Chapter 73: Act 2: Chapter 19

Twenty-second day, Sixth Moon, 253 AC (+1 days)

We set out early in the morning, with fog heavy in the air. The air around us was heavy and silent as we walked along the path to this morning's destination. Violet and I had not bothered to take a guardsman with us today, as I refused to feel the need to be guarded in my own home. It was an overcast day, with the sun yet to break free from its cover and push back the fog.

The path we were travelling down was well worn but had not been made into a proper road. It was wide enough to allow the occasional wagon to pass through, but as it only led from my farm to Sunset's Rest, it saw little use. The trees hung heavy over the trail, their leaves blocking out what little light there was. It was not unusual weather for the area, and if we were lucky, the sun would be out by lunchtime.

Today, Violet was showing me around the area, detailing the changes and some of the progress that had been made over the last seven months that I had been gone. Since Nyra had explored a bit yesterday, she was watching over the children back at the farm, as they went about their chores. She had been tightlipped when she had come back yesterday saying that she wanted it to be a surprise for me.

As Violet and I strolled down the path, my level of excitement started to increase as we neared the castle. Finally, the castle emerged into view as the fog thinned out to reveal the castle walls standing proudly.

The walls were almost complete, all that was left was the stone face that was to be put up, to keep the look classic – with a bonus of hiding the exact strength of the wall. The walls themselves stood tall at 45 feet, which I thought ridiculously tall, even though they fell short of Winterfell's 80 feet, or Storm's End supposed 100+ feet walls. They were 15 feet thick, with crenellations, machicolations, arrow loops, and a walkway along the top.

We entered through the gatehouse, which consisted of two still unfinished towers, and would eventually have a steel portcullis. Once we entered the castle proper, I could see workers scurrying about. They were mainly centered around finishing the gatehouse towers, with a secondary focus on the other towers along the walls. Looking around the cleared space inside the walls, I could see the basic forms set up for what would eventually be the buildings. Areas had been cleared, and markers were placed in anticipation of construction work, and I could see in one corner of the yard, there was a large pile of cut lumber; another area had stone, barrels of concrete and other supplies. A section was cleared out for a small, simple barracks and a shelter for workers to eat under.

There was a water tower already erected, with a windmill atop it spinning merrily in the wind. Eventually, there would be a blacksmith's shop set up next to it, that would allow the blacksmith to utilize that wind power.

Spotting Master Builder Jon underneath the worker's shelter, Violet and I made our way over.

He looked up and smiled as soon as he saw me. "Good morning, Master Michael! How was your trip?"

"It was excellent!" I replied. "I both saw and learned a lot on my travels. How was everything here?"

"Progress has been very good," he said. "Steel and iron production has been lagging behind, but it is better now that your daughter," he nodded toward Violet, "has set up that new mine. It's still got some kinks in the supply line, but those should be fixed soon enough."

Violet smiled at Jon. "Thank you. I've already talked with my father, and we plan to fix the road leading to the mine, starting as soon as possible, which should ease the situation."

"Wonderful, my Lady," Jon replied, warmly.

"Have you been happy with the progress and the concrete, Jon?" I asked.

"I have," he confirmed. "Progress has been swift since the concrete is so easily shaped compared to shaping and fitting each individual stone. I have been most impressed with this product of yours, from what I have been able to test. Obviously, it is untested against a siege, and its long-term quality is uncertain but other than that? I am quite impressed."

I nodded. I didn't disagree with him, even though I knew what concrete was capable of back home, the reality was that this was not the quality-tested, professional product that I was used to. "It might not last thousands of years like Winterfell, but it is much cheaper and easier to do." I shrugged. "Everything has a cost, in this case, ease versus long-term quality."

"Quite true, Master Michael. Quite true."

"Do you have a revised completion estimate for me, Jon?"

He nodded. "Aye, but it's still rough and dependent on the season. If we get another year of summer, we will be done by the end of next summer, assuming a yearlong summer."

I scratched my chin as I thought. "So, you need two years and a bit to finish?"

He nodded. "Aye, once we finish the towers, the keep and other buildings will be easy enough to erect. The detailed work will take time, but the castle will be operational while that work is completed."

"Any other issues?" I asked.

"No, everything else is coming along nicely. That lumber mill of yours is incredibly helpful, and I'm going to petition Lord Stark to have one built at Winterfell. It's very useful."

"Good! Glad I could help."

"Ready to continue then, Papa?" Violet asked.

"Yes. Thank you for the update and all the work you've put in while I was gone, Jon."

"You are most welcome, Master Michael."

With that, we left Jon to his work and exited the castle. We continued down the road that led back to Redbridge, as it curved along outside the castle walls and down the hill. The main road was wide, roughly twenty feet, as I wanted the main road to be able to accommodate a lot of traffic. I wasn't entirely sure what would be needed, but as it was now, it was very wide, especially with no traffic or buildings to hem it in. The Fresno Scraper had already gone through the road, creating a sort of level ditch that was below the surrounding ground. Off to the side of the road, there was an even deeper trench, that would hold the sewer line was already dug out and was waiting for the sewer itself.

"How soon do you think we will be able to lay the sewer line down?" I asked.

"We have a timetable set for two more months. We wanted to make sure it was in and buried before the fall rains," replied Violet.

"Smart. How long until we can lay down crushed stone as a base?"

She flipped through her notes before answering, "Three months at the soonest. We are running into manpower issues. I've moved some people around, but we are running at peak capacity, so we don't have much to improve."

"Hmm, any word on any more new arrivals?" I asked.

Violet shook her head. "No, but then again, they never sent any real notice before either."

"Pity; I really hope we can get this road done before winter, even if it is just stone and not concrete."

"Concrete will be a long way off – we just don't have the material."

The conversation trailed off as we walked along the road before we came to a makeshift bridge that spanned a small gulley.

"Were we unable to smooth this gulley out?" I asked.

"Not this one. Jon said that the spring waters would need to flow here. Trying to dam it or build atop it would just lead to disaster. He said that might change as the farmland expands, but for now, a bridge is needed."

I rubbed my foot against the wooden board, clearing some dirt off the surface. "Will we have the resources to make this another red brick bridge?"

She nodded. "Timetable has it set for next month. We want to get it in before the sewers so that we can incorporate it into the bridge, and make it look a little nicer."

"That'll be nice. Would we be able to have the sewer follow this gulley and out to the river?"

She chuckled. "I figured you would ask that, once you saw this. I've already posed the question to Jon, and he said that it would be possible, but it would defeat the point of having the sewage come out downstream of the population."

I facepalmed. "Ah, I forgot about that bit. So, it'll just continue down along the road then?"

Violet smirked. "Yep, but I had Jon make up plans for another connection here anyway. We can use it for emergency release, or even as the population expands and we want to add new sewer connections."

"That's my girl," I said, fondly.

She patted my arm consolingly. "It's a daughter's duty to look after her father in his old age."

My hands clutched my chest in mock offense. "Ah! You wound me! Old?!"

She nodded gravely, though a twitch of her lips betrayed her. "Yes, old."

I raised an eyebrow. "Is that way of your way of saying I'm a grandparent?"

Violet blushed. "No, you're not a grandparent, yet."

It was my turn to pat her on the arm. "And that's perfectly alright."

We continued our walk down the road and passed a few locations that were marked out as future intersections. The road would have a curb, in order to manage water flow, so these sections would go without a curb, and we would make sure that no one built anything there, only to have it torn down later. The growth was slowly pushing out from Redbridge proper, rather than Sunset's Rest, so it wasn't a worry yet, but I felt it best to be prepared.

"Say, Papa," said Violet, as we started to near the 'industrial sector', "I was thinking we ought to include bricks into the road somehow. It would tie in with the name, as well as look nice."

I mulled what she said in my head as we walked. Brick wasn't as strong as concrete, but we also weren't going to be maxing the stress thresholds of the concrete regardless. "Perhaps," I allowed. "It would be a nice look. Perhaps in small quantities at the intersections? Liven it up a bit? Maybe use it to help people navigate even?" I thought out loud, as I gained interest in the idea.

"Oh? Like a big 'A', nice and stylized to help people know where to go?"

I nodded. "That sounds good. Nice and simple. We can put up posts if it needs it, at a later date. We can also put brick walkways at the side of the road, or on the smaller roads, once we have some. We can even have the road over the sewer lines made of brick so that it can be torn up easier if need be."

Violet smiled. "Sounds good. Shall I get Evelyn to make up some designs?"

I nodded, and we entered the industrial sector. The main road ran east from the shoreline, following the middle of the 'island' of land between the two rivers, to Sunset's Rest. The industrial sector ran south off of that road, near the bottom of the southern river. In time we hoped to divert that river, so that it would not meet the northern river, before exiting to the ocean near Redbridge. This would allow our sewage not to contaminate the water near the village, as well as any pollutants from the industrial sector like the tannery produces.

Our first stop was the blacksmith's shop. There was a towering wheel in the water at the back of the building, and even approaching the building from the outside, I could hear the hammers going. The building was sturdy, and though it was new, it already had a black coat of ash and soot on it.

We entered the building, and one of the apprentices, that I didn't recognize – but clearly recognized us – motioned for us to wait and ran off to find his master. There was a pause in the hammering for a moment, before it started up again, and Bronn strolled out from the back. He wiped his hands off on a towel, before clasping arms with me.

"Michael! It's good to see you again! How was your trip?"

We exchanged pleasantries for a few moments, before Bronn said, "Was there something you wanted to check up on? I do need to get back to the anvil – we are working non-stop lately, and I haven't had much free time."

"Ah, I just had a few questions for you, if you didn't mind."

"Sure, sure, go ahead."

"How's the waterwheel working for you? I know we got it set up before I left, but I hadn't had the chance to talk to you about it before I left."

Bronn lit up. "Ah! It's great! Work is so much easier! I'm spitting out iron and steel now! The only hold up now is making the iron into steel. It's a bit easier now that Don, the weaponsmith next door, and I came together to have a nice big bloomery, but if you got any new ways to do that, I'd be mighty pleased to put off work for the rest of the day!"

I smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Bronn. I've got nothing for that."

Bronn shrugged. "Damn, oh well. I've got apprentices manning that for the most part, so it's not much sweat off my back."

"Oh? How many apprentices do you have?"

"Eight! It's a big step up from my old place beside my house. It makes the workload easier, but I've been thinking about picking up another when another group of people drifts into town."

I let out a low whistle. "That's impressive."

"Thanks, Michael! Well, I have t' get back to it. I'll get an apprentice to run over and grab Don for you."

"Thanks, Bronn."

Once he had left, I turned to Violet. "He seems to be doing good."

"Yes, I think he enjoys having people to boss around."

I laughed. "I meant more about his trade, but I can't deny that either."

She leaned forward and whispered, "So, you're sure you can't find a way to make more steel?"

I shook my head and whispered back, "No, I'm afraid not. I know it can be done. I just don't know how to do it."

She frowned. "Maybe if we get a few more apprentices for him, he can start to experiment a bit?"

"I doubt it. He's not the experimental type of guy. Don might though – we'll have to wait and see."

A few moments later, Don wandered in. He was a big man and looked like the stereotypical blacksmith: large, corded muscles on his hairy and heavily scarred arms, and a large beard that was mostly grey – even if he hair was still brown.

"You Master Michael?" he asked, in a surprisingly mild voice.

"That I am. Pleased to meet you; have a seat." Once he was seated at the small lunch table that Bronn had, we exchanged a few pleasantries, before I started to question him. His answers were similar to Bronn, with the same complaints. He had four apprentices to Bronn's eight, but as a weaponsmith, his work tended to be a bit more detailed and specialized.

When I asked him about the status of armoring my men, he replied, "I'm making good progress, Master Michael. I've been focusing on weapons t' start, and I have fully armed your men. Arrowheads are in a bit worse o' a spot, but we are making 'em in batches t' make it easy." He scratched his chin in thought. "I think we are set t' do another batch in a week or two? Anyways, we are focusing on mail for all your men right now. I've got 14 or 15 sets of mail made now, and I've sent them t' Master Donovar already. I hope t' get another two before switching back t' arrowheads. Once the mail's all done, I'll switch t' brigandines and other armors."

I blinked. A very concise summary – I think I like this man. "That sounds good, thank you. Did you have any ideas on how to better turn iron to steel, rather than what we have now?"

Don blinked in surprise. "Not really, Master. Even this water wheel thing is new t' me."

"Ah, no worries. I thought I might as well ask."

"Sorry I couldn't be o' more help," he said, awkwardly.

"Nonsense! You've done great work so far! I was just curious."

He looked at me weirdly, before averting his gaze. "As you say, Master Michael."

"Well, that's all I had to ask. Thanks for your time."

"Of course, Master Michael."

Once Don left the room, I stood up and led Violet back outside. "Weird man," I commented.

She shrugged. "He was fine at the start. He went weird once you asked him about new things."

"Maybe he isn't good once he's out of his comfort zone?"

She shrugged again. "Maybe. I've heard good things about him regardless, and Donovar is happy with his work."

I chuckled. "As long as Donovar is happy."

We continued to walk down the road to the woodworking sector. Compared to the smoke and steel of the blacksmiths, the smell of wood was powerful here. There were various buildings lining the street: a cooper, a fletcher, a bowyer, and a general carpentry shop. They all seemed busy, so we didn't interrupt their work, as I had no questions for them other than pleasantries – I had made no real innovation for them. Though now that I think about it, introducing them to my wooden lathe would be helpful. A few of the buildings already border the river, and water-powered lathe would be interesting. I had Violet make a note of that as we continued past the buildings.

There was another building in the process of being built, which Violet had indicated would be the future site for the paper business. My only reaction to that bit of news was to tell her the name of the company would be Dunder Mifflin, and that I would accept no others. She looked at me weirdly, but accepted it, as she was long used to my weirdness.

"There is still more work I want to do with the papermaking, but now that we have a product that is good enough, it has moved off of my priorities a bit."

"Oh? What else did you want to try?" I asked.

"I wanted to try different blends, and other plants as well. I know you've told me cotton is supposed to work, and I know it isn't practical for us, but I would still like to try it out. And try things like adding some clay to the mixture or trying to whiten the paper with things such as soda ash."

"Sounds like you are making your own list, just like your dear, old dad," I said, teasingly.

"Oh? I thought you said you weren't old?"

I laughed. "Semantics."

After that, there were a few other dirty businesses such as tanneries, that not only smelled but put out pollutants into the water.

As we finished the industrial sector loop and started to come near Redbridge, there were a few other professions in this area, such as potters, a shoemaker, and even a seamstress. Then came a warehouse type structure that held a proto-factory that worked spinning wheels and carding machines.

There was also a warehouse for finished goods near the docks in Redbridge that stored a variety of things like spun wool, finished alcohol and other goods. The building was made with bricks and was a very striking sight. There was a guard on duty, but I didn't recognize him, though Violet assured me that he was one of the thirty guards that Donovar had recently added to my men-at-arms.

We waved to him as we passed but didn't stop to talk. There was another, separate warehouse that was for our fishing products since they were so smelly. This was where the dried fish was stored to be sold for the upcoming merchant fleet, and where the garum was fermented and stored as well.

The rest of Redbridge had also expanded as more and more people moved to the area. Most were farmers and chose to live on their farms while others commute from the village, and others were a mix-mash of professions who chose to live in the village. The village itself was now crowding the river both to the south and east. The original floodwall that had been built in the wake of that disastrous spring, back in 236 AC, had been improved and enlarged in order to accommodate the additional houses and make sure that the village was secure.

Seeing the bustling village brought hope to my heart. Maybe one day we would even have a thriving restaurant industry.

We didn't bother to explore the new farms as they were very spread out. Instead, we chose to find a nice spot on the beach and sat down to watch the ocean.

"Have you had any legal issues come up?" I asked.

"A few squabbles but nothing major."

"Good – that's good. I'm not looking forward to when it inevitably occurs. Did anyone dispute your judgement?"

She waved off my worry. "No, I made sure to have guards on hand to make sure they saw my authority."

I smiled at her. "Smart girl."

She rolled her eyes. "Of course, I take after Mama."

I put my arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. "Love you too."