it need be even." Lars patted him on the shoulder while walking around to examine the circular saw itself. "Exactly. Lets get to work."
The Mill Operator never knew when Lars wanted to take him along with groups of Ashta into the jungle on short trips to scout out or retrieve suitable lumber, but he was dressed for the occasion as his work uniform was also his survival attire. Quzon’s gauntleted hands held the haft of a shovel as he scooped up a small pile of sawdust to turn on his heels to toss the wood shavings into the larger sawdust heap.
He set the shovel aside while glancing over at Lars to watch as the human male laid atop the back of an Ashta, lazily hugging himself against the back of the hulking creature’s head while it playfully marched around the Sawmill. Quzon continued to clean as he left the typically very busy Lars to enjoy his free moment of bonding with the Ashta. Half of a bell passed before Lars rode over atop the Ashta to watch Quzon clean. The Ashta lifted its long trunk to tussle at Lar's hair causing the human to pat at the trunk to shift it aside.
"Rot develops when the wooden foundations of the mill come into direct contact with a source of moisture. Rain and humidity are not a big problem for wood deterioration with adequate coverage." He said while pointing to the overhead canopy. Quzon glanced up to the ceiling for a moment after the gesture before setting the shovel to listen to his milling mentor. "The real problems come from Mill debris. Wet sawdust for example, if allowed to accumulate, becomes spongy moisture farms that over time lead to rot. That's why I have you remove sawdust regularly from around the mill foundation before we get to work."
Quzon nodded, double checking around the foundation of the sawblade before giving an nodding gesture to his boss to show that things were all clean. He struggled with the common tongue and chose not to speak it if he did not need to, which Lars knew well enough of his often strong but silent employee. "Run the carriage." Lars said with a cant of his head towards the mill controls while sliding off the side of the Ashta to dismount it.
The Ashta in the area distanced themselves from the sawmill proper as Quzon walked to a lever, then pressed it forward by a few inches. A loud clanging of chains spooling up began to emit from the underside of the carriage as the waterwheel spun, transferring power along various axles and pulleys, until it forced ones linked by metal chains attached to the carriage to pull it slowly forward roll it forward towards the circular saw.
Lars gestured a hand for Quzon to send it backwards as the Master Miller examined the machinery for any problems. Quzon pulled the lever backwards into a neutral stance then continued to pull it backwards. A metal click happened as gears shifted distant axle to spin in the opposite direction. The carriage in response moved back to return to its previous position. "All good?" Quzon questioned with in common with a voice thick with a heavy Myrian accent while shifting the lever back into a neutral upright position. "Looks all good to me." He said while waving Quzon over to look at the wheels of the carriage. He walked over to take a knee right next to where Lars pointed at the tracks. "I was watching for any deviations in the path. For accurate cutting, the carriage must travel in a straight line past the saw along a singular plane."
Quzon squinted his eyes at the mention of planes, "Explain, word. Plane?" His mind had a hard time finding the translation of it in common from his first language of Myrian. "Lars then just held his forearm up in a diagonal angle. "Level plane." He said while shifting his arm to run parallel to the ground. Quzon grunted to himself while nodding his head, "Ah, no rise or falls. Ground, it need be even." Lars patted him on the shoulder while walking around to examine the circular saw itself. "Exactly. Lets get to work."
WC: 848
