Gone Away, Gone Ahead - 42. At Southern Weyr

‘You’re nervous this morning and it’s not even Fall.’ H’rek pulled on his shirt. ‘What’s up?’

‘Oh, er. All the preparation I’m having to make for this new job.’ Which he wasn’t sure was still his, given the revelations of the previous day. He’d not asked directly, of course, but he wouldn’t blame the Benden leaders for reconsidering. He’d probably think twice before giving such a responsible position to someone like himself.

F’lar and Lessa had cautioned him not to mention their trip south to anyone, so he hadn’t even told H’rek. At least he could try to win back their trust in him by complying. At least they hadn’t just sent him packing right away.

‘What’s the plan for today?’

‘Um, I need to do some more research in the archives. What about you?’

‘We’re shovelling firestone this morning. Free later, if you fancy flying. Maybe we could get away from the Weyr for a while?’

‘If I can.’ He might still be in Southern, depending how long this whole thing took.

‘Are you sure you’re all right?’

‘Yes. Honestly. Don’t worry about me.’ At least he’d still be able to stay with H’rek, even if he was back to just being Wingsecond again. What would R’feem think about all this, he wondered? What would be said about him at Fort this time? It had been bad enough after he and S’brin had helped Valli to end her life, as she wished, flying Kadoth between for the last time.

He led the Wing through their usual morning exercises. He forced himself to work harder than he’d done for a long time, focussing only on the here and now while the session lasted.

‘Bet you’ll be doing all this with those poor weyrlings,’ M’rell said cheerfully as they finally had a breather. ‘They’ll love you as much as we did N’teren.'

He gave a small smile. No need to let on to any of them yet that the job might not be his after all. The only good thing about this whole mess was that F’drun was, at last, going to be held to account for all that he’d done and for what he’d been planning to do.

After breakfast, he went back to the weyr. H’rek had already left, so he was on his own as he started to get ready.

What is wrong? Herebeth asked. His dragon could sense the turmoil in his mind. Why are you unhappy?

I’ve made a lot of mistakes and people are unhappy with me because of them.

I am not unhappy with you.

Herebeth’s unconditional love washed over him. No matter what he did, his dragon would always stand up for him and support him in anything he decided to do, right or wrong. He assumed Ryth would do the same for F’drun.

I know, he told Herebeth. You will always be my dragon.

And you will always be my rider.

He took Herebeth’s straps down from their peg and started to put them on.

Where are we going?

Back to Southern Weyr. With the Weyrleader and Weyrwoman. So behave yourself.

Will I be able to swim?

Maybe. There would be a lot of talking. Dragons found all of that boring. I don’t see why not.

Will Rioth be with us?

Not today. H’rek is needed here.

He quibbled about whether to put on his heavy wherhide gear. It would be as hot as ever in the south. Yes, but here at Benden, the air would be chilly high over the Weyr and between was never warm. Having to remove layers was preferable to feeling cold. He dressed quickly, then let Herebeth glide down to the landing area. F’nor was there already, fastening some bundles to Canth’s riding straps.

‘Morning,’ he said, cheerfully. ‘It’s a fine one again.’

‘It is,’ D’gar replied. F’nor seemed much the same as he always was, so either Lessa and F’lar hadn’t told him the full story, or it made no difference to his opinion of D’gar. That made him feel a lot better.

‘So, who is it I’m going to need to talk to in the south?’

He knew part of it, then. ’S’fyn, of course. Probably A’nan and K’din, too. Here at Benden, L’cal, M’shol and As’gal.’

‘I’ll get to them later.’F’nor glanced over his shoulder. ‘Here they are.’

D’gar watched as Ramoth carefully launched herself from her ledge. She was getting quite round in the belly now as her eggs grew and was obviously aware of the need for extra care when taking off or landing. Behind her, bronze Mnementh followed at a safe distance. Beside three of the biggest dragons on Pern, Herebeth looked tiny; like a brown dragon in miniature.

F’nor vaulted to Canth’s neck and D’gar followed suit, fastening his straps. F’lar gave the signal and all four dragons ascended above the Weyr, flying to a good height before going between.

It was early morning in Southern and the smells of cooking and klah reached D’gar’s nostrils as they landed on the beach. There were a few light clouds breaking up the blue expanse of sky and the trees swayed gently in a light breeze. A perfect morning, about to be disrupted, he thought,

wondering what F’drun was doing right now. Eating breakfast, probably, unaware of what was coming. He might ask himself why the Benden leadership had arrived this morning, although it wasn’t uncommon for them to visit. And it wouldn’t be unduly strange for F’nor to accompany them, or even himself, as Weyrlingmaster. The appointment had been announced a few days ago, so news had probably travelled to Southern by now.

The four of them made their way up to the Weyrhall, boots sinking in the soft sand. D’gar unfastened his jacket, too warm already, keeping pace with F’nor who strode alongside. He saw F’lar raise an arm in greeting as he spotted T’bor inside. A few of the riders looked up to see who had arrived, but most soon returned to their food. D’gar quickly scanned the area, but didn’t see S’fyn. Or F’drun, for that matter. It didn’t mean anything, of course. The Weyrhall wasn’t large enough for all of Southern’s inhabitants to eat in one sitting. Some of the riders might have breakfasted earlier and already be out on patrol.

‘What brings you here?’ T’bor asked. ‘Orth didn’t mention you were coming.’

Lessa smiled. ‘My fault. It was a last minute decision to visit. We though we should, before Ramoth’s too egg-heavy to fly far.’

‘Can I offer you some breakfast? Klah?’

‘No need. We all ate earlier, at Benden,’ F’lar said, equally as pleasantly. ‘Finish your own, then we’ll see you back at your quarters.’

‘F’nor can show you the way. I shouldn’t be long.’

Unlike the riders’ wallows, T’bor’s quarters were fashioned like a smaller version of the Weyrhall. Inside it was a similar size to the inner room of D’gar’s weyr back at Benden, although in deference to the climate, there were high, slatted openings to ensure good ventilation while preserving privacy. A dragon-shaped depression in the sand outside showed where Orth usually slept. F’lar and Lessa sat down in the chairs beside the circular table while F’nor and D’gar pulled up a couple of extra seats to join them.

‘Ramoth tells me Prideth and Kylara are at the Hatching Ground,’ Lessa said. ‘That’s good. At least she won’t be interfering for a while.’

‘Do you reckon T’bor has any idea what’s been going on under his nose?’ F’nor asked.

D’gar took note of that; it confirmed that F’nor must be aware of the purpose of today’s visit.

‘I doubt it,’ F’lar said. ‘We didn’t.’

‘What would you like me to do?’ D’gar asked. He expected that F’lar or Lessa would do most of the talking.

‘Your information might prove useful in parts,’ Lessa said. ‘Plus, I think seeing you should make S’fyn feel more at ease when we bring him in.’

‘Once we’ve filled T’bor in on the details, you can go and talk to those riders,’ F’lar instructed F’nor.

He nodded. ‘As you wish.'

‘Ask S’fyn the same questions as the rest of them,’ Lessa put in. ‘That way, it won’t single him out.’

‘Of course.’

The sound of footsteps alerted D’gar to T’bor’s approach. He sat down in one of the free chairs, clearly unaware why they had dropped in. ‘Well, it’s good to see you all here.’ He evidently recognised D’gar from some of his previous visits. ‘And this must be your new Weyrlingmaster we’ve been hearing about.’

D’gar wasn’t sure what to say. He glanced quickly at Lessa.

‘We offered D’gar the position,’ she said. ‘And he accepted.’

She’d have to say that, so no-one was any the wiser as to the reason they were here. It was a clever evasion, he thought, but then Lessa could definitely not be described as stupid.

‘I expect you’d like to see our Hatching Ground,’ T’bor said to him. ‘Kylara’s over there now. Prideth’s beginning to feel broody.’

D’gar smiled back. He was rescued from having to answer by F’lar. ‘Much as I’m sure D’gar would love to see your Hatching Ground, I’m afraid we aren’t here today on a pleasure jaunt.’

‘Oh?’ T’bor asked.

‘No. We needed to talk to you about a very serious issue here in Southern. An issue of which you may be quite unaware. As we were, until D’gar came and talked to us yesterday.’ Lessa paused for moment, watching T’bor for any reaction.

It was clear to D’gar he had no idea what she was going to say. The Southern Weyrleader had a puzzled expression on his face. ‘Why should D’gar know anything about what’s happening in Southern? He’s not even been here since his weyrmate returned to Benden.’

F’lar caught F’nor’s eye. ‘If you could just check we’re alone…’

F’nor strolled over to the doorway and had a look outside. ‘We are.’ He stayed there, keeping watch.

‘What’s all this about?’ T’bor asked. ‘Why the secrecy?’

‘Let’s get straight to the point,’ Lessa said. ‘It seems there’s a plot afoot to make sure you don’t remain Weyrleader next time Prideth rises.’

D’gar saw a mix of emotions flicker across T’bor’s face. Disbelief, mostly, he’d have said.

‘Are you certain about this?’

‘As certain as we can be. F’nor is here with us to speak to some of your riders who may be involved with it.’

‘My riders? I can’t believe anyone from my Wing would do anything so devious.’ T’bor seemed aghast at the thought.

‘Relax, man,’ F’lar assured him. ‘Your wingriders are loyal. But there are some from Prideth’s clutch and Ramoth’s who might not feel the same way.’

‘I can’t believe it,’ T’bor said again. ‘How did you find out about this?’ he asked D’gar.

‘That’s quite a long story,’ he said, looking towards Lessa again. ‘I think the Weyrwoman might want to fill you in on the background first.'

‘Thank you, D’gar,’ Lessa said, before turning to T’bor. ‘I can understand it’s come as a shock to you that any Southern riders may be mixed up in something like this, but they aren’t entirely to blame. That dubious honour has to go to F’drun.’

T’bor shook his head slowly. ‘F’drun? Why would he want to do me any harm? I’ve always been decent to him.’

‘He’s been implicated in the deaths of several people; Holders and weyrfolk both,’ F’lar said solemnly. ‘Now, if you could let Lessa continue.’

She told the story of F’drun’s history at High Reaches in a clear, dispassionate manner. T’bor listened carefully, becoming visibly more shocked as the account went on, although he didn’t interrupt again.

‘D’gar had already found out most of this independently,’ she said, finally. ‘We pieced it all together just yesterday. That was when he also told us what F’drun was planning.’

T’bor sat quietly for a while. ‘It’s hard to take in. That all this could be going on behind my back. How did you know?’ he asked D’gar.

This was his cue. ‘One of the youngsters has been keeping an eye on F’drun and reporting to me.’ He was still careful not to mention any names. ‘You may have noticed F’drun has been befriending some of your young bronze riders?’

‘Well, yes, but I was under the impression he was just giving them tips on Thread fighting and the like.’

‘He may have done that as well. But his main reason was to gain their confidence. He intended using their dragons to block any other contenders during Prideth’s next mating flight so that Ryth could win.’

‘Prideth has always let Orth fly her,’ T’bor said confidently. ‘Ryth wouldn’t even get close.’

‘Maybe not in a fair flight,’ D’gar pointed out. ‘But the plan was that it wouldn’t be fair. You - or Orth - wouldn’t even be taking part, for one thing.’

‘You’ve heard what we uncovered about F’drun’s past,’ F’lar added. ‘He’s good at making accidents happen to people he wants out of the way. Something like that would have happened to you once it became known Prideth was close to rising.’

‘In the story he told the youngsters, dropping a sack of firestone on the Weyrleader’s head was the method used,’ D’gar said.

T’bor winced. ‘That could kill someone.’

‘Exactly. But even if it only did serious damage, it would have the same effect. Weyrleader out of the picture, Weyrwoman’s dragon rises, F’drun wins the mating flight. Then, as a reward, he gives Wingleaders’ jobs out to the riders who helped him get there.’

T’bor was silent for a while, gazing at the far wall as if for inspiration. ‘So, what are we going to do about this? About F’drun?’

‘All we can do is send him back to High Reaches,’ Lessa said. ‘There aren’t really any other options. If he didn’t have a dragon, he could be exiled for his crimes.’

Serious offences such as murder or treason had always been punished by transporting folk to the remote Eastern Isles, D’gar knew. It didn’t happen very often. Once marooned there, the exiles had to eke out a hard living, with no hope of ever returning to civilisation. It would be a pointless exercise for a dragonrider, however, as he had the means of instant escape.

‘In the mean time, until we’ve spoken to T’kul at High Reaches, we’ll take him back to Benden and confine him to his weyr. At least then we can be sure he’s not free to do any more damage.’ F’lar sighed. ‘It’s hard to comprehend someone who’s capable of Impressing a bronze could act in such a way.’

‘Not all queen riders are paragons of virtue, either,’ Lessa said. ‘I’d like to find out if Kylara knew anything about all this.’

‘No. She wouldn’t…’ T’bor’s face fell. ‘I can’t believe that of her.’

F’lar stepped in. ‘She was keen enough to let him try when Prideth rose last time, even though she knew it was a closed flight.’

‘She was infatuated,’ T’bor said. ‘She’s young and sometimes doesn’t think before she acts.’

D’gar felt sorry for him. It was clear that his love for the woman had blinded him to her faults. ‘He’s probably not told her the whole plan,’ he offered. ‘The less people who knew, the better. That’s why he only confided in a few riders.’

F’lar nodded. ‘Let’s hope you’re right. We still need to ask her the question, though. And obviously, we’ll need to speak to F’drun. Where is he this morning? I didn’t see him at the Weyrhall.’

‘I’ve been sending riders out on surveys, as you suggested last time we met,’ T’bor answered. ‘F’drun’s led a couple of them already and he volunteered for this one too.’

‘He’s not alone? Who’s gone with him?’ D’gar felt a quick stab of worry.

‘Oh, just a couple of the youngsters. K’din and S’fyn, I believe.’

‘Do you know exactly where they are?’ Lessa asked, her face reflecting the same concern once she’d heard the names.

‘They’re continuing to explore further south from where they left off last time. This is a vast land, you know. But I don’t understand why you’re all so bothered about it.’

‘Because one of those youngsters is D’gar’s informant,’ she said.

D’gar’s mind was already racing. If F’drun knew someone had been passing information, then maybe he’d taken S’fyn far from the Weyr to harm him. But why should he suspect? S’fyn was discreet. Hopefully, he’d simply chosen to take them both because they were part of his clique.

‘When are they due back?’ F’lar asked T’bor.

‘This evening. Fall’s predicted tomorrow and we always insist riders are back at the Weyr well in advance. I could get Orth to bespeak Ryth, if you like and ask them to return early.’

‘Ask who to return early?’ Kylara stood just outside the door, F’nor still blocking her way. ‘Excuse me,’ she said to him. ‘Must I be kept outside of everything, including my own quarters.’

F’nor stood aside and she swept in to the room, taking them all in with an imperious glance.

‘We weren’t talking to you,’ Lessa said bluntly.

Kylara ignored her. ’Why wasn’t I informed we had visitors,’ she demanded of T’bor.

‘You were busy at the Hatching Grounds. I didn’t want to disturb you.’

‘Well, I’m here now.’ She looked around for somewhere to sit but there were no spare chairs. As the most junior in the room, D’gar stood and offered his. There was no point in upsetting her. If she had an inkling of what was going on, she could have Prideth bespeak Ryth. It wouldn’t be possible to provide much detail through the dragons but it might give him warning something was up. He glanced quickly at Lessa, hoping she’d already considered that possibility.

‘I’m glad you’ve joined us,’ Lessa said smoothly. ‘How were the Hatching Grounds?’

‘Everything here is very primitive compared with a proper Weyr.’ Kylara tossed back her loosely bound hair. ‘But Prideth seems happy enough.’

’T’bor was just telling us about the surveys,’ F’lar said. ‘We were interested to hear what had been found and suggested bringing back the survey party early so that we could find out for ourselves. It seems there’s a fair amount of land out there.’

‘Most of it just jungle,’ she said, dismissively. ‘Jungle, swamp and volcanoes, from what I’ve been told.’

‘Volcanoes?’ F’lar sounded alarmed. ‘Hopefully nowhere near the Weyr.’

‘No, no,’ T’bor assured him. ‘A few hours away on dragon back. Of course, they’re having to fly straight on the way out as a dragon can’t go between to a place he’s never seen.’

‘Just as we had to,’ Lessa said to F’nor. ‘When we first discovered this place,’ she added, for D’gar’s benefit. ‘You know, there’s something to be said for being the first folk to set foot on - or even to overfly - a new land. Maybe while we’re here, we could take another ride and see some of it for ourselves?’

That was clever, thought D’gar. A good way to put Kylara off the real purpose of the visit.

F’lar caught on, too. ‘An excellent idea. Mnementh could do with stretching his wings a little. ‘What do you say?’ he asked T’bor. ‘You could show us the sights before we have to leave.’

Kylara looked bored. ‘If you all want to fly off to see a load of trees and lakes, then count me out. Prideth’s feeling a little tired these days. I wouldn’t want her to overstrain herself. It might affect the number of eggs she’ll lay.’ The last was directed at Lessa.

‘Maybe Ramoth’s fitter than Prideth,’ she retorted. ‘We did quite a lot of flying before she clutched last time and she still managed to lay forty-one eggs. How many was it for Prideth?’

‘Thirty-two,’ Kylara said, somewhat sulkily. ‘As well you know. We’ll have to see about this time.’

‘They both had long mating flights,’ F’lar said, attempting to smooth things over between the two women. ‘I’m sure they’ll both lay a good number of eggs.’ He stood. ‘Well then, shall we head off before it gets too hot?’

D’gar fell into step with F’nor as they followed the path back to the beach. That had been well handled, he thought. F’lar and Lessa worked well together and Kylara had seemed none the wiser as to why they were in Southern.

‘I’ll get Orth to give you all co-ordinates, T’bor said as they waited for their dragons to arrive. ‘We’ll talk further when we’re on the way.’

As D’gar had suspected, T’bor only took them a short distance from the Weyr. He recognised the place as being further along the river where he’d met S’fyn, just a few days ago.

‘I don’t know exactly where they are now,’ T’bor said. ‘We can probably get to within an hour’s ride though, as Orth has been as far as the two lakes. They’d have flown due south from there, over the volcanic badlands. We wanted to discover how far they extended.’

‘What if I get Herebeth to bespeak Folath and ask him?’ D’gar suggested. ‘That should also give S’fyn a warning that we’re on the way.’

‘That’s not a bad idea,’ F’nor said.

‘Wait.’ Lessa stopped them. ‘At the moment, we’re assuming F’drun suspects nothing, right?’

‘I was wondering about that back at the Weyr,’ D’gar said. ‘What if he picked S’fyn to go with him because he intended doing him some harm? I mean, out in the middle of nowhere accidents can be covered up a lot more easily.’

‘There’s the other lad with them too,’ T’bor reminded them. ‘K’din. The last time F’drun went out he took two others with him. It might mean nothing at all.’

‘That’s true,’ F’lar said. ‘But we need some kind of plan for what we’re going to do once we arrive.’

‘He’s bound to think it strange when we all turn up.’ F’nor stroked Canth’s neck. ‘It’s out of the ordinary to have two Weyrleaders and a Weyrwoman drop in for no good reason. And he hates D’gar, so seeing him along with us might make him wonder just what we’re there for.'

‘But he won’t know for sure,’ F’lar mused. ‘If I were him, I wouldn’t just jump to conclusions that might give away my plan. I reckon he’ll be cautious, but until he’s certain why we’re there, he won’t try any tricks. So our best bet is to treat it as if we’re just on a sightseeing trip. If they’re flying when we catch up to them, we need to make them land. Then once they’re on the ground we can get him talking. There’s four of us, not including Lessa, so if we can get close enough, we should be able to overpower him easily.’

‘K’din might jump in to help him,’ D’gar warned.

‘Still only two against four,’ T’bor said. ‘And K’din’s a lightweight. S’fyn should be on our side anyway, even if he’s taken by surprise so that puts the odds in our favour even more.’

‘What if he tries to run for it?’ D’gar asked. If he got on board Ryth and went between there’d be no easy way to find him.

‘Ramoth can take care of that.’ Lessa offered. ‘A queen can always command a bronze. She’ll stop him taking off if needs be.’

F’lar had a determined look. ‘So our plan is to ride in looking casual, put him at his ease, then grab him when he’s not suspecting it. Ramoth can subdue Ryth and we all go straight back to Benden. Does that sound sensible?’

‘I reckon so,’ T’bor said. ‘Once we’re in the air again, Orth will guide your dragons to the lakes and we fly south from there. That way, no-one’s any the wiser that we’re on the way.’