Greyton

Tabitha sat atop the recently completed castle gatehouse and watched the activity unfolding in front of her. From her vantage point, she could see just over 2000 people scurrying around Greyton like ants - hauling, digging and building. The construction of Greyton was a task she had delegated to subordinates. She was nominally in charge and had provided some input, but ultimately her small team of city planners were responsible for this project. Since she had allocated all of the Castle labour to the job, she had about a month of free time on her hands. It was a rare treat, so she was quite happy to just sit back and keep half an eye on things.

The castle itself was set a hundred feet back east of the crossroads. It was still mostly mud, but was slowly taking shape. The sight dominating the scene is the massive hole in the center. The excavated dirt was being used to form the core of both the inner and outer walls, with the stone shells of the wall slowly being constructed around them. The hole itself was being shored up with masonry, forming the bottom two levels of the Castle.

East of the castle a large area was being cleared and cobblestoned. The existing temporary and semi-permanent housing was being reconstructed and relocated out of the area, ready for the new commercial district. String and stakes delineate the various plots in the areas surrounding the market square, with some small privately hired teams already starting to lay foundations and put up storefronts. 

She lifted her gaze slightly further to the north and she could see even more roads being cut. These were spaced further apart and were generally wider, more suited to a sprawling warehouse district. The area to become the warehouse district was unoccupied, so teams were going through removing the last of the tree stumps and other major obstacles before construction could begin.

Finally, she turned her gaze on the residential district running along the southern edge of the town. Large dormitories were being constructed in the eastern half in order to house all of the construction workers, while the western half was freely available for other residents to build their homes.

Tabitha shaded her eyes and squinted against the sun. She thought she can just make out the rivers edge from where she sat. It was mostly empty, but she knew Mirrax's engineering team was busy surveying the shore and drawing up plans for the docks.

The overall impression of the town however is not quite what you'd expect. Knowing Tabitha, you would expect to see a town laid out in a grid, where wide long straight roads would be the best and most obvious solution. Instead you have wide roads that suddenly narrow and wind through a sharp set of S bends, almost like a God has reached down, stuck his fingers in the earth in the middle of the town and has done a series of twists. Closer examination also shows all of the newly constructed buildings have flat top roofs edged with a low wall. Further more, occasionally rectangle pits can be spotted dug into roadways. 

The purpose quickly becomes apparent - there are no long roads cavalry can easily charge down, every roof serves as an archers post, deadfalls and blockades can be organised quickly and deployed easily, and all roads lead to the Castle with the stained glass Holy Symbol of the cathedral, visible through the invisible sections of the wall, acting as a rallying beacon. Greyton might be a merchant town, but it is also a military town run by Hellknights.

Tabitha sighed and stood up as she saw Mortimer approaching.

"Taaaaaabitha! Shades will be here soon, I'm off to get more doors and loot and stuff"

"Hold up a sec Mort, I'll come with."

"We shouldn't be long, its only a temple... Wait, what?" Mort did a double take

"You heard me"