The final briefing with the fort's command staff dragged longer than seemed necessary, filled with repetitive concerns about supply lines and the slow work on copies of the sigil patterns that Elua er Goltbred had left for them to apply to their wagons. Qatrand maintained a semblance of proper attention while thinking of travel times back to her home city.
"Commander, I still need to handle another family matter before I redeploy."
The request was reasonable enough, as many cultivators were making final personal arrangements before the next phase of war operations. The trains that were starting back up their runs were moving civilians inward for the most part, but they still required defenders. Commander Huri nodded and assigned the Yecine to such a post without questioning the details out in the open.
