By the end of the tour the students were exhausted, but a few were excited that perhaps they would be changing their Life Plans to include the career of animal husbandry. Before long they had dragged their weary selves back onto the academy transporter to go to their final destination.
“I know you are all tired, but we still have one last occupation tour for today,” encouraged Miss Harrigan, although she too had thought the husbandry tour was more taxing than most occupation tours were. She dreaded it every year, but she wasn’t about to let the students know that.
A short trip down the same road led them to the Cultivating Grounds. The grounds consisted of nothing but a large white dome covering the entire area. A comparatively small door sat in the exact center of the grounds, with a short pathway from the road to the door paved with white marble.
Always hearing of the Cultivating Grounds being the sole place where the entire city obtained their food, Opal had been curious to see the place for herself. The milky white color of the dome wasn’t exactly what she had been expecting. She’d hoped to be able to see something within the dome from the outside, but perhaps there was a reason for keeping the dome non-transparent.
Without a word, Opal, Garrett, and the other students followed Miss Harrigan out of the academy transporter, down the short path, and through the doors of the domed structure. Inside the outer walls were actually transparent, although from the outside no one could see in. Encircling the entire circumference of the domed roof were various lights illuminating the structure. No walls separated the interior. Instead, everything was open with only pathways demarcating the different areas.
“Welcome to the Cultivating Grounds, Choosing Class,” greeted a man with a youthful face and very light gray eyes that starkly contrasted with his ebony hair. “If you follow me, I’ll give you the tour of the area.”
“Opal,” whispered Garrett. When she didn’t respond, he repeated more urgently, “Opal.”
“Huh?” Opal’s eyes drifted around the building until they met her friend’s.
“Stop being so starry-eyed. We need to follow the rest of the group.”
Snapping out of her astonishment, Opal looked straight ahead to see the group growing farther and farther away from her and Garrett. They hurried to catch up to the group, which the guide was already speaking to at a mile a minute.
“I’m sure most of you aren’t considering a lifetime career as a cultivator, but let me tell you, I didn’t either until I took this occupation tour during my days in the Choosing Class,” explained the guide as he grinned.
Without raising their hand, someone blurted out. “What’s your name? I didn’t catch it earlier. And when were you in the Choosing Class?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I was so excited to be chosen to do the occupation tour today that I must have forgotten my manners. My name is Connor and I graduated from my Choosing Class five years ago.”
“You’re only 22?” burst someone else from the group.
“Yep, and I love my job.” Gesturing to the entire dome with his arms outstretched, Connor added, “Here, we’re responsible for all the food in the entire city and most of this province. Every plant-based morsel of food you’ve ever eaten throughout your entire lives was grown here.” Connor’s eyes shined as he added the last bit.
Feeling awkward, Garrett slowly raised his hand.
Seeing it immediately, Connor pointed to him and anxiously waited for his question.
“Where is the bathroom?”
Opal closed her eyes and sucked in a breath. She loved her best friend, but sometimes, he really drove her mad. Here they were in probably the most important place in their entire city other than City Hall itself, and he asked where the bathroom was. Not an intellectual question, but a commonplace question.
The corners of Connor’s mouth quivered a bit, but swiftly returned to their U-shaped grin as he responded, “At the corner of each patch there is a shed-like hut. They house the bathrooms.”
“Thank you,” muttered Garrett as he sheepishly walked away.
Feeling responsible for her friend’s stupid question even though it wasn’t her fault, Opal asked an intelligent one, “How do you keep the plants here growing sustainably every year with a constant, dependable harvest?”
“That is a great question and it has a very simple answer.” Pointing to the ceiling, Connor answered, “It’s this dome.”
Puzzled, Opal stared into the sky at the expansive dome.
“Let me explain further. The dome protects the plants from environmental elements, as well as maintaining a stable atmosphere conducive to the plant’s best growth. The doorway you passed through to get inside has an invisible barrier that eliminates any and all types of pests from making their way into the building. The soil used here is the best soil in the world for growing crops. Extra nutrients are injected into the soil using a secret compound that corrects for any deficiencies lost due to repeated use. Each plant is carefully cross-bred for the best possible yield by our cultivators here.”
“Are there a lot of people that work here?” wondered a tall, very thin boy.
“Yes, but we could always use additional workers. As our population grows, we must support the increase in food demand.”
“What about expanding? If the population continues to grow, doesn’t that mean you’ll need to continually increase the number of plants to keep up with the demand?” asked yet another student, a short girl this time.
Connor, elated at all the good questions, fired off answer after
