Chapter 44: The State of Ashmark
The smell didn’t belong to the city. It hit Beorn before he cleared the interior courtyard gate, sharp and mineral, catching in the back of his throat.
The batch at the mixing station was giving off heat, reacting even in the cool morning air, steam rising off the trough as the men worked it in steady passes. The smell didn’t belong because it was new, cement and concrete introduced to this world.
He passed through the gate and stopped, taking a moment to watch the work. The breach in the wall still measured twelve feet across, that hadn’t changed.
The first two courses of new stone had been laid on a foundation that had set clean and grey, consistent across its surface. The contrast with the surrounding masonry was visible from twenty feet away. The old wall on either side showed its history, rough stone, uneven mortar joints, layers of repair stacked over time without uniformity.
The new section followed a different standard. Each stone had been dressed precisely. The mortar joints were even, pale against the stone. The face presented as a single system, built with the expectation of load.
Cerdic stood at the interface between the old wall and the first new course, running a thumb along the joint. His senior man held position two steps behind him with a measuring line, waiting for the next instruction.
A second worker was inspecting the upper section of the breach, marking placements for future courses.
"The foundation’s good," Cerdic said. He didn’t look up. His thumb shifted to the next joint, pressing, checking resistance. "Set clean throughout. First course went up this morning."
Beorn stepped closer, tracking the vertical span. "The section above. What’s the pace?"
Cerdic stepped back and tilted his head, pondering based on visible progress and remaining height. "Two weeks to close it, assuming material continues arriving on schedule."
He moved left along the original wall and pointed to a horizontal discoloration line cutting through the older courses. "This is where the original ends and later work begins. They met here, but they were never tied properly."
He looked back at Beorn. "When we reach it, I cut back into it and run the new courses through. If I leave it as is, the section remains a structural weakness. When put under pressure, that’s when failure starts."
Beorn followed the line, considering the implication. "When do you reach that section?"
"End of the week if we keep this rhythm." Cerdic turned back to the wall. "The next section after this will move faster. I’ll already have an idea of the subsoil conditions, and the construction joint is simpler along that stretch."
Beorn had already opened the ledger. His hand moved across the margin while his attention stayed on the wall. He sketched a cross-section with the foundation at the base and the joint marked. Enough to reconstruct the reasoning later.
At the south corner of the courtyard, near the delivery point, Dunna stood watching his crew guide a limestone cart toward the staging area beside the mixing station. He tracked their handling, making small corrections with posture and attention rather than voice.
When Beorn approached, Dunna turned. "The last two batches moved clean," he said. "There hasn’t been any interference on the northern road."
Beorn considered the temporarily stability window. "How far away can you push the route?"
Dunna glanced back at his crew, checking their work as they brought the cart in, then returned his focus. "Maybe past the second quarry at best. Coss’s eastern route is the problem, a Hollow Hound pack migrated there about a week ago. There’s also Greyback activity farther east, fighting them for territory."
He adjusted his coat, flattening it across his chest. "The whole outskirts are a mess with the monsters. He’s pulling his men back to cover what he can’t afford to lose."
That changed the game. Beorn shifted his perspective. "How far is the pack from our transit points?"
"Six miles from the road above the second quarry."
Dunna watched as the cart reached the staging area and the crew set the brake. "With the monsters on his route his coverage went to shit. If I need to vary the approach on the next run, what do you want done with the southern fork?"
Beorn considered the constraints. Their contract terms limited route deviation, but flexibility existed within practicability. "Use it if the northern route looks compromised."
"Good." Dunna shifted his attention fully back to the unloading crew. "The next batch comes the day after tomorrow."
Beorn stopped to think about the remaining uncertainty. "How long does the pack stays in that area?"
Dunna looked at him directly. "It’s a Hollow Hound pack. It won’t move unless someone forces it. When it does, it means he pushed them back and has enough coverage again."
Beorn wrote a short note in the ledger margin, then looked back toward the mixing station.
The batch had reached a workable consistency. The men continued their long, even passes. Dunna had already disengaged, fully occupied with his crew.
He had come because the delivery point was here, not because Beorn required him. The exchange ended when it stopped producing value.
Cerdic had advanced along the original wall, continuing the thumb test at each joint in sequence. His two men adjusted position with him, no verbal instruction needed. The workflow was synchronized.
Godric joined Beorn at the garrison quarter entrance, matching his pace.
"I redeployed two squads to the western stretch yesterday, after the patrol reports showed increased contact numbers with the wildlife," he said. "For now, the northern routes are secured." His eyes stayed forward.
Unapproved, but necessary. Beorn moved to the critical variable.. "I see. Where did you pull them from?"
"The eastern patrol rotation, temporarily. If pressure increases, I’ll need more men."
Beorn evaluated the redistribution. It was acceptable under current conditions. "Do it the same way."
Godric nodded once. They continued walking.
The miners’ quarter ran along the left side of the road. The buildings showed patchwork repairs and the workers remained in place, as they had been before Beorn entered the city.
"How’s the Greyback," Beorn said.
"Its condition is stable. The morning watch reported the eye-tracking behavior again."
A brief pause. "One of the night watch refused his next shift. Said the animal made him feel watched in return."
Beorn raised an eyebrow. "Replace him. Do not assign him back to that post."
"Already done."
They cleared the miners’ quarter. The road opened toward the citadel. Beorn maintained his pace.
"And the seizure operations," he said.
"There were two strongboxes last week with recoverable contents. The rest was destroyed before we arrived."
Godric glanced at him. "Most of them already covered their tracks."
"They figured out how we operate," Beorn said.
"Yes."
The citadel gate came into view. Beorn closed the ledger.
A part of Coss’s network had been dismantled incrementally over time. The remaining groups had observed each step and adjusted accordingly. They understood the seizure threat.
If Beorn kept doing the same, the result would be empty targets. That by itself was the next problem. The method had become predictable.
He passed through the gate, already constructing an alternative.