Author's Note

I do not own the Dragonriders of Pern. All rights belong to their rightful owners.

To LaurieH, thank you for the review and feedback! I completely agree about the characters thing, but since it started life as a bit of a light hearted joke, I ended up just running with it.

They were halfway through getting dressed when Dancer, Kuyaran's queen firelizard, blinked from between and began twittering and screeching at the top of her little voice. She was glowing noticeably more golden than normal.

"Rising?" Sirena asked lazily.

"No! Threadfall!"

"What? But we're not due Threadfall!"

"Well that's what she's showing me!"

They finished dressing hurriedly, binding each other's hair up to keep it from their faces or being a Thread trap, and hurried out into the common room in time to meet T'vor, a weyrling who Impressed bronze Jeserenth a turn ago. The common room appeared to be full of firelizards which were appearing and vanishing seemingly at random, chirping and screeching at intervals.

"Thread's falling! Right over the Weyr!" T'vor announced.

"That's out of pattern," Sirena said critically.

"I know. Weyrwoman Jalenna says anyone who wants to walk sweep is to report to one of the four meeting points. They're going out in ten minutes, when leading edge comes over."

"Thanks. I'll take it from here."

She, Kuyaran, and Revina moved down the chambers, banging on the doors and then throwing them open. Many of the candidates were already up, though only half of those were actually dressed. Dorasa and Yariel, a little worryingly, weren't there at all.

Sirena realised with dawning horror that they had probably gone out to spar as they did most mornings.

"Kuyaran, get Dancer to find Dorasa and Yariel!"

"What's going on?" asked Indigo sleepily.

"Thread's falling! Anyone who wants to walk sweep needs to report to our meeting point in five minutes; anyone who doesn't needs to stay here in the barracks. Do not leave!"

Although anyone who couldn't walk sweep had no place being a dragonrider on the front lines.

"Dorasa and Yariel are in the bowl; they're going to the meeting point on the east side since it's closer to them," Kuyaran said. That made sense. Yariel and Dorasa were fairly level headed and the candidates Sirena would label least likely to panic. And they had their firelizards.

"Are we missing anyone else?"

Sirena did a quick count. "I don't think so. Don't have time to check fully. If you're walking sweep get moving!"

They hurried down to the meeting point, where most of the male candidates were already gathered and being organised by Virona, Jurdree's second. She passed Sirena a flamethrower as she arrived. "We'll have to be careful. It's heavy, and it's coming right over us."

Sirena gazed out over the Weyrbowl to where the sky was flashing silver. Even from here she could tell the fall was heavy. The dragons of Sunspyre were flaming it furiously from the air. Both the Junior Queens, Lulorth and Desuneth were in the air, fighting from the Queen's Wing.

Soon enough that should be her.

Most of the female candidates did show up for sweep, probably because they had been threatened with pain of death by R'ton during his lessons. The only ones that didn't were Ilisandora, who only arrived yesterday and would really be more of a hinderence anyway, Tulliyoh, the new girl who arrived last night (was this going to be the new thing, riders dropping off their candidates in the dead of night? She hoped not) and would also be more of a hinderence, Baliose, and Jakeiria. Other than those few, the others had all dutifully arrived.

Once the leading edge passed over they set out, armed with the flamethrowers and agonthee sprayers. The Wings were right overhead now, charring the Thread to ash as it fell towards their Weyr. It was windy, which would make it harder. Firelizards darted about overhead, searing silver slivers to black ash before they could reach the ground.

Then from above came a huge mass of Thread, so big Sirena could see its size even from the ground.

"By Faranth's egg," murmured Kuyaran.

The Thread was upon the uppermost dragons even as they desperately tried to flame it from the air. Another great mass was already falling to their left. Sirena had been walking sweep since she was nine years old and barely big enough to carry the agonthee sprayer. She had seen Thread come down in patches, clumps, tangled knots, alone, and various other ways, but she'd never seen anything like this. Thread was falling in massive sheets, bigger even than the bodies of several dragons put together. The dragons on the upper wing vanished between only to return with Thread already on top of them.

Sirena couldn't see who it was from the ground, but she saw one of the bronzes flash between as Thread overtook them, and knew from deep within her heart they wouldn't be coming back.

Dancer screeched above their heads, searing a clump of Thread to fine black ash. Kuyaran raised her flamethrower to burn another clump too near Sirena's arm for comfort. She felt the heat from the flames against her skin. "Thanks."

Kuyaran swung the flamethrower round to blast another clump. "Snap out of it and thank me later! There's too much coming through!"

The sight of a brown flashing between, never to return, tugged her back to reality. Sirena lugged her own flamethrower upwards to sear another clump of Thread.

From somewhere ahead of them, someone shouted 'take cover!' Sirena didn't know who it was, but if she ever found out, she would strangle them, because it set off a chain reaction of absolute chaos. The sweep group immediately fell out of position as the panicked candidates bolted for the safety of the Weyr. Caught off guard by the knowledge that another dragon had just vanished between, Sirena was knocked to the ground as someone slammed into her shoulder. For a moment she was stuck on the ground, Dancer darting and screeching above her head. Finally she managed to push herself back to her feet. There was Thread on the ground around them, piling up like sand. Kuyaran blasted it with her flamethrower. Above them, three of the smaller dragons, two greens and a blue, were trying to flame areas as big as their bodies just to avoid being eaten alive by the mass of Thread falling from above. Kuyaran screamed suddenly and doubled over, clutching her chest. Dancer vanished between. Sirena grabbed Kuyaran's arm before she could fall and scorched the mass of Thread falling towards them. Only a short distance away she could see sweep walkers being caught by pale silver Thread while so close to safety.

They wouldn't make it.

She grabbed Kuyaran's arm. "The water!"

The safety of the Weyr was too far, but they were only fifty feet from the edge of the island and the cliffs that dropped away into the sea. She dragged Kuyaran with her as the other girl gasped and stumbled. By the time they reached the halfway point she seemed to be recovering and blasted a clump of Thread in front of them. Above her, Sirena felt another bronze flash between forever. She stumbled. Kuyaran caught her arm. "How many?"

"Four," she gasped. The usual rate was one death every five to seven falls. They were already above that.

They skidded to a halt at the cliffs, which fell away into nothing. Sirena had been cliff diving at the other side of the island as a kid, but the cliffs there were far smaller. There were other people in the water, she noticed, though further round to the right where they could have jumped from the smaller cliffs or simply waded in from the beach. She lifted her flamethrower to blast a clump of Thread coming down too close to Kuyaran.

"You sure about this?" Kuyaran rasped.

"No," Sirena replied, slinging the flamethrower over her back.

"On three then?"

"Three."

"Two."

"One."

For a moment there was nothing beneath them but open air. Then they hit the water. It was a freezing cold shock to the system. They plunged under the surface and a moment later several clumps of Thread hit it above them. Sirena swam aside even as it drowned above them. She squinted up at the surface just in time to see and feel a green shape vanish from the dragon ranks far above them. A hand caught her wrist, tugging her back towards the cliffs. She followed.

They had to surface an arm's length from them, desperately needing air. Thread fell in the water around them. There was a narrow rocky outcropping on the cliffs, jutting out over the water. They plunged under the surface again and paddled over, carefully surfacing underneath it. They stayed there, panting, too breathless and shaken to talk. Sirena swung her flamethrower from her back as a sliver of silver thread came too close to their refuge, drowning in the seawater. Above them, yet another bronze vanished between, never to return. Sirena keened softly. From their place far below they couldn't see who it was, but she knew most of the dragons in the Weyr, certainly all the bronzes, and would find out later.

The Queen's wing, with the two largest dragons in the Weyr and four of the biggest bronzes, were struggling the most. Sirena had and could see the bronzes flashing in and out of between, while the smaller dragons in that wing were mostly focused on flaming the areas around their bodies and not being eaten alive by Thread. Lulorth and Jalmoka were badly out of position, far too close to brown Tabaroth and R'nol, while Desuneth and Lannai had to keep flashing between to avoid the huge patches of Thread.

Sirena saw it coming.

It only took a few seconds, though it felt like forever.

Lulorth banked steep left to avoid a large mass of Thread. Jalmoka scored the edge of it, but most of it came through, some burrowing into Tabaroth. Lulorth's sharp correction meant she overcorrected and slammed into Desuneth's wing, the impact flipping her over in the air. Desuneth tried to backflap to escape it, but seemed to somehow be tangled up with Lulorth, who was flailing madly. The two of them were quickly losing height, tumbling towards the ground. They slammed into Jeserenth, who was on firestone duty to the Queen's wing. He vanished between with an anguished cry. The two Queens continued to fall. A third golden figure appeared from beneath them, straining to reach them. A mass of Thread decended from above. Lannai blasted it with her flamethrower, but Jalmoka didn't appear to be doing anything. Lulorth bellowed desperately, backwinging in an attempt to separate herself from Desuneth. Sirena guessed their harnesses were tangled, as she only dragged Desuneth with her and pulled her under the Thread.

Both Queens vanished between.

They didn't return.

There was a single moment of disbelief, a belief that they must have reemerged somewhere else, out of the Thread, they must have done-

Nareth bugled a cry of alarm and loss.

The sense of heartbreak hit a moment later, crashing down on top of her, pain and horror. Dancer screamed. Sirena doubled over in the water, gasping for air.

"They've gone?" Kuyaran whispered, more of a statement than a question.

"Yes," Sirena rasped.

Just like that.

The rest of the Threadfall passed in some sort of dreamlike trance. They stayed safe under their ledge, flaming any Thread that got too near. Dancer stayed huddled on Kuyaran's head, helping to flame any Thread that came close. Three more dragons, a green, a brown, and another bronze, vanished between before fall was over. Even then they stayed firmly where they were for a good ten minutes, too numb to move and afraid to leave the stone shelter in case Thread started falling again. At last, when they started to hear the voices of the sweep walkers above them, out to search for burrorws (which shouldn't be too difficult), they ventured out.

They had come down from the steepest cliffs. There was no chance of either of them climbing back up even if they weren't numb, shivering and shaken, so they had to swim over to the rocks and then climb over them to the beach. Clumps and strands of dead or dying Thread were wriggling on the rocks. Sirena turned her flamethrower on them once they had climbed past, turning them to black ash.

Thread was piled high on the beach, trying to burrow into the sand. They turned their flamethrowers on it to clear a safe path, working their way carefully over to the path up. There were people scattered everywhere with flamethrowers and agonthee sprayers, destroying the vast amounts of Thread that had made it through the Wings. The keening of the dragons filled the air. Sirena could feel it deep in her heart and chest, loss and heartbreak.

A figure in heavy wherskin hurried over to them. Sirena recognised them as H'bor, a Weyrling from Lulorth's last clutch – her final clutch, now.

"Sirena! Kuyaran! Are you hurt?"

Sirena glanced down at herself, and then at Kuyaran, who now had Dancer bundled tightly in her arms. "I don't think so," she replied.

"Dancer's been Threadscored though."

That was an understatement. Dancer's entire back, and some of her wings, were red raw with vicious Threadscore. The firelizard chirped miserably.

"Get her inside, get some numbweed on her," Sirena said.

"But-"

"Now."

Kuyaran nodded and hurried away, Dancer clutched tightly to her chest. Sirena turned back to H'bor. "Where do you need me?"

"Inside and warming up preferably."

Sirena hefted her flamethrower in one hand. "Don't be like that."

It took them four hours to clear the entire island and make sure it was fully clear of Thread. The dragons keened throughout, the sound vibrating deep within her chest. Sirena felt the sharp tug and snap of several more vanishing between forever, catching sight of only one, a great bronze, as it took flight over the water before disappearing. If she hadn't had a job to do, Sirena might just have curled up and sobbed. It was one reason she hadn't wanted to go back inside – though doubtless there would be plenty going on there too with injured riders and dragons.

She met up with Yariel and Dorasa as she worked the sweep, both of them armed with agonthee sprayers and their firelizards darting about here and there, sometimes hissing out spurts and flame. All of them bore signs of Threadscore, though there was none on their owners.

"Are you hurt?" she asked.

"We're fine," Dorasa assured her as her twin bronzes located another burrow and blasted it with flames. Yariel shrugged off his jacket and draped it over Sirena's shoulders. She frowned at him.

"You're shivering."

She hadn't even noticed.

It was midday by the time they returned to the chaos of the Weyr. There was still people and uproar everywhere: wounded riders crying for their dragons, frightened and confused dragons bellowing for their lifemates, injured dragons huddling in the weyrbowl, and injured folk everywhere. It seemed like almost no one had come out unscathed. Most of the candidates, male and female, were amongst either the injured or those helping. Ellador had pitched in with the Healers, as had Ritilia, Yornam and Rasia. Brizala, Kimberlee, and Annaliessa Sirena saw helping riders treat their injured dragons. She wondered for a moment about her own parents and their dragons before pitching in to help Releth, an aging blue with threadscore down his back and wing and one of the few still not treated after all this time.

"Has no one seen you yet?" Sirena asked as she began to clean the wound.

"There are many injured."

"Where's K'ret?"

"He hurts."

She should have expected that answer really. Sirena slathered him in numbweed and looked around for any dragons still untreated. Normally the end of a Fall was a rauctious affair, with a feast and plenty of alcohol, but this…

This was fallout.

Carnage.

Sirena could see already how many of the injured were bronzes, bigger browns, or ageing, and looking around the bowl at the few dragons who had come out unscathed along with their riders she could see the disproportionate number of greens and blues to the bigger colours.

"Who did we lose?" she asked Nulmulth, one of the larger and older (surviving) bronzes.

"Desuneth. Lulorth. Gionduth. Lamenth. Baimath. Teridath. Murianth. Padelth. Piyeth. Brulserth. Lanonth. Halirilth. Jeserenth. Tormoluth. Bririth. Kelzilth. Sindith. Zenunth.Jelzith. Tuleth. Bremerth."

Nine bronze, four brown, three blue, two green, and one whose name she didn't recognise (which was a bit odd, admittedly).

And two Queens.

But they were more than that.

Sirena had known many of the dragons and riders since she was a child. Five of them she had seen Hatch; two of them she had stood as a candidate at their reaping. Great bronze Gionduth had been one of the biggest bronzes at the Weyr, Calinoth's only true rival. Blue Bririth Sirena had toddled beneath when she was a babe.

She wiped away tears she didn't know she was crying.

There was a sharp, mournful cry, and she felt the tug in her chest once more.

"Chazailth is no more."

Another brown, ageing with an elderly rider.

Sirena finished applying the numbweed to Nulmulth's scored hide. She learnt as she was treating him that Thread was now falling in that same unusual way in the High Reaches.

Inland.

At least they had had the sea to protect them. High Reaches had nothing but expanses of mountains.

Lucky them.

Sirena wouldn't want to be in their boots right now.

"How does that feel?"

"I still hurt inside."

"How bad is J'son?"

"He sleeps."

She'd have to ask Korvash if and when she got the chance. Sirena adjusted Yariel's jacket around her and moved on to Tillurth, a young brown the size of some smaller bronzes from one of Nareth's earlier clutches.

She had only just started talking to and treating him when there was a sharp tug from deep within her. Sirena gasped and dropped the jar of numbweed, which smashed on the ground at her feet. Tillurth's keening grew louder. Sirena's first thought was for her mother and Nareth who she still hadn't seen. "Who was that?" she whispered.

"Jacelith of High Reaches."

Their Senior Queen, and another Queen gone. Sirena had met Jacelith and her rider Sebrine a few times, when they came on visits to Sunspyre. She joined the dragons' keening, deep within her chest, and wondered whether Kelzilth, the name she didn't recognise, had been another High Reaches dragon.

This was like living a nightmare.

Sirena wished more than anything she could wake up and have it be this morning again.

Her father's dragon, great bronze Calinoth, was amongst the injured. Sirena made her way up to him once she finished with Tillurth. He had already been seen to of course, he was the Weyrleader's dragon. Ugly raw Threadscore marred his back and dripped down his left foreleg and wing, as well as a good chunk of his tail. He stretched his head out to greet her. His skin was nice and warm.

"Where's father?" she whispered.

"He sleeps."

"How bad is he?"

"He hurts."

There was another sharp, painful tug from deep in her chest. Calinoth's keening loudened. Sirena rocked on her feet. "Who was that?"

"Triabeth of High Reaches."

Their younger Queen. Calinoth snaked his head forward to curl his neck around her. Sirena settled between his forelegs and he laid his head over her, curling protectively around her. For the first time since she could remember, Sirena felt warm.

Sirena was sure it was less than an hour, maybe even less than half that, but it felt like she stayed there forever before her mother found her there.

"Sirena."

"Mum," she whispered, stumbling forwards and wrapping her arms around her. Her mum steadied her.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

She shook her head. "We sheltered in the sea."

"A lot of the sweep volunteers did. Who were you with?"

"Kuyaran. Dancer was scored. Why did the Thread fall like that? That wasn't normal."

"I've never known it fall like that before. It's falling at High Reaches at the moment though. They've lost two of their Queens."

Sirena nodded shakily. "I felt it."

"Hopefully it's a freak fall."

"How's Nareth?"

"Scored down her tail. She got singed when she tried to help Desuneth and Lulorth."

"Her eggs?"

Her mother smiled. "They're fine. Threadfall didn't reach the Hatching Cavern, thank Faranth's egg."

There was a sense of shock and numbness hanging over the entire Weyr, as though everyone was unsure what to believe. Sirena wished more than anything she could close her eyes and make those they had lost return.

If only she could.

Her mother set her to organising and controlling the candidates, since R'ton had been injured during the Threadfall. Sirena slipped easily into the role, putting her mind to it as a distraction and having them begin to make food and meals for the many (like her) that hadn't eaten at all today.

It helped a little, but not enough to stop her feeling three more dragons vanishing between forever.

"They're saying Thread's falling over Telgar now," Kuyaran, who was helping in the infirmary, told her.

Her mum told her that evening that Telgar, too, had lost two of their four Queens in the fall.

Why yes, I did introduce Lannai and Desuneth just to kill them off.