Rhys and Caria walked back into the village without speaking for a while.
People greeted them as usual. Old Meret was arguing about grain storage near the well. Two children were chasing each other with sticks. Nothing looked wrong.
That was good.
Inside the small meeting hall, Rhys unrolled a rough map of the area. The quarry was marked in charcoal. He added a circle around it.
"Twice a day," he said. "Morning. Dusk. We check the water level, temperature, and sound."
Caria nodded. "I'll rotate the guards. No more than two at a time. We don't want it thinking we're afraid."
"Or aggressive."
She leaned over the map. "What about the forest line? The roots near the eastern field shifted last night."
"We add that to the circuit too," Rhys replied. "No direct interference unless something crosses into the village."
They worked through it calmly.
Observation posts.
Simple signals.
No torches near the quarry.
No loud tools after sunset.
