Author's Note: Thank you for the comment, Unthank, and like any good author, I am grateful for the critiquing. If I may point out one thing about your reviews...the part where you say Kalusia is too young for silver-laced hair. I know many people, a seven-year-old boy and a barely year-old girl among them, that has bright, shining silver like Kalusia's lacing their hair. Silver is a natural hair color, but not many people have the right genetics for such. As in Kalusia's case, her family has a history of rare 'silver-laced hair' in their members, so this is a result of genetics and not aging. Also, thank you, Airdrekus, for adding your comments on the silver hair dilemma. Also, the reason for the Weyrleaders' descriptions in the prologue is so that the readers will understand what those specific characters look like, as they are the Weyrleaders and will be mentioned quite a bit in the course of the story, and I assure you that no other such descriptions will appear in later chapters.

CDs listened to while writing this chapter: 12 STONES-Potter's Field (2004) & Anthem for the Underdog (2007) [This chapter took a little less time to write because originally it was to be part of the first chapter, but I decided to shorten it for the sake of the readers' eyes...I know that my eyes hurt from the days and days of sitting in front of this computer typing the prologue/first chapter, so I figured my readers would appreciate shorter chapters than I intended so that they wouldn't have to look at a screen for a while...

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Chapter Two - Lunas Seahold, Trelig Hold, Eire Weyr & Hold, Current Pass 1.16.3475-1.17.3475
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Iasur, son of Lord Tasior of Lunas Seahold, was awake and wandering the narrow ledges outside of the Seahold when he saw a blue dragon appear in the sky--a familiar blue dragon. He quickly ran to the large cavern mouth that was the entrance to the Seahold and towards the Lord Holder's quarters. His sudden barging in quite obviously startled his sleeping parents, who quickly gave their son a cold look.

"What is it, Iasur?" his father asked, suddenly realizing that the boy wouldn't wake them in such a way unless it was important. Tasior and Iasur were obviously father and son--they looked nearly exactly alike, and acted very much the same.

"K'nar and blue Ryodanth have just arrived, Father. I just figured that you would like to know before his dragon lands right in the middle of the court," Iasur replied, a slight smirk on his face. "I mean, Ryodanth isn't as big as Alaeith and Sulith are, but he does take up quite a bit of space nevertheless."

Aleenia sat up and muttered something about getting a brew of klah going before standing up and walking out. Tasior regarded his wife with a fond look before turning back to his eight-Turns-old son. "You seem rather used to saying the names of the Eire dragons, considering they've only been your Weyrleaders for barely a Turn. Now how is that, dear son...?" the man asked, his green eyes narrowing a bit in suspicion. He had always suspected that his son was somehow, without his knowledge, taking small trips to the Weyr, normally on occasions when he wouldn't really be missed.

"Father, I just didn't really get into the habit of getting to know our previous Weyrleaders at Igen. They didn't seem to really care about the Holds. They always seemed so...distant. Lady Kalusia and Lord A'rek, however, are kind and prefer to get to know their Lords Holder and their offspring, so I seemed closer to them," Iasur explained just as K'nar knocked on the open door, a look of gravity on his sun-tanned face. "Good day, Bluerider K'nar," the boy said as he bowed courteously at the man.

"Good day to you, young Iasur. I presume that was you wandering the cliffside when Ryoda and I appeared?" K'nar smiled a bit when Tasior glared at his son, who shouldn't have been on the cliffside so early in the morning. "Oh, don't worry, Tasi! If the boy had fallen with Ryodanth and I there, we would have surely caught him. And if we happened to arrive later than that, the dolphins would have tugged him back to the Hold. Besides, the boy had the sense to stay on the wider ledges!" Everyone knew that K'nar took pride in his dragon's intelligence, though K'nar insisted that his Ryodanth was smarter than even Alaeith, which was nothing more than a rider's pride in his beast. "In any case, Lord Tasior," K'nar stated, his voice suddenly taking on a professional tone, "I am here to inspect your Hold. Thread fell early at Paradise River yesterday, so every Weyr in the South was instructed to inspect their Holds for signs of ill-preparation. Though I'm sure with as good a Harper as Alegar, this inspection will more than likely be over in no time." Tasior took notice of the way the bluerider's black eyes suddenly lit up at the mention of the Harper, which confirmed his suspicions of the possibility that the young dragonman had a dual reason for being at the Seahold.

"Well then, K'nar, we'd best get started on this inspection. As I'm sure you'll assess in a while, Lunas is more than prepared for Threadfall--premature or otherwise," Tasior was saying as he led the bluerider out of the Lord Holder's quarters. Tasior, suddenly aware that he hadn't combed his hair yet, quickly ran his fingers through the brown-black locks before straightening the collar of the sea-green tunic he had put on seconds before K'nar's arrival.

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Iasur thought it a perfect time to go and welcome the blue dragon himself for coming to the Hold. He stopped and stared for a moment at Ryodanth--the dragon was an interesting shade of turquiose, almost the exact shade of the ocean outside. The blue's eyes were gently whirling blues and greens, which meant the dragon probably thought the inspection would go well. He quickly closed the distance between himself and the much larger dragon. "Good morning, Ryodanth," he said as he waved slightly up at the large draconic head. "Thank you for bringing your rider to inspect Lunas."

Think nothing of it, young Iasur, Ryodanth said as he settled into a lying position, settling his head beside the young boy. Even though I'm sure that the Lord has more than prepared Lunas for Threadfall, and the dragon's eyes quickly flicked oranges for a mere second before resuming their green-blue whirlpool, I'm also sure that K'nar and I will remain here at the Hold for a while afterwards. I'll simply inform Sulith later, when K'nar informs me of such, that Lunas is adequately prepared.

Iasur thought it was an honor for the blue dragon to bespeak him, for he knew that not everyone could hear the dragons. He also thought it was funny that the blue dragon always called him 'young'--Iasur was a few Turns older than Ryodanth--but then again, he figured that dragons matured faster than humans did, so he supposed that, in a way, Ryodanth's calling him young was justified. He hoped that when he Turned eleven or twelve, a new clutch would be hardening on Eire's Sands, the dragons would come to Lunas and Search him. He knew from speaking with the blue that he could sense potential in people, and he sincerely hoped that he could be chosen by a dragon of his own, a lifelong bond with one of the magnificent protectors of the planet and its people. He regarded Ryodanth with a calculating eye, trying to figure out which dragon he'd be capable of Impressing. He couldn't imagine himself on a green--they were too proddy, and besides, were Impressed by mainly women now. He was told that, back in the Ninth Pass, greens were Impressed by only men until one green insisted on Impressing a girl--after that, girls were preferred for greens. A blue or a big brown would be adequate, though--they were more admirable for a Lord's son than a green. What would really surprise Iasur was if a bronze, who could fly the great queen dragons, and therefore become Weyrleader, chose him as its rider. But then he got to thinking that he was young yet--only eight Turns--and it was nearly every eight-Turns-old boy's secret dream to ride a dragon and fly against Thread.

Well, I'm sure that the dragons will come here to Search, Ryodanth stated, startling the boy and causing him to jump a bit in surprise. I apologize for interrupting you, but you think rather loudly. Yumeth, Shinaldra's queen, will rise to mate soon, so there will be a clutch on the Hatching Grounds soon enough. We also seem to have a shortage of Candidates this time around. I could make a suggestion to the other Search dragons and their riders that you would make a good weyrling...?

The blue dragon's tone was one of slight disappointment, as if what he said wouldn't matter to the other Search dragons--or, Iasur thought, their riders. But if Ryodanth was correct, and Yumeth would be rising soon, then he had a chance. Even if he wasn't Impressing age, maybe he could ask the Searchriders to convince his father to allow him to live at the Weyr--if he showed even the slightest hint of potential. He would have thought more on the matter, but his father and K'nar walked up at just that moment, with Master Alegar in tow. Iasur was sure that soon after using Ryodanth to speak with Sulith, Weyrleader A'rek's great bronze, K'nar would stay at Lunas for a while. The bluerider and the Master Harper were lovers, after all, and the scare with Eire Weyr's Harper dying seemed to strengthen the bond between the two--so much that Alegar was practically begging Masterharper Rorius to have him transferred to the Weyr.

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"You said earlier that Thread fell early at Paradise River?" Tasior was asking as Alegar finally caught up with Lord and dragonman, smiling a bit as the Harper took hold of the bluerider's outstretched hand. "I trust everything is okay there--if my memory serves me right, K'nar, you hail from Paradise River yourself, don't you...?"

"My uncle's the Steward there, and my father is Lord Holder. And from what my old friend Kh'ren told me, there was only one tragedy at Paradise River. Jadarna, my mother's oldest sister, was out gathering medicinal herbs when Thread started to fall, and she couldn't get to a safe place quick enough." The bluerider's tone suddenly grew solemn, more than likely from a fond memory of his aunt. Everyone noticed Ryodanth's sudden comforting croon, which startled every holder and fishman near the blue. "In any case, I need to inform A'rek and Kalusia of the readiness of Lunas Seahold, which is superb, I might add." K'nar's eyes gained the out-of-focus look of a rider speaking privately with his dragon for a moment before smiling at Alegar. "Now that Ryo's speaking with R'ken's Kallanth, Allie," he muttered before gently kissing the side of the Harper's neck. "Maybe we could go to Fort ourselves and speak your request to Master Rorius ourselves...? A'rek supports your decision--he says you're one of the best Harpers the Weyr could have--and Kalusia says that your living at the Weyr would keep my mind from wandering during Threadfall. I can't help but wonder if you're alright if I don't see you in a few days, and your transferring to Eire would adequately quell that worry." K'nar then glanced at Tasior, his eyes silently asking the Lord Holder if the possible removal of his Master Harper was all right with him.

"Go on, you two...you need to be together," Tasior said, a smile forming as he glanced between the two lovers. "I'm sure that Masterharper Rorius wouldn't mind assigning me another capable Harper to teach my Hold's children."

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Kyubith emerged from between a mere dragonlength above Trelig Hold, startling a good half-dozen holders out in the courtyard. K'ralli could feel the rumble through the brown's whithers that was draconic laughter as the dragon settled himself right in the middle of the courtyard.

"You could have picked a better time to arrive, brownrider," Lord Kami muttered angrily as he walked up beside Kyubith, glaring up at K'ralli all the while. "My holders are busy with the season's harvest, and your big dragon came and scared half the sorters to death, as well as got my youngest to crying." Kami always tried to rile any dragonrider who dared approach his Hold, and K'ralli was one of the few who didn't get the least bit irritated at the Lord's attitude. "What are you here for this time, Wingsecond?"

"Thread fell at Paradise River yesterday when it wasn't due to do such until today," K'ralli said as he slid down Kyubith's shoulder, stressing the words to make sure the obstinate Lord understood the situation. When Kami's eyes widened slightly, he continued, "A'rek has, as is tradition in such situations, sent riders to each of Eire's Holds for a thorough inspection. I was given the honor of coming to Trelig to ensure, as I'm sure it is with such excellent Holdership, that the Hold is prepared for emminent Threadfall." K'ralli made sure that he made it seem as if it was a great honor to be chosen to inspect Trelig, to placate Lord Kami as the grueling rounds of the inspection were made. K'ralli was infinitely relieved when Kami's wife, Lady Maen, walked up with a pleasant smile on her face.

"Good day, Lord K'ralli," Maen stated as she gave a small curtsy, not once neglecting hospitality for dragonrider guests. "I heard about the tragic incident at Paradise River...I trust that Lord Yaririn and Lady Daira are taking the loss of Jadarna well? I know that Jadarna and Daira were sisters..." Maen's gentle, girlish face expressed genuine sadness for the loss of a Pernese to Thread. K'ralli knew, for Lady Maen had told him once before, that Jadarna was an old friend of hers back in their younger days. "I hope that Daira doesn't take the loss too personally--I'm sure it was on an impulse to ensure that Daira had enough healing herbs to go around that Jadarna left so early in the morning..."

"I'm sure that Weyrleader K'jin made it quite obvious to Lady Daira that her sister's death is in no way her doing. If anything, no one was at fault--no one could have known that Thread was going to Fall early! Besides, more lives would have been taken if there had not been a watchrider posted at the Hold to warn Monaco Bay if such deviations in the pattern occur." K'ralli made a slight nod and began to walk towards the Hold proper, thus telling Lord and Lady that the inspection was to start immediately. "Lord A'rek asked me to perform a particularly thorough inspection of Trelig, seeing as this marvelous Hold is scheduled for Threadfall next in Eire's jurisdiction...in any case, there's no need for silence during these matters! Maen, my Lady, how fares the babe?"

"Oh, little Kamen is doing fine--another strong son for Kami to dote on," Maen replied, sending Kami a fond glance, which issued a smile from her husband. Kami was always more open-minded when his spouse was around, and was even lessening on his opinion that dragonriders were to blame for everything that went wrong on Pern. "In any case, K'ralli, I'm sure you'll find that Trelig Hold is more than prepared for anything that Thread can throw at it," she added with a slight smirk. "My spouse keeps a sharp eye on any changes in the amount of agenothree or other supplies for the groundcrews. But enough of technicalities, K'ralli! How are things between you and Tamarin?"

"Fine, as always, Lady Maen. Still no sign of children yet, but we'll just have to wait and see, won't we...?" K'ralli's eyes darkened slightly at the small dispair that he felt whenever he was reminded of the fact that he was still childless. He had come of age when he Turned fourteen, nearly half his lifetime ago, and some of his fellow brownriders--and even a few of the blueriders--would find ways to rub their children in his face, thus strengthening his sadness.

You are still young, Kiral...as is Tammie. The two of you will have children yet! Besides, with Anu rising fairly soon, Kyubith said in his cryptic way whenever he discussed Anudith's coming cycle, Tammie will probably have a child soon. Kyubith's eyes, gently whirling green as he settled himself on the fire-heights, blinked at his rider, the Lord, and his Lady. K'ralli always silently praised his brown for knowing just what to say to ease his mind on such matters.

"Yes, we'll see about it," Kami muttered as they reached the room that stored the flamethrowers. The thirty flamethrowers were situated on their racks, as was the norm until Threadfall, and the numerous agenothree tanks where settled below them, all neatly stacked to lessen confusion. "Here we have our flamethrowers and agenothree tanks...as you can clearly see, all are in perfect condition, and all are neatly put away." Kami snorted slightly as K'ralli, in a seemingly obvious attempt to prove him wrong, picked up a flamethrower and fiddled with the trigger, making sure that the parts all moved correctly.

"Yes, I'd say that these flamethrowers are in excellent condition, Lord Kami," K'ralli stated as he glanced over the agenothree tanks. "As well as the agenothree tanks. Nice and full, considering the amount of Thread that fell last Fall. But I know from prior experience that you ensure the tanks are always full to the brim before every Fall. Shall we move on to the protective clothing for your groundcrews?" A pleasant smile was on the brownrider's face as Kami led him to another nearby room and opened the door. Within the room were rows upon rows of the metallic armor that the groundcrews wore during Threadfall to protect them. K'ralli walked over to the nearest suit and rapped on it a few times before checking it for possible cracks or chinks. "I'd say that Trelig is more than adequately prepared for the possibility of--" K'ralli's comment was cut short by the sound of screams, as well as Kyubith's brassy roar of anger. "What in the...?" the dragonrider muttered before running towards the Hold doors. He was aware of Lord Kami following him, asking him what in Faranth's name was going on. Meantime, K'ralli was asking Kyubith the very same question.

THREAD! The brown dragon's angry roars created a shaking in the Hold proper. I have informed Sulith...he and the rest of the Weyr are on their way. A long pause insued before Kyubith spoke again. Ryodanth regretfully informs me that he and K'nar are in Fort, so they will be a while longer. Raidrath says that T'bias was in the middle of his inspection of Eire Hold, so they'll be here momentarily. Suddenly the brown's roars took on a joyous tone, which led K'ralli to believe that the other dragons had arrived to help. They come! Sulith flames...he chars! Excellent flame, Sulith! Kyubith had a habit of doing a sort of commentary on the other dragons' performances while K'ralli steels himself for Threadfall. Anudith flies well...as always. There is a patch of Thread above Kallanth that he cannot see! Anu spots it...she dives...brilliant flame! K'ralli was sent a vision of that to demonstrate the intensity of the green's fire. The rider could also see how close the Thread had come to bowling R'ken off his bronze. He silently thanked Anudith's sharp eye and quick reflexes--R'ken had always commented on Tamarin's clever flying, always stating that she was a irreplaceable wingrider. K'ralli tightened his riding jacket around his torso as he vaulted to his brown's shoulder, noticing that Kyubith's eyes were a swirling whirlpool of reds and oranges, with a barely noticable tinge of the yellow of anxiety. When are we going to get in the air, K'ralli? A weyrling has already dropped off firestone...why are we not flying? Kyubith's tone was flooded with anxiety, the sign that the brown dragon was more than ready to get in the air and do what dragons did best--flame Thread out of Pern's skies.

K'ralli quickly but carefully attached the safety straps to the metal loops in his belt before giving his dragon a thump on the shoulder. Now we fly, Kyubith...now we fly. Meet up with Sulith and Jairenth...they'll inform us of the type of Fall this seems to be. K'ralli pumped his arm, partly to signal to the people below the brown that he was about to fly, and partly to inform the groundcrews to steel themselves for Fall. The grubs that had once protected the Southern Continent had died out several hundred Turns ago, around the end of the Tenth Pass. Since then, it became neccesary for southern Holds to procure groundcrews for Threadfall, in case Thread slipped through the wings of dragons overhead. Jairenth, A'driel's bronze, swooped down and began flying wingtip-to-wingtip with Kyubith.

"Nice to see Kyubith back in the air, K'ralli!" A'driel yelled across the distance between the two dragon necks. "I thought he'd be waiting in Trelig's Courtyard the entire Fall! Where were you?" A'driel was a thoughtful person, with a gentle face and kind lavender eyes. His dirty-blonde hair, when let loose from his riding helmet, fell a little past his shoulders, and his light skin had become tanned from sunning on the beaches near the Weyr. "Does Lord Kami really have his flamethrower stores that far into the Hold? No, he must for you to take so long to fly...in any case, A'rek says to be careful--this Thread may Fall a little differently than usual."

K'ralli nodded his acknowledgement to the bronzerider and veered a little to the left, where a large clump of the silvery Thread had escaped the higher wings. Kyubith let loose a great blast of flame that quickly turned the deadly strands into harmless black char. The rider quickly lowered the protective goggles built into his riding helmet down over his eyes, just before the still-hot black dust could enter his eyes and blind him. He gave his dragon a loud thump on his whithers to show the brown that he was proud of his effective use of flame--Kyubith had an innate sense of exactly how much fire he'd need to destroy Thread, ever since he first flew against his ancient adversary. He took the time to glance over the performance of the rest of the wings, and his eyes lingered for a moment on the dark green hides of Anudith and Tarinth, as well as the recently-come turquoise hide of blue Ryodanth. He wondered what K'nar and his blue were doing at Fort, but then quickly decided that he probably went with Alegar to present their case to Master Rorius himself, so the bluerider probably had to drop the Harper off at Lunas before coming to fight Thread. K'ralli quickly glanced over the queens' wing at the gold, blue, and green dragons, riders and flamethrowers in tow, before returning his attention to Kyubith's flying. The brown quickly took his rightful place behind and slightly to the left of Sulith before looking around to spot another clump of the deadly silver strands.

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A loud draconic scream brought A'rek's attention from the Thread falling before him, glancing down towards the lower wings. He had just enough time to see a splash of a light leaf green winking between before Sulith veered towards another patch of Thread.

Akeruth, Av'ren's green, the bronze informed his rider as he flamed another bunch of the silver death. She emerged from between too close to Raidrath, so she veered away from him and into a patch of Thread she didn't know was there. Her left wing was badly laced, and Av'ren suffered a few scores on his near leg. Sulith quickly glanced down at his mate before flaming a patch of Thread that was directly below him. Alaeith flies well, he commented with pride before adding, she should be rising in a month or so...the weyrlings from our last clutch are nearly grown. Yumeth flies well, also--she'll rise within the next sevenday, I'm sure. The bronze's comment on the nearness of Yumeth's rising caused the bronzerider to glance down at the young queen, who was from Alaeith's second mating with Sulith. It surprised everyone in the Weyr when Yumeth went straight for Shinaldra, who was almost past Impression age. Ryosaith, the queen from Alaeith and Sulith's first flight, had made a point to Impress a young woman, just Searched for Impression. Shinaldra stood at that Hatching, as well as a couple of Hatchings at Korani Weyr. In fact, N'jak, Korani's Weyrleader, had sent Shinaldra to Eire on the off-chance that the woman would Impress an Eire queen instead of a Korani one. A'rek knew that Yumeth was one of the better dragons from his bronze's matings, and that the bronze took a great interest in the teachings of his offspring--the queens, bronzes, and browns in particular. Another scream, this one closer to him than the last, brought A'rek's attention towards the wing just above his. He was surprised to see Jairenth suddenly disappear between--A'driel was a very capable rider, so it was odd that Jairenth had gotten scored badly enough to make that high-pitched scream. Arrived from between into yet another patch that shouldn't have been there, Sulith commented before flaming yet another bunch of Thread. A'driel apologizes for his poor flying--I told Jairenth that his rider couldn't have controlled it, so no need to apologize, the bronze added just as Thread finally died down. Not too bad, for a premature Threadfall. Only Akeruth's lacing, one of the blues got hit on the trailing edge of his wingsail, and Jairenth got badly scored on his shoulder and right side. A'driel got nearly all the Thread, so they'll be out of the air for quite some time.

And what of the blue's rider and Av'ren? A'rek asked his dragon as he spiraled down to meet with the groundcrew captain. He always made it a habit to speak with the groundcrews himself after Threadfall--it showed the Holders that he was a kind and thoughtful Weyrleader.

N'thel--blue Takath's rider--was scored on his right arm and chest while trying to protect Akeruth earlier. Takath and Akeruth are weyrmates, and Takath didn't want Akeruth to get too badly scored. Unfortunately, Kisakith informs me that Koluni informed Niremu that Karden might not be able to save the man's arm. Kisakith says that N'thel's arm was half-covered in Thread by the time Takath transferred between. The bronze dragon's eyes flashed the grey of worry for a quick second before continuing. Kisakith says that Karden will try his best, but he doesn't promise much. Alegar helps the healer with N'thel.

Alegar...? A'rek was surprised to hear that the harper was at the Weyr. He figured that K'nar had dropped the man off back at Lunas, then went to fight Thread with his Weyr.

Ryodanth said that K'nar and the harper went to see Masterharper Rorius. Alegar is now the Weyr's Master Harper, he says.

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Niremu made her rounds in the clearing in front of the Weyr proper, checking over the progress the healers were making with both riders and dragons. She hovered a bit over the healers that were tending to Jairenth and A'driel--Niremu had a fondness that was very close to a love for the older rider, and due to that, Kisakith was infatuated with bronze Jairenth. The bronze had ended up in the middle of a large clump of Thread, though his rider, A'driel, had gotten most of the damage from the silvery rain-like Thread. Jairenth had gotten the brunt of the scoring on his shoulder, though some had gotten his right side, very close to the area of the ribcage that protected the dragon's hearts. She walked away just in time--brownrider K'ralli, who would have informed A'rek immediately, had just arrived, and from the look of him, he had gotten scored a few times as well. Kyubith had a new Threadscore on his neck, making a neat half-circle on the right side of the brown's sinuous neck. It almost made it look like the dragon was wearing half of a necklace, which made Niremu laugh slightly in amusement.

Remu, Alaeith and the other queens are arriving. Kalusia will take over from here, and she'll be able to help the healers more, Kisakith said as the older queens gracefully glided to the ground, with Alaeith as the head of the group. Yumeth and Ryosaith, the two younger queens, landed just behind and to either side of the larger gold, with the blue and green dragons that completed the queens' wing right behind them. Silently Niremu made a mental reminder to pay more attention to Kalusia and Jolayin's healing lessons, so that she'll be able to help the dragons and riders come next Fall.

"Niremu, how fares the injured?" Kalusia asked as she and Jolayin walked up, glancing over the remaining invalids. "For it being a premature Fall, there are few casualties. Only five injuries, and three of them serious enough to keep either dragon or rider out of their Wing for a time. K'ralli and Kyubith got a bit of a score near the end of Fall, but they'll be fine. A'rek, the fool, got a bit of char in his face when he wasn't paying attention to where the stuff was going, but again, he'll bounce right back--he always does."

"Well, Kalusia, the only ones that the healers are having problems with are N'thel, who might or might not be able to keep his arm, and A'driel and his bronze, who both got bad scorings in very inconvenient areas. Av'ren and Akeruth are comfortably resting in one of the nearby weyrs, having relatively little scoring compared to the others." Niremu quickly guided Kalusia towards the area where Master Karden was tending to N'thel's arm. Takath, N'thel's blue, was anxiously hovering his head over his injured rider, his eyes raging whirlpools of yellows and greys. "Master Alegar has been assigned to the Weyr, by the way, so he and one of the journeymen healers are trying to tend to A'driel, but Jairenth keeps scaring the journeyman with his growling."

"Why don't you go calm Jairenth down? Or better yet, stay with A'driel--Kisakith will happily help you with the bronze," Kalusia said, a slight smile at the young queenrider telling that she knew of the girl's growing love for the older bronzerider. "I'm sure that A'driel would like to come to with a pretty girl nearby. Tell me, Niremu, whatever happened to your fondness for Kelini?"

"Oh, him! He enjoys the company of Holdbred girls, rather than Weyrbred. I suppose he'd rather have a girl that is inhibited," Niremu muttered hastily before running off to where A'driel and bronze Jairenth were being treated. Kisa, dear, I need you. Jairenth will not calm down and let the healers tend to either himself or his rider. I need you to tell him that if he doesn't calm himself, A'driel might not make it. The girl couldn't supress the slight sadness in her voice at the thought of A'driel, or his beautiful beast, dying. It was more the thought of one of Pern's great protectors succumbing to the very thing they protect the people from.

He says that A'driel hurts...but he refuses to calm down because his rider hurts so much. I will attempt to calm him. Kisakith settled herself down beside the bigger dragon, looking right into the bronze's eyes. The bronze almost instantly calmed, ceasing his head-tossing above his injured rider. Jairenth says that the healers may approach his rider, but only if you are with them. He says that he'd feel better if you helped to heal A'driel, even though you are unsure of what to do.

"Niremu, is it safe to approach him now?" Kepli, the oldest of the two journeymen, as well as Master Karden's eldest son, asked tentatively, glancing over towards the bleeding rider. "I assume it is--Jairenth stopped acting like a brooding queen over her clutch. Kisakith is exceptional at calming that bronze lad down, isn't she?"

"Well, Kisakith and Jairenth are close friends, so it's natural that Kisa would be able to calm the big guy down. In any case, Jairenth will only let you near A'driel if I accompany you, so if you'll be so kind as to teach me a few pointers," Niremu said as she guided Kepli over to the bronzerider. Within the next hour, they had patched up the older man rather well. Niremu had personally overseen the moving of the man to his temporary weyr while he recuperated.

Meanwhile, K'ralli was laughing slightly at his weyrmate's shocked face. "What, Tammie? After eleven Turns riding Kyubith, I'm not allowed to have the scars to prove it?"

"It's not that...it's just that you're such a capable rider. How in Faranth's name did you end up getting scored?"

"How did A'driel end up getting nearly bowled off of Jairenth? Or N'thel nearly losing his arm to Thread? Or Akeruth's lacing?" K'ralli countered, making sure that his points got through. "These things happen, Tamarin. I know A'driel, N'thel, and Av'ren to be very capable, careful riders, and yet they got badly scored today. It was an irregular Fall--I'm sure Anudith stated that at some point." Anudith's slight nod, a more human gesture than a draconic one, emphasized the man's point. "In any case, it's over with, and we'll be short one Wingleader, a bluerider, and a green and her rider for a while. A'driel will be out of the air for a good few months, what with those chest wounds he's gotten. N'thel will be out of action nearly as long with that arm of his. Akeruth's wing will need to heal completely before they even think of letting her back into the air. I'm just grateful that you didn't get hurt--I'd rather not have to go through what I'm sure Av'ren is right now, with the possibility of N'thel losing his arm, and with it his chances of flying Thread as efficiently."

A sigh from Tamarin told him that the younger greenrider understood him. "I apologize. I suppose it's just because I was worried--about you, about Av'ren, about all that got injured in today's Fall. By the way, how did you manage to keep K'nar from getting scored that one time?"

"Well, you can thank Kyu for that one--he spotted the Thread, not me. I was looking in the completely opposite direction, so I wouldn't have caught it in time. In any case, that was a nice save you did! Did R'ken thank you for keeping him from getting seriously injured?" K'ralli inquired as Tamarin settled down in one of the high-backed chairs in their small weyr, stretching her legs out in an attempt to re-aquaint them with moving after the two-and-a-half hour Threadfall.

"If it means anything, he repeated his statement that I'm irreplaceable as a wingrider. In any case, I figured that Anu was the only one who could have flamed that Thread without accidentally flaming R'ken and Kallanth, so...I just went for it. The other dragons in the Wing weren't close enough to catch it in time, seeing as Anudith had just flamed a patch perhaps seven arm's-lengths from Kallanth..." Tamarin blushed slightly as K'ralli began to stare at her, his eyes sparkling. "What are you...staring at...?"

"You...what else would I be staring at...?" K'ralli's question made the greenrider blush even more, which issued a smile from the man's lips.

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Keltinos, Lord of Eire Hold, could not figure out what misfortune had befallen the dragons of Pern. Thread fell early twice in the South--first at Paradise River, then at Trelig Hold. The Weyrs of Pern had gone through early Threadfall before, but not one after another like it had been. He remembered a few hours before, when T'bias was making his rounds through Eire, how Raidrath, T'bias' great bronze beast, suddenly made a near-deafening roar. T'bias had informed him, as he ran through the Hold to get to his dragon, that Thread was falling at Trelig. Keltinos knew, as a Lord Holder ought, that Thread wasn't due to fall at Trelig until the next day!

"Keltinos, dear, what is the matter? Thread didn't do any damage at Trelig, thankfully," Askini, Keltinos' wife and Lady of Eire, asked as she gently massaged her husband's tense shoulders. "I know that neither you nor Tasior is entirely fond of Lord Kami, but he is a good Holder, after all."

"I know that, Aki, I know. I'm not faulting Lord Kami for Thread falling--Faranth knows that's not something he can control! I know, however, that Kami will find some way to blame the dragons for it!" Keltinos suddenly slammed his fist against the table, startling his son, Kelini, as he entered the room. "Forgive me, Kelini. I'm just upset for Weyrleader A'rek."

"Understood, Father...speaking of dragons, there are some Searchriders from Sorna Weyr outside. They say that Orinth has a clutch hardening, and that they are in short supply of Candidates for the hatchlings. They wish to know if they can perform a Search here at Eire Hold. And before you ask, Father, the elder Searchrider told me up front that they asked A'rek's permission to Search in Eire Weyr's jurisdiction." Kelini's blue-green eyes glittered slightly--Keltinos knew that his son was obsessed with the dragons, and that he hoped to be Searched. Kelini smiled at his father's slight nod of approval. "Then I'll just go speak to L'sinal and U'rik, who came on Search. Father, do you think either Terith or Rasenth will find any acceptable Candidates here at Eire?"

"We'll just have to see, my son," Keltinos stated, nodding for the young man to go ahead and tell the dragonriders. "Inform L'sinal and U'rik to visit my office when they're finished with the Search. It is custom for a Lord Holder to approve of the young boys and girls that are taken on dragonsearch." He knew that the rest of his request fell on deaf ears as Kelini half-ran outside to the green and blue dragons sitting in the Courtyard.

"Well, young Kelini, what does your Lord father say?" Bluerider U'rik asked as the young Holder ran up, nearly running into Rasenth's foreleg in the process. U'rik smiled at L'sinal when the young Lord instantly apologized to Rasenth for nearly bowling into him. "I'm sure Raze doesn't mind your bumping into him," U'rik stated as Rasenth leaned down and sniffed at the youth's brown hair before giving an affectionate lick, something Rasenth was not apt to do often. "He seems to have taken a liking to you anyway!"

He has potential, Rasenth stated, watching the lordling with a great amount of interest. Terith says that there are about three more young ones here with great potential, as well. I suppose that's to be expected, what with all the new Holders coming South this Turn.

Well, then, ask L'sinal to collect the others, and that we'll meet in front of Lord Keltinos' office, U'rik told the blue while he gently grabbed the young man's wrist. "Well, Kelini, it seems that Terith and Rasenth agree that you have potential for Impression. I'll simply talk with your father about you coming with us to Sorna. Of course, if you don't Impress at Sorna, you could return to your home, or you have the choice of going to Eire or another Weyr to see if you could Impress a dragon of a different Weyr."

"You mean I get to come with you? You mean...you mean I've been Searched?" Kelini asked, and the man couldn't suppress a sigh of relief when the bluerider nodded his head. "Of course, that's if it's alright with my father--which I don't think it'd be a problem, seeing as Mother's pregnant again, so Father will probably have a male heir anyway." Kelini, at thirteen Turns, was Keltinos and Askini's eldest child and only son so far--the youth had three younger sisters, all of whom drove him crazy. Ahosara, at ten the oldest of the three girls, was a minor nuisance at best. She tended to stay in her room and spend her free time dreaming of the day she marries, like many young girls do. Atheni, a fiery spirit of nine, was dear to Kelini's heart simply because she reminded the youth so much of himself at that age. Laenara, a gentle girl of four and the youngest so far of all, had run up to where Terith and Rasenth had settled down to sun. Kelini quickly excused himself for a moment to pluck his baby sister off of the trail leading to the fire-heights. "Just where do you think you're going, young lady?" he asked her as she huffed and crossed her arms in protest. "You know Mother and Father don't want you wandering around on the heights! What if you had slipped and fallen?"

"One of the dragons would have caught me, Kelini!" Laenara stated matter-of-factly, glaring lightly at her older brother. She took the time to free herself from Kelini's grip and ran up to U'rik and smiled in her childish charming way. "Isn't that right, my lord bluerider?" Laenara's gentle eyes, cobalt with a hint of turquoise, glittered with child-like mirth as the bluerider smiled and nodded. Laenara glanced back at her brother and shot him a smug look because she was right and he was wrong. That look gave way to a look that all children give their elders when they were caught doing something they weren't supposed to as she muttered that Kelini was right, and she shouldn't have been heading up there anyhow. "Is my brother going with you, my lord?" the young girl asked U'rik, her eyes glancing back towards the blue and green dragons on the heights every so often. The two Sornian dragons had settled down beside Sasorith, the old brown watchdragon, who was awake at the moment in time. The old dragon was long since into the habit of sleeping most of his day away, waking only to announce the arrival of a dragon or the nearness of Thread to his rider, K'ser. Laenara blanched slightly when she realized that they were headed for her father's office and started to slightly edge away from Kelini, the other three youths Searched, and the two dragonriders. She sighed a little in relief when the small group didn't notice her sneaking away, and decided that she had best go play with Atheni.

"Lord Keltinos," U'rik started as he opened the door and stepped into the Lord Holder's office, "we found three youngsters that the dragons saw potential in that I'm sure you wouldn't mind losing to the Weyrs. However," he said as he motioned for Kelini to step in to the office as well, and smiled reassuringly when the young man complied. "Your son here also shows great potential, and with this being a Pass and all, we're going to need all the capable dragonfolk we can get. I already told him that he's more than welcome to go to Eire Weyr or back here to the Hold if he doesn't Impress--and even if he does, he can always transfer to Eire whenever his dragon comes of age." U'rik glanced beside him at Kelini, who was giving his father a pleading look. The bluerider smiled a bit at a memory from Turns back--a vision of himself at a younger age, standing just as Kelini was in front of his Lord, silently praying that he would be allowed to go to the Weyr.

Keltinos smiled at his son, suddenly reminded of how young Kelini was despite his Turns of life. "I don't see why he can't go on to possibly Impress one of the dragonkind," he said, glancing towards the older bluerider. "But we must understand one thing--if I fail to produce a male heir, and my daughters fail to marry before I pass on, one of Kelini's sons is to be sent here to take my place." With a sigh, Keltinos turned back to his eldest child. "Do you understand this, Kelini?" he asked, and nodded when Kelini nodded slightly in amazement. "Then I see no problem with it. My son will go to Sorna to stand at the next Hatching, and one day I'm sure he'll transfer to Eire to be nearer to his family." As the dragonriders left with the new Candidates, Keltinos found himself wondering what sort of dragon might attach itself to his son--and soon decided that he'd be proud of Kelini just for the fact that the dragons found him acceptable for Candidacy.

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Coming up in the next chapter: Candidacy at Sorna, the Hatching, and Weyrlinghood. Also, what lies in store for K'nar of Eire Weyr and Master Harper Alegar's relationship now that Alegar has been assigned to Eire Weyr?

Chapter Three will be up as soon as I can get the time to type it out between scooping cat litter and schoolwork...

-- Selrekla --