Chapter Ten – At Last
Disclaimer: I do not own the Dragonriders of Pern series. Well, I did buy Dragonsdawn and got Dragonflight as a present, but that's really irrelevant...
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The hiss of Thread consuming vegetation became louder as leading edge drew closer, and Sallah knew the end was near. I wonder how far I've travelled, she thought dimly. I must have gone very far if there're no sled crews out fighting this Fall. Gasping for breath, she looked up at the encroaching cloud in the sky as she passed through a fringe of trees. I should have known it'd end like this when I first set out. All of that surviving has only lead to this... a worse death. Silently cursing her sore foot and the rocky ground that was only making things more difficult, she looked back down.
The ground had disappeared.
Her wide eyes glimpsed a vista of a stony valley and a river winding terrifyingly far below before she felt herself falling, falling, falling...
She squeezed her eyes tight shut in terror. She bounced, once, twice, and then she was rolling down a steep cliff, flying over every painful bump blurrily fast... before eventually coming to a dizzy halt.
Winded and her head whirling, she tried to gulp in air, wincing as she did so. Breathing hurt. She fervently hoped that she hadn't broken any ribs. Sallah looked dizzily around and found herself resting on the edge of a fairly wide ledge. The valley below her swam before her eyes and she scrabbled backwards. A few seconds later the world had stopped spinning – mostly – and she looked up at the sheer slope she'd tumbled down. Topped by a fringe of trees, it had to be over ten metres high. She swore, knowing that she was lucky to be alive.
Then the shadow of Thread appeared over the top of the bluff and she decided she'd rather stay that way. She struggled to her feet, but as she stared into the chasm below her she realised that shehad nowhere to go. She turned around, prepared to face her death – and gaped at what she saw in front of her.
It was the mouth of a cave.
The hissing got abruptly louder and she glanced up; Thread was making short work of the trees at the top of the slope. And that meant she only had seconds.
Gritting her teeth against the pain and without her walking stick to aid her, she limped as quickly as she could into the cave. The moment she made it inside she sighed and let cool relief wash over her. I'm safe. I'm alive. I got away. She looked back over her shoulder and saw the first Threads falling onto the ledge and down into the valley. Disgusted, she turned away again.
It was cool and dark inside the cave. Not wanting to stay near the Threads, Sallah walked slowly and unevenly forward... and fell down. Cursing quietly and aching all over she sat where she had fallen. Looking behind her, there was enough light coming from the mouth of the cave for her to see what she'd tripped over – the remains of a campfire. But that doesn't make any sense, she thought. She looked forward into the darkness of the cave with ever-adjusting eyes, and was struck by an odd feeling. The outline of that rock looks familiar somehow...
Then recognition dawned, and tears along with it.
This is our cave. The one we explored together all those years ago. She got up and limped slowly further, bittersweet memories threatening to overwhelm her. This is where we spent the night... together... for the first time... I'd give anything to see him again. Even just to know he's safe. Suddenly a wave of melancholy swept over her, bringing a new wave of tears. It's hopeless. How did I ever convince myself I could find him out here?
She sobbed out loud. "Oh, Tarvi..."
There was a sudden scraping sound from the back of the cave, the normally quiet sound of stone on stone magnified and echoing throughout the cavernous space.
What was that? Sallah was instantly alert for more danger. Probably just a bat or a wherry or a tunnel snake...
She gulped as she realised that whatever it was would know for sure that she was in their cavern by now – she'd made plenty of noise since she'd come in. And on top of that, she was still as good as night-blind in the dimness; if whatever it was decided to jump her, she wouldn't be able to see it coming.
As she squinted into the darkness, she thought she could see something glowing and coming slowly closer. Icy fear gripped her heart. Please let it not be one of those cheetahs. Could the light be the reflective glow of its eyes? Please, no, not after all this...
It was only a few metres away when she heard it speak, almost as if to itself. Something like, "...imagining things again..."
Sallah thought that she must be imagining things. Cats were not capable of speech, and there was something oddly familiar about that voice...
It spoke again, hoarse and desperate, louder this time. "Sallah?"
How does it know my name? she wondered. Then the light dropped to the floor and scattered; it looked like a pile of glowing worms. Blinking, she was able to better make out the figure in front of her.
"Sallah? It can't be you..."
And then she realised.
"Tarvi?"
A single second of silence passed, and then lean, strong arms surrounded her and she knew that she was safe. It no longer mattered that she was bruised, dirty, bone-tired and sore; it seemed as though all her hurts had been driven away. Her relief and joy went beyond coherent thought; she'd never been so happy in her life. After everything she'd been through, from floating above the planet to trekking painfully over it... everything had been worth it, in the end.
She couldn't summon any words at that moment to express how her heart was overflowing, so she just repeated the most important ones over and over again as the tears streaked down her cheeks. "Tarvi, Tarvi, oh Tarvi... my Tarvi..."
To him it was almost as though someone had taken a large stick and clubbed him upside the back of the head with it – but in a good way. He was reeling, dazed by the blow, the tears streaming down his face, but it was the best thing that had happened to him in a very long time.
It was as if he had grown used to the great, gaping hole in his heart, his universe... like that chasm had shrunk over time, though never becoming less painful. He'd thought that he'd never feel whole again... but now that the abyss in his heart had been filled in, it felt like he was bursting. And he'd never been happier.
At first he'd been convinced that he'd finally cracked, that his mind was playing cruel tricks on him, but to deny the existence of the woman in his arms now would be insane. Somehow, he knew this was real. After all this time, everything has finally turned out all right.
But he had so many questions to ask...
After he'd left Landing, he had walked aimlessly over the surface of Pern in despair for what felt like centuries, before he'd reached their cave. When he'd realised what he'd stumbled upon, the memories and the accompanying anguish had been crippling... yet he'd stayed, living in the grotto with his painful recollections, alone. Wallowing in his grief, one might say. Dwelling on the things that had, should have or could have happened...
The giant emptiness all around him had mirrored how he'd felt inside, and he hadn't had the strength to keep moving. Where would he have gone, after all? He had discovered many things while he'd been playing the hermit, like the extent of the caverns, strange sand that could be used as soap, and the glow worms. He'd been insensible of the worth his discoveries, and uncaring as to his surroundings... until he'd heard someone crashing into the cave.
He had so much to tell, and the innumerable questions that Sallah's reappearance had raised needed to be answered too. But his story and his questions could wait until much later; for now he was more than content just to stand there, holding his wife once more.
Truly happy again, at last.
Author's Note: *smiles gleefully* So, we have our happy reunion at last (sorry for the long gaps between updates – holiday season and all). Now, I know I said this'd be the last chapter, but I also know I've left some things unexplained. Who votes for the short, explanatory epilogue? :)