The Plant Whisperer

On the road from Bay city to the main base, there are a few trucks that can be seen loaded with people. The Blacksnake gang army led by Jerry, Aria's platoon led by Captain Donnie and the Frog commando platoon led by Lieutenant Russel. Alex took one car to drive, his wife came with him, but both Cindy and Aria also entered the same car. Apparently, they had enough being the same car with Hendrik.

Alex was trying to have a conversation with his wife but these two girls were following him. The tension inside the car seems a little bit awkward, but Cindy seems to be able to save the day...

"Sister Devita, you already have 2 kids but you still look so beautiful and young, what's the secret?"

Devita just smiles at her and responds, "So how did both of you girls met Alex? What's the story?"

"I am the assistant of the Harvard's professor. We met in the United States a few days ago. Alex came to convince the professor that the Doomsday is coming."

Devita was confused, "Was it not the other way around? I thought Alex mentioned that it was the professor's research that pushed for this project to be started."

Alex was startled. His wife had always been smart, like the saying (behind every successful man there is always a great woman. And in every failure of a man, it's always their own fault.)

Alex tries to be calm and answer the question..."The professor's research is one of the evidence, it's more convenient to use the professor's name rather than my name. There is also the military backing up the evidence."

Aria added, "I heard you also came to the army to convince them of your findings."

Alex "..."

"It's actually a little bit more complicated than that. Some of these findings are top secret, thus, not everything can be shared."

The situation actually becomes more awkward. These three women are all very smart. At the moment, they are like a pack of wolves ready to bite as to whatever explanation Alex comes up with to defend himself. Better to not explain in more detail at the moment. Less talk, less mistake.

Devita looks at Aria and asks, "So what about you Aria, what's your story? As I have heard, you are a lieutenant in the army, right?"

Aria: "Yes, I am. But right now, my current position is Alex's personal bodyguard."

"..."

Devita gives a weird look at Alex, "How did that happen?"

Aria said it as a matter of fact, "He won me from a bet."

"..."

"Hey!!! Look we are already here. we can talk again later."

After 2 hours of driving, the group has finally reached the main base. More than 7,000 workers are currently working there. Tony has been requesting more and more people to finish his impossible deadline.

The stone wall fences are the priority, 4 meter high, 13 kilometers length in a rectangular shape. Currently, only about 8 kilometers done. The second layer, the stone berms is not even 50% done. But the four gates have already taken their shapes. The land clearing with over 200 hectares of land is also almost done. 100 hectares inside the central base and another 100 hectares outside. Alex is not sure if the wall will be finished by the start of the Doomsday, but there is really not much point on hiring more people at this time.

Outside the wall, on the east side to the north next to the Tukad river, 1,000 farmers are currently preparing the farm fields. From loosening the soil to seeding and adding fertilizer. The primary seed of choice is going to be mainly potatoes and sweet potatoes. First, it's nutritious, a medium-sized potato contains about 42 grams of vitamin C. They're also loaded with minerals, like calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and potassium. Second, it only needs minimum irrigation. Third, is that they are easy to harvest. And lastly, it only needs 10 weeks to grow. The perfect Doomsday seeds.

For irrigation, the farmers are still trying to slowly connect it to the rivers. Alex ordered the creation of a water tank near the farms and inside the wall to harvest rainwater. Half a dozen of the 3 storey watchtowers is also already done.

Inside the base, it is even more crowded. The workers are currently building warehouses. Out of the 100 warehouses that they were targeting, only 40 of them have been done. Fortunately, the big sized warehouse that will be used for the indoor botanical garden, storage supplies have just been finished. Also, the one for medical research facility had just gotten finished. Just at the right time with the medics and scientists that are moving here today.

The groups reached inside the base. Tony started to assign them the warehouses that were ready so that they could start moving in. The smaller warehouses are going to be the soldier barracks and civilian housing, each can accommodate up to 500 people. So currently, only 1 warehouse is needed for the soldiers, while 15 are being used by the civilians and workers.

Alex walks around the compound to check the surroundings and their progress. The busiest, of course, is the steel factory, as it works 24 hours to provide the materials they need for building warehouses. Next is the botanical garden. The farms outside the base are for a more long term solution, while the indoor botanical garden is the short term solution. It is also the only solution if the farms outside the wall become too dangerous to farm. This indoor garden is mainly for the hydroponic plants but there are also some plants for other purposes.

Alex saw the people working inside the garden, he inspected some of their faces and finally found the one who he was looking for. A woman in her 40's. Jane the Plant Whisperer. She is included in one of the lists of people he asked the mayor to find. As she's a botanist, Rina followed it up by recruiting her to be part of the project.

A simple woman, unmarried and very passionate about plants. In Alex's previous life, she's one of the Bali survivor and an earth spirit enhancer. Alex doesn't know her very well but even before the Doomsday, Jane was already known as the Plant Whisperer by the Bali locals.

There are many successful gardeners that claim to be a Plant Whisperer, but only a few of them is the real deal. These type of gardeners are so in tune with the vibratory energy of their plants that they can sense when something is wrong or about to go wrong in their garden much in the same way plants communicate with each other. In a way, if a person is a Plant Whisperer they also become a member of the plants' community.

Science has proven that plants live in communities. When danger or a threat appears, a caterpillar infestation, for example, a warning is sent immediately through the plant's network of roots or underground runners to the other plants to beef up their chemical and energy production to discourage the pests. Science has also proven that while an insect is chewing on a plant leaf, the plant raises the level of the chemical in the leaf to try to ruin its taste. When given the choice, more often than not, the insect will move on to a new leaf. Jane as an earth spirit enhancer, she exhibits a higher level of sense for sensing the plants which makes her the best botanist. She might not be a fighter, but she will still be an important asset for this base.

Alex discusses the indoor garden plans with Jane. She brought up an idea which is to combine hydroponic with aquaponics. The idea is to use the waste from fish to naturally provide nutrients to nearby water-grown plants. Which will make the base able in raising both plants and fish together.

Another spirit enhancer is in his base, a third spirit enhancer. Alex feels much happier that all those worries about the unfinished walls are gone.

Time to take care of the army, the navy and the gangs.