Human nature I suppose, doesn't change from real life to our fictional depictions. It must be human nature to want to keep the status quo, and not venture into different and perhaps frightening territory.
Saska came out of the guest quarters and stood looking around. She had awarded herself a day off, and lazed in bed for a while, but the sound of Lilim cleaning the kitchen and bathrooms, changing the bedding next door, polishing windows and sweeping floors, had finally brought her out of bed and out into the morning air.
A wing of dragons was exercising over the hills, swooping in formation and popping in and out of between in pairs, and she watched that, and then saw the watch rider dip his flag for an incoming message. Not every message came by dragon, as Saska had found when the wire set had chattered into life at the Admin building, and Saska had learned the differences in the watch signals in the ten days of intensive work she had put in, copying the Weyr records and trying to see any patterns, speaking to the bronze riders and trying to get a picture of the Weyr. She had reluctantly decided Myryn was blocking her efforts; the records seemed complete, but they gave little information on anything beyond a listing of food bought and consumed, supplies ordered and used, with a few notes on the ordinary common injuries, bruises and scrapes Saska would have expected from people training with such huge animals as dragons.
The pairs of dragons flying overhead might be training for the dragon-ships; K'var had explained he had part of that training, but mostly he brought the newly Impressed weyrlings to the point where they could ride their dragons and begin to identify and fly between the markers around the Weyr. From that beginning the dragon-ship captains would choose some of the dragons and their riders to train. Myryn had refused to share that information with Saska as well, she remembered with renewed frustration, falling back on the excuse that everything done at Respite was governed by the senior Weyr at Fort.
Saska turned away from the dusty square and made her way to the jetty, welcoming the cool breeze off the ocean. She watched as men came to catch the mooring ropes of two fishing boats. Fresh fish would be a change from meat and tubers, or grains, which seemed to be the staple diet of the Weyr. Saska longed for a meal of salad or beans, but they seemed to be unknown here at Respite.
"Making notes, Doctor?"
Saska smiled at the resident Healer, Balat. She had been to see him to talk about the hierarchy of Hold and Weyr, and now he indicated the fishing boats.
"Might be a few scratches and scrapes for me to attend to. Fresh fish for supper for those at the high table."
"What about the rest of the Weyr's riders?"
"They'll have the usual."
"Don't you advise on a balanced diet?"
"The riders work hard, it's physically very demanding, riding dragons. The Weyrs developed their diet over the Turns, and it's always worked well."
"Don't you think things have changed over the Turns? I mean - life must be a little easier without Thread, and with all the advances the AIVAS knowledge has given Pern?"
Balat shrugged.
"People don't change all that much."
He walked down the jetty, exchanging banter with the crews as they unloaded the wooden boxes of fish, and Saska turned away and walked around the edge of the sand, standing looking out to sea, thinking of the red skies and green oceans of Benden.
- I have seen those
Lateth?
- Modeth. I brought you to Pern and I am resting at Southern
the flight was very comfortable, thank you. You've been to the world of Benden?
- yes, and some of the other places without dragons. They are interesting
why can I hear you when I can't hear Lateth any more?
- I am not a dragon of that Weyr, I can speak with you when I want.
Lateth is not allowed to speak to me?
- this is something the Weyrwoman must talk about. Come to the gather at Honshu and speak to me
"Doctor Freeman? Is anything wrong? The Weyrwoman said you didn't come to your room today?"
Saska jumped in startlement as someone touched her shoulder.
"Sorry! You looked far away at that moment!"
"Harper Giffon! You gave me a fright and a half, creeping up on me like that."
The Harper gave her an apologetic smile. He usually worked with P'dar, but would come into her workroom to bring klah when it had been brewed.
"Sorry. Is anything the matter?"
"No, there's nothing wrong, but I thought I'd take a breather, give myself a break. Did you know there's a Gather scheduled at Honshu?"
"Yes, but it's quite a distance from here. Did you want to go?"
Saska frowned at him.
"I thought a Gather was an excuse to stop work and have a good time?" she asked.
"Oh, in the old days, when people were so hard pressed by Thread, yes, I suppose any excuse would do!"
"Giffon, there were nine passes of the Red Star, with Thread falling for fifty Turns. Between them, there were Intervals of between two hundred and two hundred and fifty Turns, and two Long Intervals. I wouldn't call that hard pressed."
Saska bit off the rest of the things she wanted to say, and tried to loosen her face into a smile instead, but Giffon looked offended.
"I do know the history of Pern! I live here, I'm a native of this world, Doctor."
"Saska will do, you don't need to use my qualification all the time."
He did not reply, standing by her side and looking out to sea.
"I think I will go to Honshu," Saska said at last. "I need to consult their records, and a Gather sounds like a good excuse for a party."
"You'd better ask the Weyrwoman then, for permission."
Saska shrugged, but smiled at him to take the sting out of her words. "I don't need her permission, Harper Giffon, nor anyone else's permission. I'm contracted to the High Council of Pern."
"And how are you going to get to Honshu?" Giffon asked with a barely concealed sneer.
"I'll ask a dragon to take me, of course," Saska replied, and turned on her heel and left him staring after her.
- you are very angry
yes, Modeth, very angry indeed. Will you come and fetch me?
- S'lul says yes, very soon, and to wear a pretty dress for the dancing
Saska laughed out loud at that exchange, hurrying back to the guest house to collect a change of clothing. The trousers and shirt she usually wore would be convenient enough inside her dragon-suit, but she would need a skirt and sandals if she was going to dance.
- S'lul says he will dance with you
Another dragon voice broke in.
- K'var will dance as well
oh, there will be competition? That might be fun
Coming back into her room Saska stopped short. Out of habit, she kept her equipment in the space-box she used as a luggage store, and it was beeping an alarm at her from where she kept it in the wardrobe.
Saska hurried across and opened the door of the wardrobe, noting the fresh scratches around the latch where someone had carelessly turned the key. She was used to Lilim moving things around when she cleaned, but someone had tried to open the box, which Lilim never did. Someone else had been in here. Saska swung around and studied the room, checked her clothing and the items on her desk, but since Lilim cleaned fanatically every day, there was nothing to say if the items had been moved.
Examining the box lid very carefully, squinting at an angle, Saska could see where something had been used to try and pry it open, but although it might look like an ordinary travel chest, it was proof against almost anything short of a nuclear explosion.
Saska pressed her fingerprints in sequence onto the keypad of the box and stopped the alarm. She took out her equipment, checked her disks were secure, and then reset the alarm, debating whether to put an electrical current through the box, but deciding against it, given that Lilim would bear the brunt of the slight electric shock. She took photos of the damage and dictated a short note with the date and time, and stored those, before turning to survey her clothing to pick out a suitable dress, packing things neatly into her flight bag before coming out to the main rooms.
"Did someone call for me, Lilim?" she asked casually as she poured klah from the ever present pot.
"That nosy healer Balat was over, wanted to know where you were," Lilim said with a disapproving sniff. "Healer, he calls himself, but I don't see him going out and picking none of the useful leaves my grandmother used."
"Was your grandmother a healer?"
"She knew enough that we didn't need to call in a healer for every little scratch," Lilim replied, wiping up around the pot. "My family came over after the Ninth Pass to settle some land once it was declared open."
"As far back as that? Does that make your family original settlers of the Southern Continent?" Saska asked with a smile.
Lilim shook her head. "There was them that came back through time, and settled Southern Weyr, but that's a strange thing to think about - running back on your own lifetime - like a bow tied in a ribbon, it always seems to me."
"That's - a fair analogy," Saska replied. "I hope your family made a success of their holding?"
"Wouldn't be here else," Lilim replied, capturing Saska's empty cup and going to wash it up. "Us that are here are survivors, make no mistake about that."
"I'm going to Honshu to the Gather," Saska said as she stood up and picked up her bag. "I might be away a few days."
"Room will be ready when you get back."
"Thank you."
Lilim glanced over her shoulder as she prepared to wipe down the table. "You found anything yet?"
"No. It doesn't help that I don't know what I'm looking for."
"There's records at Honshu from back to the Ninth Pass," Lilim said. "You ask for the Daybook of Tai, but don't ask none of them high-ups for it. Go and find Aselan the cook, she's related to me, and she'll give you a copy."
"Thanks, Lilim."
"Take care at that Gather - don't let them bronze riders take advantage of you."