The assessments had been running for several days when Batu went to the eastern flat to watch.
He took a position at the ground's northern edge, far enough that his presence didn't direct anything. The wind was low and the sky was pale with the particular flat light of deep winter.
The training ground was active below the main camp's slope. Torghul's section commanders moved through their assessment rounds. Siban's hand recorded at the scribing table at the far end. The formations cycled through the arban-level checks that formed the base of everything above them.
Most of it moved without friction. He had watched three rounds from this position on prior days. The pattern was the same each time.
An officer came forward, the two commanders worked through the standard with him, and the assessment went to Siban's table. Some produced promotion. A few produced reassignment to a lower function, held at their current level without advancement.
