Disclaimer: I own nothing about Pern. The ship and crew are mine though. Everything else belongs to Anne McCaffrey
Set 5 turns (years) after the Skies of Pern, follows the AIVAS plotline – discovery of technology that the ancestors would use.
'Rukbat in the Sagittarian sector was a golden G type star. It had five planets and one stray it had affected and held in recent millennia. It's third planet was enveloped by air man could breathe, boasted water he could drink and possessed a gravity to allow man to walk erect'
Source: Dragonflight
Once Pern was settled it occurred on the southern continent at first things where fine and people prospered. They set up landing, Honshu, Paradise River and other holds. Unfortunately this did not last and a threat occurred. Thread, deadly. It ate organic matter while leaving metals untouched. They where saved by the help of firelizards, native creatures with the ability to teleport (go between). The thread continued to be a threat and the geneticist Kitty Pang built larger firelizards –Dragons. These have flown thread for thousands of years, searing it from the sky. These are the people of legends: Sean and Sorka, Torene, Moreta, to the more recent Lessa and F'lar, F'nor and the brave Canth.
The recovery of AIVAS bought people back there past. The red star was relocated to a safer course, Ruth the White Dragon and Jaxom where key to this success of the mission. Now the discovery of technology, heritage and new worlds are open; the star watch- dragonriders who study to gain skills as aerial defenders. This is maintained by the ability of telekinesis to swing objects- discovered by the green Zaranth and weyrmate, Golanth, their riders Tai and F'lessen, they reside at Honshu. It is here that they along with many others discover a new star.
Tai slowly walked down the stairwell though this betrayed her excitement. The glowlamps shed some light onto the area, however limited it may be. She made her way down to the weyr.
"F'lessen" Tai joined her mate on the bed. "Look at these readings its moving too fast to be a star, and yet from the viewer, it appears to be a ship – like landing"
"My dear green rider lets not jump to conclusions" he sighed "We can probably go to Cove hold and confirm with Wansor and the others. We can't be the only ones"
F'lessen would not know how right he was as the sky watch of Pern, across the continents noticed the strange incoming ship, nor the problems that it would bring.
Mankind has seen many wars. Some caused great destruction, others created heroes, Emily Boll and Paul Bendon where two such heroes. However since there time generations ago the galaxies are a darker place. The enlightened colonies closer to earth have kept the order but in the outer riches there is lawlessness, piracy and smuggling. Honest people are hard to come by.
"Damn it" a young women, pale skinned with a gaunt face, black hair and haunting blue eyes sat at the pilot's chair of a misshapen pile of bolts, and parts. Stray wires where everywhere it was a wonder she could pilot the damn ship.
"One more job he say's, It will all work out her say's, I am a pilot Captain not a miracle worker. "If you ask me one more time to get us out of here that is on top of my priorities, you can fly the damn ship?" A bright explosion went of two the port side and the light proved a slight destruction on the view screen. Ships are littered everywhere as Romey has to avoid, lasers, debris and other objects namely the other ships.
"Shit" she hears a huge crunch as she clips a misplaced engine part, floating in space. An annoyed baritone voice appears over the intercom
"Watch it"
"Sorry Chief" Romey sighs a distracting man the chief into his fifth decade and still counting, an old friend of the captain. Thinking of captains where the hell is he?
"Romey" a soft voice appears behind her "get us out if here" Romey really needed to learn that trick.
"Where" Romey snarls, there was a lot of pressure at the moment on her shoulders at the moment.
"Anywhere for all I care, just do it" Captain Duo was an aging man in his early sixth decade. Cool under fire for the most part he was not having a good day.
"Fine" pushing some buttons and setting a course, what happens next is unexpected. A stray laser hits the engine and disrupts the course plotted.
Four hours later in the Sagittarian system. "Uh" Romey moaned as she came too. She put her hand to her temple and felt blood. Shit.
Romey turns her head slowly to avoid dizziness "Captain!" Romey scrabbles over the debris to see the captain crushed by metal. Double Shit Moving the debris as best she could, she realised he was dead. Rest in Peace Captain. Moving away from the captain's body she made her way back to her console.
"Chief, can you hear me?" She paused, "Chief"
"Romey lass, I'm a fine, how's the captain?" Chief O'Brian's voice came over the intercom.
"Dead" Romey said quietly "Crushed by the bulkhead, anyone else on your team dead?"
"Aye, Renaldo didn't make it, Terry has a concussion but I think he'll be fine" The reply came back over the com. "Heard from the Doc?"
"Negative" Romey replied "I am not even sure if that com area works. You never got around to fixing it did you?"
"I did, there temperamental, the engines are shot to hell" Bustling can be heard and a soft moan "In the mean time, I will find the doc. You find out where the hell we are and what we can do to get rescued, damaged system etc" the com system switched off.
Okay Romey thought as she began to run the program to find the damage. Looking at her own console she began a scan of the system they were in. Using the few functioning sensors she picked up ships orbiting a small third planet system. Old colonization ships it looked like, in a geosynchronous orbit.
"Found the doc" O'Brian's voice came over the com. "He's okay looks like a pincushion thought"
"Feel like one too" The cultured voice of Doctor Sienna spoke up "Just patching up Terry, he has a hard head."
"Very funny, Sheila" An almost Australian sounding voice can be heard in the background. "Well from what I have seen so far. Do you want the Good or Bad News first?"
"Bad, obviously" came O'Brian's response
"Good Sheila" came Terry's
"I am with the chief bad" Sienna said
"In that case the ship is in a bad way and were in an interdicted system" Romey smirked over the com. "Good news is that there are ship parts salvageable, the planets called Pern far as I can tell and appears to have colonial ships in orbit."
"So we get the parts and get the hell outer here, sounds like a plan." Sienna said.