Chapter 9: In Council

Sipping carefully at her mug of piping hot Klah, Tarrie slowly made her way through the growing warren of Fort Hold. She really wasn't in a hurry to reach the dragon riders' meeting room, but neither did she want to draw attention to herself by being late. Halfway up one of the winding staircases that connected the various levels of the Hold, she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Tarrie! Any change in the outlook for today's fall?''

She turned, and waited for Sean to reach her. He was climbing the steps two at a time in his usual exuberant fashion, but the serious expression that they'd seen so much of in the past few days was firmly affixed to his face.

"No, it should stay clear, more's the pity.''

Sean gestured at the weather report flimsy she was holding under one arm. "May I?''

"Sure,'' Tarrie said, handing it over for Sean to scan as they walked. "Talia caught up with me at breakfast; she's predicting some heavy weather next week, which could drown a fall or two if we're lucky. They've lost the uplink to the last MetSat though... so it'll be back to the age-old guesswork until the end of the pass.'' And probably longer than that, Tarrie thought to herself.

"So I heard. Ongola's not too happy about it; he thinks it was probably Thread ovoids knocking it out of orbit. As if we can do a damn thing about the stuff while it's all the way up there.''

As the pair paused to allow a team of maintenance workers carrying heavy crates to pass through a narrowing in the corridor, Tarrie wondered what would break down next. Not the hydroponics, hopefully. Or the hot-water plumbing.

"I was meaning to ask: how's Porth doing today?''

Glad to have her depressing reverie interrupted, Tarrie smiled briefly. Thinking of Porth always cheered her up. "Healing well. She doesn't seem too stiff, so I'd like to get her out in the air again once 'fall's passed over.'' Porth seemed to be feeling better and better with every hour that passed, but now she was dozing, giving Tarrie a sense of dreamy calm that she really didn't want to interrupt.

"Hmmm. Best not to rush back in to action until you're sure she's fully healed, but there's no reason not to fly her later. Will you be sitting Threadfall out with her, or joining the groundcrews?''

Tarrie snorted. Sean rarely left such choices up to the individual, but in the wake of yesterday, perhaps he and Sorka had decided to go a bit easier on everyone? "If they ask me, I'll gladly help. But you know, after everything that happened yesterday, I think I'd rather just spend some time with her.''

She waited, as Sean gave her a slow, considering look. Eventually, he nodded in agreement. "Might be a wise idea at that. Of course, I could do with someone on the ground to keep a handle on the younger dragons, when they're not flying with the rest of us. Madrath and Shallarth seem to have settled down well, but I want the other four flying in shifts, alternating between wing and firestone duty. I'm still not happy with Lin's technique with her 'thrower, and Jim's Psillinth seems to think he has something to prove.''

Tarrie shook her head in exasperation at his litany of the younger riders' deficiencies. No, nothing was ever done well enough to please Sean, but he did have a point about Lin. Really, the woman needed a sharp talking too about proper maintenance of her equipment. "We must have been just as bad when we were their age. Three months of Threadfighting isn't much, when you think we've got another forty years of fall to look forward to. They'll catch up!''

"They'd better. ''

As they turned a corner, Tarrie was surprised to see a crowd of people waiting outside the usual meeting room. Bay Harkonen-Nietro and Phas Radamanth were amongst them, chatting quietly to Sorka.

"What're you all doing out here?'' Sean asked, clearly equally as confused.

"S'okay,'' Kathy said cheerily, poking her head out from around the door. "We're just about finished in here. Tarrie, you're gonna love this!''

Bemused, Tarrie waited to file into the room amongst the rest of the group. With everyone jostling around to find either their usual places or an empty spot, at first Tarrie couldn't tell what the fuss was about. She wasn't too surprised to see Wind Blossom in the room, a still, aloof figure gazing out the window. But beside her, Nyassa and Pete were frantically unfolding the last of the stacked chairs and placing them around a large, pale brown, smoothly carved, beautiful wooden table. Mouth agape with wonder, Tarrie shook her head.

"How? Where?''

"Courtesy of Paradise Hold,'' Nyassa said smugly. "They abandoned it; so we took it.''

"Tell me we can keep this one?''

"Seeing as it doesn't officially exist, I don't see why not,'' Sorka said. "Though we'll have to get it shifted up to our new Weyr pretty soon if we want it to stay that way.''

Tarrie moved to her usual place between Dave and Jerry, and sat down, still smiling like an idiot. Eyes closed, she ran her fingers over the varnished surface, enjoying the novelty. Furniture like this wouldn't be made again until well after the pass ended, but with care, it could easily
last until the next one.

"How was she?'' Dave asked quietly as the others slowly settled into their seats.

Tarrie opened her eyes, suddenly sober. There was no need to ask who she was. "She's not too happy. Not at all. Not because of you and Polenth, but... well yes, but she doesn't blame you for it. I think it was just... too much, with too little warning.''

Dave nodded sadly. "She had to put Chereth first. It's that, isn't it?''

Tarrie looked up to meet Dave's steady grey gaze. He'd cut right to the heart of things, just like that. Not that she was surprised to hear it; more reassured, if anything.

"Yeah.'' Tarrie couldn't help wondering if losing nearly everyone he'd loved had made that particular adjustment easier for Dave. Polenth was everything to him. There'd be no jealous rivalries, no sense of being torn between your dragon and your lovers, family or friends. But her train of thought was interrupted by Sean's voice, calling the meeting to attention. He rapidly ran through the necessary briefing he gave before every fall, laying out the expected hazards and conditions, and the role each wing would play. There were groans from the inexperienced riders who'd be left ground-bound at the start, anxious that they weren't doing as much as they could. Sean silenced them with a glare, and gestured for his wife to take over.

"Right now, we have only twenty three dragons. Porth won't be flying this fall, and Chereth is grounded until we know if she's carrying eggs,'' Sorka said. "We've every reason to expect that other queens will rise to mate over the next few months, and until we know more, there's no way to know how many dragons we'll have capable of fighting Thread at any given time. So, it's utterly imperative that we keep the younger dragons in reserve, fit and healthy. You'll all be doing more than your fair share of Threadfighting if things go the way we hope, so keep that in mind. We need you to take this seriously.''

"Did I hear you correctly, Sorka?'' Wind Blossom interjected, ever defensive of her mother's work. "If she's carrying eggs? Now that she's mated, I certainly have no doubts at all that Chereth will clutch!''

"With all due respect, Blossom, we don't believe the flight went as well as it should, or could have,'' Sorka stated coldly.

"No? Well! You can hardly blame that on the program. If you're not capable of controlling your dragons, that's hardly my concern. You chose to reject the in vitro route, so if the dragon doesn't produce as decent a clutch as she should, it's on. Your. Heads.''

As Tarrie listened to the petite Xenologist's words, all of her hard-earned serenity trickled away. The woman didn't have a clue! Every rider in the room had felt the strength of Chereth's demands, and as badly as things had ended, all were well aware that they'd only barely avoided an even worse outcome. She was on the verge of giving Wind Blossom a piece of her mind, when she felt Dave's hand on her arm, gently holding her back.

"Let her think what she likes,'' he said quietly, before continuing to address the whole group. "We've lessons to learn, it's true. That's why we're all here. To make sure that none of us face that experience unprepared, ever again.''

"Indeed,'' Sean agreed firmly. "Wind Blossom, you'll have the opportunity to discuss the clutching aspect of the dragon program when we get round to it.'' Having effectively dismissed Wind Blossom's burgeoning tirade, he continued without a pause. "But right now, we have other things to consider. Now, I've spoken to everyone involved, and a few facts are clear. One. As Bay suspected, it seems there's no way to get around a direct involvement during such... proceedings. Draconic instincts take over, completely, and it's in no-ones interests to fight them. Let me stress this again, in case any of you failed to appreciate it the first, second or thousandth time I've said it. Your dragon comes first. Always.''

Sean paused to let his words sink in, and Tarrie glanced round the room to check on the reactions. Wind Blossom's derisive scorn was hardly unexpected, but even Bay looked a little discomfited. Strange. Given her expertise, and all the old gossip, Tarrie would have thought she'd have been most at ease with this particular issue. Of course, if she'd met with Alianne, that could explain things. Was the motherly scientist feeling a certain amount of guilt? As for the other senior riders, none looked entirely happy, but with a few exceptions, most seemed to share a look of grim determination.

"Good to see no-one cares to dispute that point,'' Sean continued. "Two. A mating dragon needs extra energy, and this need is expressed as hunger. I'm reliably informed that it's not as bad as a hatchling's hunger-pangs, but the desire to feed is pretty much unstoppable on the part of the queen. Fortunately, the one desire the rider does not seem to share is the desire for raw meat.''

A brief, hastily smothered laugh echoed around the room, and Tarrie found herself smiling. Sean was nothing if not serious about this topic, but his carefully chosen words seemed to be setting the group a little more at ease.

"Sorka and I spent some time last night discussing the performance of the male dragons, and we agree that feeding may be the key. We all know better than to expect heavy exercise from a dragon with a full stomach, but that's what happened yesterday. Chereth, Shoth and Islorth; all three ate before the flight began.''

Otto immediately looked up, with a relieved expression on his face. "So, it's not because they're browns, that we couldn't keep up? I mean, Shoth's really fast in the air, fighting thread or otherwise, you all know that. I was so worried that something was wrong, but if it's just the feeding, then next time...''

Now why did he have to look at her when he said that?

Sean nodded. "It handicapped them, Chereth as well as the browns.''

"Gilgath knew that,'' Pete said from the far side of the table. "Instincts. She should have been higher, harder to catch.''

"He's right,'' Dave agreed. "We needed more altitude, for safety if nothing else. Our dragons wouldn't normally endanger themselves so recklessly, but I don't think any of us were very aware of what was going on outside of our dragons. That's got to be the main concern, next time -- to get as high and far as possible.''

"Paul, Shih -- do you have anything to add?'' Sean asked.

"I do,'' Paul said. "I don't know what Shih would say, but I think Firth was outstripped as well as Shoth and my Islorth. He may not have been weighed down by a cow or two, but he didn't have half the speed that Polenth and Gilgath did.''

Silently, Shih Lao nodded.

"From what we've been told, we agree with you'' Sorka said. "The dragons need that extra energy, and it looks like fresh blood is going to be the best source, providing we can stop them eating the whole animal. That may be easier said than done, but I think we have to try and give them all the encouragement we can.''

"Are you all clear so far?'' Sean asked. "One, don't fight your dragon. Two, encourage him to blood, stop her eating if you can. Three... what happens, happens, and when it's over, it's over. Got that? Over. We're all going to have to learn to live with the consequences, and I don't want to have dragons and riders distressed and out of action for days afterwards.''

"Sean, I have to ask something here,'' Catherine said from across the table. "Is Alianne a special case, or will all of us goldriders get some time to come to terms with things afterwards? And I know you've grounded Chereth, but what about whoever's next?''

Most of the other gold riders in the room were quick to nod in agreement, but Tarrie wasn't so sure. There was no way to make things easier, and little sense in trying.

Sean sighed. "Chereth and Alianne are a special case. I hope no one begrudges her some with her family. In her case, it's a necessity, not a luxury. And even if Chereth stays out of fall until she clutches, I do expect Alianne to be back on duty again soon.''

"We're just going to have to learn to live with this,'' Nyassa added. She looked round to consider the group of xenologists. "And what about the issue of the gene pool? How much flexibility have we got, in terms of our dragons sticking to one partner?''

Now that was a good question, and it made Tarrie wonder how comfortable Sorka and Sean were about taking their own advice. After all, there was no guarantee that Carenath would catch Faranth when she mated!

Sorka's lips narrowed, but she stayed silent as Bay answered the question.

"These are early days, and I don't think it'd be in anyone's interests to set things in stone. I know Wind Blossom has gone over the genetic encoding of your dragons again and again, and we're very confident that the genome is robustly protected against harmful mutations. But just to be absolutely sure of the viability of the second generation, I agree with Sorka that Polenth at least has to be grounded from participating in the next flight.''

"Oh, that's fine by me!'' Dave said with a relieved grin. "Do go on.''

"And Polenth will eventually have a chance of flying other queens, once we're certain of the health of the first clutch. With so many golds, all of the males will have to do their share. Of course, when Chereth rises again in the future, we may want to ensure a different sire then as well. Possibly,'' she added, giving Sorka a sideways glance. "But by then, we may have sufficient diversity that we don't need such restrictions. Yes, that'll likely be the case.''

"I'm sure you're right, Bay,'' Sean said, his tone of conviction adding weight to her words.

Tarrie was almost convinced, but she felt a little sorry for the woman. Bay was clearly trying to make things more palatable for the riders, but there was no disguising the obvious. It seemed like everyone had some kind of question or doubt, and a brisk conversation erupted throughout the room. How large a population of dragons would be large enough? Did the dragons have any concept of fidelity to their mates? When would the next queen rise, and whose would it be? How obvious was a gold dragon on the verge of heat?

Tarrie looked around the room, fully aware that it would be Porth's turn eventually, and probably sooner than she'd like. One thing was sure: over the next few years they'd all, with few exceptions, get to know each other a hell of a lot better! Who would it be? One and all, the other riders made good colleagues and friends, but some were much closer than others. Certainly, there were a few, men and women, who rather grated on Tarrie's nerves. There was no chance she'd have to get intimate with Kathy, thankfully, but some of the other options were hardly much better. Jerry was plain claustrophobic, Otto was an obnoxious twit, and Shih's antics simply drove her up the nearest wall! And as for Sean, well, enough said there!

Some of the other discussions were a lot more practical, and more suited to Tarrie's current mood. Bay had some interesting ideas about how to monitor the progress of Chereth's pregnancy until she clutched, which was expected to be in a little over three months time. There were a few technical issues to be sorted out with the bioscanners, which the dragons had outgrown well before their first year was out, but Otto managed to come up with an inspired solution. Of course, with one problem solved, another immediately reared its head. Wind Blossom seemed to have little patience with Sean's enforced caution, and saw no reason to keep Chereth from going between; the smaller dragonets didn't have any problems during pregnancy after all. Before things could get too heated, Sorka swiftly pointed out that unlike humans and every other animal on the planet, the dragonets were the only creatures unaffected by between in that way, and no-one wanted to take any chances with the dragons until they knew for sure.

"Well let's make sure!'' Pol suggested calmly. "If one of the other queens is willing to suffer a few indignities, Bay and I can easily find out exactly what effects between has on her system.

"I'm happy to volunteer Milath for that,'' Nyassa said. "And maybe Alianne might want to help out too?''

Bay looked to Sean and Sorka for approval. "Well, the equipment'll take more than two pairs of hands, and I'm sure it would help her to become more involved in things. In a useful manner, that is.''

Sorka nodded. "Ask her then, but don't push her.''

Tarrie, too, had a feeling that Alianne would jump at the chance. Smart of Nyassa to think of that function of between, especially since the full effects of Chereth's flight were not common knowledge around the Hold. Not that there weren't other options available to her, but Tarrie wasn't sure how much of what had occured Alianne was actually going to tell her husband, nor how soon. Still, it wasn't really her business at all, and not worth dwelling on. Suddenly, she became aware that Jerry was looking at her intently, as if he expected her to say something.

"Hmm? Sorry, I was klicks away.''

"I was just asking how much Porth's colour varies naturally. You know, so we know what to look for in the queens.''

Was he really asking about Porth specifically? Tarrie brushed the question aside quickly with a laugh.

"From what we've heard, Nyassa's the person to ask on that score. Aren't you, Ny?''

"What? Oh, the colour thing. If you say so! I'm not sure that it's really a reliable measure of anything though, just a heightened sign of health and good condition. Of course, I didn't get to see Chereth later on yesterday
afternoon, but from the sounds of things, by the time it's obvious, it's too late.''

"So how do we know which queen'll mate next!'' Jerry demanded.

"Eventually, the queens should each have their own very regular cycles,'' Wind Blossom explained patiently, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "But of course, you riders know your dragons far better than I, so I wouldn't dream of lecturing you on noticing the obvious signs.''

"Oh, come now Blossom, that's hardly fair,'' Bay said, turning to glare at her colleague.

"Sean had the right of it last time we all met,'' Dave stated calmly, his voice cutting through the remaining conversation. "Instinct. The dragons will know.''

"First thing I knew was Chereth going crazy,'' Paul muttered into the growing silence.

Dave couldn't quite conceal a brief smirk. "Islorth's a brown,'' he drawled. "Gilgath knew something was up, didn't he Pete?''

Pete flushed. "Well... yeah, I suppose he did. But Firth...''

"Firth was asleep. I don't think that really counts.''

"So what does Polenth say about all this?'' Tarrie asked, staring firmly at Dave until he dropped his gaze.

The man simply shook his head. "He's totally wrapped up with Chereth, bless him. If I can peel him away, I might manage to get some sense out of him later.''

That answer seemed to satisfy nearly everyone else, but Tarrie soon found herself the uncomfortable object of several pairs of eyes. Instinct, huh? Well, she had asked. Fortunately, Sorka quickly came to her rescue with the final item on the day's agenda.

"So, that just leaves the issue of what to do when Chereth clutches,'' she began. "I think we're agreed that it'd be best to have the hatchling dragons based at our new quarters as soon as we can. Most of us remember what things were like before moving into the Catherine Caves, and I know the younger dragons found the cramped conditions here in Fort very awkward.''

"Oh yes!''

"Hear hear.''

"So, Sean and I spoke to Telgar after the last meeting, and he's had a team up surveying our crater. Incidentally, Wind Blossom, he was full of praise for your nocturnal creatures.''

The scientist smiled serenely. "You should never have doubted their worth.''

Tarrie almost laughed at this. For all that the woman doted on them now, there'd been quite a length of time, during all the chaos of the eruptions and the move up north, when Wind Blossom had just about abandoned them.

Sorka ignored her remarks, and carried on speaking. "Telgar has mapped out the best place to lay explosive charges to widen the entrance to one of the larger cave bubbles, which we think would make a fantastic nesting ground. The plan is to get the work started tomorrow, and try and get the place set up and fully functional as soon as we can. Perhaps, Wind Blossom, you'd like to give us your revised requirements for the eggs?''

"Why certainly, Sorka.''

Tarrie listened carefully as Wind Blossom thoroughly explained the type of heating and temperatures required, depending on how big the eggs eventually ended up being. A sandy base was deemed the most appropriate surface, allowing the eggs to be easily shifted and securely bolstered. That just left the problem of heating, which was simple in practice, but drilling the necessary bore holes would be rather time consuming. Discussing the various options took up the rest of their meeting, but by the end of another half hour, everyone had agreed on the best course of action.

As the meeting finally drew to a close and the riders and scientists started to leave, Pete called over to her.

"Tarrie, will you be in the bar later, after we've dealt with Thread?''

He seemed a little disappointed when Jerry, Paul and Nora immediately echoed his suggestion.

"Maybe,'' she replied noncommittally. "I might drop in, but if not, I'll see you all at the Weyr tomorrow. Good luck in fall, all of you.'' Really, Tarrie wasn't feeling in the mood for company, but if she decided not to show, at least he wouldn't be alone. And besides, tomorrow would be a very busy day.