Threadfall - 28. A Minor Mutiny

D’gar was pleased to see a large number of riders squashed into his weyr the following afternoon. Everyone from Fort had attended, even T’mudra. As he made a rough head count, he realised that almost everyone who had been seconded from the five other Weyrs were there. He also felt slightly nervous. There were older, more experienced riders present, even a couple of bronzes. Yet they were all waiting for him to speak.

He cleared his throat. ‘I’d like to start by thanking you all for being here. First things first, for any of you who don’t know me, I’m D’gar from Fort Weyr. And I’d also like to state that it’s not my intention to stir up any trouble.’ He paused for a moment, noting a few nods around the room. ‘We’ve been here for four days now and I think most of us have been surprised at some of their practices in comparison to the way things are done at our home Weyrs. We all expected differences, but I’m starting to feel that some of them might compromise safety. And I’m guessing we’d all like to go home with our hides - and those of our dragons - intact.’

‘My dragon needs to eat when he feels hungry,’ someone called out. ‘Not when someone says he can.’ There were several rumbles of assent to that comment.

‘I had real problems last Fall.’ A good-looking bronze rider from Benden spoke. ‘Not enough firestone to keep flaming. I was just dodging Thread and skipping between until my delivery finally got there.’

‘That happened to me, too,’ a second bronze, with Igen shoulder knots, agreed.

Another Igen rider - a blue - spoke up. ‘I can never eat much before fall so I need to fill up afterwards. By the time we eventually got dinner last night, I thought I was going to pass out.’

D’gar definitely identified with that one. ‘I’m the same,’ he said with a wry smile. ‘Just as a matter of interest, is food available all the time at your own Weyrs?’

‘Always, at Benden,’ A’myrrin said.

‘At High Reaches, there’s fresh meat rolls all morning and sweet ones in the afternoon. Usually some cakes too.’

‘No problem getting a bite to eat at Ista,’ someone else said.

‘Or Igen,’ another rider added.

That was useful to know. ‘I don’t like the way that some of us can’t get enough decent food due to this roster system, either.’

‘I’d agree with that.’ A’myrrin spoke up again. ‘How can we do a good job without food?’

‘The Telgar riders seem to manage.’ That was T’mudra.

Of course, he would have to find a positive side, if only to disagree with D’gar. He already had an answer to that one. ‘They manage, because they have to. But maybe it’s causing them problems, as well. Has anyone else considered that the way they’ve been running their Weyr might be a contributory factor to why we’re all here? Why they’re so short of dragons?’ He’d thought that one through before the meeting. Everyone’s queen dragons were laying less frequently and it could be due to bad luck and a few heavy Falls that so many pairs were out of action, but none of the other Weyrs were in such dire straits.

‘Then shouldn’t the other Weyrleaders be the ones to do something about it?’ T’mudra spoke again.

‘They have,’ D’gar replied. ‘They were asked to provide extra riders, so here we are. And I’m sure they want us all back in one piece, too.’ He wasn’t at all sure how T’ron would feel if he found out one of his wingriders was stirring the pot, but on the other hand, why should he just sit back and do nothing? He wasn’t going to compromise his and Herebeth’s safety for the sake of keeping quiet. ‘Now, I think we all need to stay calm and reasonable about this and to go through the proper channels. I’m happy to go and see the Weyrleader myself, but it would show more of a united front if one from each Weyr went along with me. And I’d rather it be brown or bronze riders, if we’re to show how serious we are about this.’ He hadn’t liked saying that. Blues and greens had every right to feel as concerned as any of them, but unfortunately Weyr hierarchy meant that if it was mostly green riders who went along, then the complaint would be more likely to be dismissed rather than discussed. He’d spoken about it with J’rud earlier and J’rud agreed.

‘I’ll go,’ said the Benden rider who’d complained about the lack of firestone. ’T’san’s the name, bronze Huylonth.’

‘I’ll represent High Reaches,’ M’lir said.

‘Count me in for Igen. S’naull of bronze Dugolth.’ A muscular, dark-haired and dark-complexioned rider held up his hand.

‘Ista,’ said a tall rider. ‘Z’ma of brown Tayith.’

‘Good. Now, if you’d each like to talk to your own riders and find out what they’ve found the most problematic, we can get our heads together and come up with a plan.’ He joined his Fort colleagues to one side of the weyr.

‘I don’t like this,’ G’tash said, straight off. ‘It’s not right, going against the Weyrleader.’

‘We’re not going against anyone,’ D’gar pointed out. ‘Just bringing our concerns to his attention. Don’t tell me you’re happy with everything here.’ He remembered that G’tash had been selected for R’mart’s own Wing. Maybe they got a better deal? Or maybe it was just G’tash following his usual pattern of not wanting to make waves with anyone in authority.

‘Well, there are a few things that don’t sit right with me,’ he admitted. ‘Kailarth’s a big eater. He’ll go through a herdbeast like a belt knife through butter. And we had the same problems with firestone others have already mentioned.’

‘We had problems on the shift change,’ K’dis said. ‘The bronze I was flying next to was on his own for a while. Couldn’t reach everything, could he? Our Wing lost points for that. We’re down to fourth on the dining hall roster for the next sevenday from it.'

‘Try being seventh,’ J’rud put in. ‘I’ve hardly had a bite of meat since that pie the first lunchtime. And vegetables aren’t exactly filling.’

T’mudra spoke up. ‘Jassainth isn’t happy. She asked Solth if she could have more than two wherries when she ate after Fall yesterday and was told she’d have to wait another day.’

‘I was speaking with some of the other riders in Balan Wing,’ N’brex said. ‘Apparently, you can buy extra food for yourself. The kitchen workers charge a thirty-second mark for a couple of meat rolls.’

‘We were told that sort of dealing’s not on,’ I’tol put in. ‘You can end up on punishment duty for sneaking extra food.’

‘Don’t get caught, then,’ P’rin said, with a wink.

‘No one should have to worry about getting caught so they can have enough to eat. Or line someone else’s pockets.’ D’gar wondered if that was how J’rud had got his redfruit.

He listened to them all. It seemed the predominant complaints were about food, both for themselves and their dragons. The firestone rationing wasn’t popular either, plus the delays in the shift changes. No one liked the points system, even those who weren’t currently suffering much from it. He supposed they must realise that sooner or later it would affect them all. Every Wing went through patches of loss and injury. It was part of the job. It didn’t seem right that an entire Wing should be penalised for bad luck.

‘Right, think that’s it.’ He glanced around to see if the other groups were still talking. Most seemed to have finished. ‘I’ll talk with the other five and we’ll come up with a list of issues to take to the Weyrleader.’

‘When are you going to see him?’ T’mudra asked.

‘As soon as we’ve discussed it.’ D’gar didn’t want to leave it too long. Everyone was united right now, but give them time and some might start to have second thoughts.

They’d arrived in ones and twos. They left the same way. He was pretty sure someone would have noticed so many dragons coming and going from one weyr. Another reason not to delay for too long. Eventually, he was left with just the other five. Most of their riders had mentioned the same issues as those from Fort. Z’ma from Ista told how one of the Ista green riders had been refused permission for his dragon to catch a herdbeast on the grounds she’d probably waste half of it. D’gar remembered J’rud saying something similar.

‘It’s strange,’ T’san of Benden said. ‘I could understand all of this if they had shortages and needed to conserve food, or firestone, but they seem to have as much of it as any other Weyr I’ve been to.’

‘Someone told me they did have shortages once, which was why the system was introduced,’ D’gar told him.

‘Fair enough. If there’s been a bad harvest or something, you have to make adjustments. Just seems silly to keep it going when everything’s back to normal.’

‘Maybe they just like keeping tight control over everyone,’ M’lir suggested. ‘I know a few Wingleaders with ideas like that. Except they can only enforce it within their own Wing. If a Weyrleader comes up with the same sort of scheme, then what can anyone do about it?’

‘Make sure his dragon never flies the senior queen again.’ T’san sat back. ‘We all know how the feelings of the weyrfolk can influence a gold flight. If a Weyrleader’s unpopular, then he’s unlikely to stay in the position for long.’

‘I heard it was the previous Weyrleader who started the system,’ D’gar said. ‘I don’t know how long R’mart’s had the job, but if he’s fairly new to it, he probably just carried on with the way things were already being done.’

‘Then it’s time someone told him.’ Z’ma sounded determined. ‘If our Weyrleader finds out his dragons and riders are being starved, he won’t be happy.’

‘I doubt any Weyrleader would be. They’ll want us back in full fighting condition once the secondment is over.’ D’gar looked around at them all. ‘So, who wants to do the talking?’

‘I thought you were,’ M’lir said. ‘We can add support, of course.’

‘I just wondered if it might look better coming from a bronze rider.’ D’gar knew how precious some of them could be and he didn’t want anyone to feel resentful at being pushed into second place by a mere brown.

‘It was your idea,’ T’san told him. ‘We were all thinking along similar lines, but you were the one who actually organised this. I’m happy for you to say what needs to be said.’

‘Fine with me.’ S’naull from Igen said. ‘You’ve a way with words. I don’t think I’d do as well.’

‘Right. We’re settled, then. Shall we go down now and find out if he’s busy?’

Evidently, the parade of dragons ferrying people to and fro had been noticed. Quite a few Telgar riders had gathered on the benches outside the dining hall, watching as the five of them landed, dismounted and made their way toward the senior queen’s weyr. R’mart and Bedella must have been pre-warned, too, as they were waiting just inside. Bedella’s Solth raised her golden head to stare at them solemnly.

Now that they were up close, it was obvious that she was several Turns older than the Weyrleader, who looked to be in his early thirties. It supported D’gar’s theory he might be new to the job. He also seemed a little unsettled by their deputation, whereas Bedella appeared calm, perhaps a little haughty in demeanour.

D’gar started by introducing himself and the others. ‘If you aren’t too busy right now, we’d like to discuss some issues we’ve found slightly concerning.’

‘Please, come through.’ R’mart led the way along a corridor, into a room furnished with a long rectangular table.

D’gar supposed that this was where the Wingleaders normally met, pre and post-Fall. He’d already planned out roughly what he was going to say and waited for everyone to make themselves comfortable before he began. ‘I realise we’ve not been here very long, but most of us have been quite surprised at the differences between what we’ve been used to at our own Weyrs compared with the Telgar way of doing things.’

R’mart pursed his lips. ‘All Weyrs are different.’ Bedella nodded along with him, agreeing.

‘We appreciate that. Part of the reason riders are sent on secondment is to find out that there are many ways of accomplishing the same purpose. None are necessarily right or wrong.’

‘So what do you find concerning about Telgar Weyr?’ Bedella asked. She had a slightly squeaky voice, like a young girl. It sat askance with her stately manner.

‘Well, there are several things. I’ll start with the meal roster system. There are some of us who haven’t been able to eat as well as we’re used to since we arrived.’

‘Apart from that pie the first lunch time,’ S’naull put in. ‘Although that was before we joined our new Wings, so it doesn’t really count.’

D’gar acknowledged his comment. ‘That’s right. We’re all doing a physically strenuous job and we need plenty of food - meat especially - to keep our strength up. Personally, all I’ve managed to get over the past three days has been some gristle no one else wanted.’

Bedella frowned at that. ‘You’re in Greenfields Wing?’

‘Yes, that’s right.’

‘Greenfields has been last on the roster for a few sevendays,’ R’mart stated. ‘Once your performance improves, you might climb up a few steps.

D’gar began to feel irritated at the lack of understanding. ‘And how’s our performance going to improve if we’re fighting on empty bellies? Not just us, but our dragons as well. We’re fighting longer Falls than we’ve ever done before with less food to carry us through. That doesn’t seem fair, or sensible.’ He took a breath, forcing himself to calm down. ‘In addition, all of us have been used to snacks being available in the dining hall throughout the day. Maybe just a couple of meat rolls or some bread and cheese, but something to keep us going. There are a few riders who can’t eat much prior to Fall and then afterwards they have to wait all the way through until dinner. One man told me he almost passed out.’

R’mart glanced at Bedella. D’gar sensed this might have been something they’d been told about before. Maybe the last riders who’d been seconded had said much the same?

‘Is there a reason food’s not left out between meals here when it is at all the other Weyrs?’ T’san asked politely.

‘Spoilage,’ Bedella said, very abruptly. ‘If no one eats it, it will go to waste. And food left out attracts tunnel snakes.’

‘Bit bright in the dining hall for tunnel snakes, I’d have thought,’ M’lir said. ‘And I’ve never known any food go to waste at High Reaches. If the riders leave anything, the weyrbrats snaffle it.’

D’gar heard a couple of chuckles around the table at that.

Bedella spoke again. ‘If food was available all the time no one would suffer for being last on the roster.’

Just the kind of comment D’gar had been waiting for. ‘Ah. So, you’re punishing people by denying them food? When they haven’t done anything to deserve it?’

R’mart cleared his throat.

D’gar waited for him to reply to that, but evidently he had nothing to counter it. ‘It seems wrong to deprive people of food for something that’s mostly outside of an individual’s control.’

‘Every individual is part of a team,’ Bedella said. ‘Their Wing. If the Wing isn’t meeting the standards, then each and every one of its members have to be affected. Only then will performance improve.’ She sounded as if she was quoting something that had been said to her many times. Maybe she even believed it.

‘As I said earlier, it’s hard to improve when you’re hungry. I’ve only been here four days and I know I don’t feel as strong and energetic as I do normally.’

‘He has a point there,’ R’mart told Bedella.

She glared at him. ‘It’s a perfectly good system. It’s worked for the past ten Turns. P’kel wouldn’t like it if we started meddling with the controls he established.’

‘P’kel is no longer with us,’ R’mart said to her, before turning back to D’gar. ‘Our former Weyrleader. He died almost two Turns ago, but Solth didn’t rise again until last Turn.’

So he was new, then. D’gar decided to press on. ‘It’s not just us who are short of food. Our dragons are being prevented from eating their fill, too. Now, if it’s because you’re waiting on tithes or short of herdbeasts right now, then we’d all be happy to take our dragons to hunt outside the Weyr, but I’m told we’re not allowed to do that either. A hungry dragon is not going to be the most effective at Threadfighting.’

The others made noises of assent.

‘You’d agree with that?’ he asked R’mart, looking him straight in the eyes.

‘It’s correct,’ he admitted.

‘So, is there currently a shortage of herdbeasts or wherries at Telgar?’ D’gar continued.

‘Well, no…’ R’mart began.

Bedella interrupted. ‘You have no right to interrogate the Weyrleader like this. Who do you think you are?’

‘A concerned rider,’ D’gar replied calmly. ‘But we all feel the same way. I just happen to be the spokesman for the whole group. Maybe you were unaware of the problems this is causing?’ Although, how could they be? Perhaps the Telgar riders didn’t dare to speak up?

R’mart glanced at Bedella again. ‘It’s been mentioned a few times.’

‘And nipped in the bud,’ she said. ‘The Weyrleader doesn’t have time to hear your petty complaints.’

‘Ssh, my dear.’ R’mart tried to soothe her.

D’gar addressed her directly. ‘Might I suggest, Weyrwoman, that if someone had listened and taken some action, then you might not be needing our help right now.’ There, he’d said it. You couldn’t ignore the fact that the sorry state of this Weyr was partly due to the way it was being run.

‘How dare you!’ Bedella rose to her feet. ‘P’kel would have had all of you on extra duties by now.’ She turned to R’mart. ‘I’m not prepared to listen to any more of this. I suggest you don’t either.’ Her full skirt flared as she spun around. ‘I’ll be in my weyr while you deal with this… mutiny.’ Shoes clattered on the stone floor as she left.

D’gar felt slightly awkward at having witnessed such an embarrassing scene. ‘I’m sorry,’ he offered, ‘It wasn’t our intention to cause any upset, Weyrleader.’

R’mart sighed. ‘Bedella’s not had an easy time of it. She and P’kel were very close. Childhood sweethearts, you know.’ He glanced in the direction she’d gone. The heavy curtain was still swaying from where she’d barged through into the private rooms. Turning back to them, he continued. ‘Maybe I should explain the history behind our way of operating.’

D’gar nodded. There was no harm in listening and it gave him a chance to think about what he should say next.

‘Starting fourteen Turns ago, there were a series of bad harvests in Telgar Hold. Then, twelve Turns ago, a disease made many of the herdbeasts abort their young. There was a shortage of both grain and meat. P’kel was Weyrleader back then and he realised that we couldn’t carry on demanding the same amount of tithes while people were starving. “No point in saving them from Thread if they die of hunger,” he said at the time. So, he discussed it with the Lord Holder and they agreed we’d take less until they were in a better state once more.’

That all seemed very reasonable, given the situation at the time, although D’gar didn’t think T’ron would have been so obliging to Holders.

‘Like all Weyrs, we’d been used to having the best. There were a lot of grumbles when weyrfolk began to realise hunger might affect them as well as the Holders. So P’kel and his Wingleaders came up with a way to make the shortages more fair; the points system we have now. That way, everyone would have turn at making do with less than they might want.’

‘Are there still shortages?’ D’gar had asked that before, but he thought it best to remind the Weyrleader of the current situation rather than allowing him to dwell on the past.

‘No. For the last five Turns, tithes have returned to their former levels. But P’kel always advised we should remain cautious in case bad times came again. And the system we had in place was well established by then…’ He looked at them all. ‘I had considered making changes, but as a new Weyrleader and a relatively young one, you don’t want to upset established traditions. It’s not easy stepping into the boots of someone who was so well regarded by his peers.’

Well regarded or simply feared, D’gar wondered. Still, he could see why R’mart had been reluctant to disturb the status quo. He decided to go on. ‘Our other issues are with the firestone rationing. I’m told several bronzes actually ran out in mid air. My brown almost did.’

‘I can explain that,’ R’mart said. ‘The amount of firestone a Wing uses is part of the points system.’

‘My Wingleader told me that too. But surely there’s no lack of firestone?’

‘Well, no. There never has been, especially with all the mines in Crom so close at hand.’

‘Then why restrict it? A dragon without firestone can’t flame Thread effectively.’

‘Can’t flame it at all,’ T’san stated. ‘My dragon was one of those who ran out. And feeding a bronze little bits and pieces broken up small enough for a green was laughable. Well, it would have been if we weren’t in the middle of Fall.’

‘It’s part of the points system,’ R’mart stated again.

‘But the Wings are also penalised for letting Thread through, isn’t that right?’ D’gar felt almost sorry for the Weyrleader as he carried on dismantling the Telgar way.

R’mart nodded.

‘Which means they run out of firestone so as not to get penalised for using too much, then get penalised anyway for letting Thread through. And that Thread, if it also gets past the Queens’ Wing, destroys crops that might otherwise have fed people or beasts.’

‘Exactly,’ T’san said.

‘It makes no sense to me,’ Z’ma offered up.

‘More likely to lead to shortages than prevent them,’ S’naull added.

R’mart looked down at the table, clearly at a loss for words. He said nothing for a while.

D’gar wondered if he should also mention the tardy shift changes. He decided to save it for now until he had some idea how R’mart would respond.

Finally, the Weyrleader looked up again. ‘I shall need to discuss this with my Wingleaders before I can give you an answer.’

That was a good way to delay doing anything. D’gar glanced at the others. He could see from their expressions they weren’t happy. He played his trump card. ‘Very well. If Telgar Weyr can’t spare any provisions for us, we’d like to be allowed to return home so that we can fetch supplies for ourselves and let our dragons hunt freely.’

‘Yes, and we could bring extra sacks of firestone, too,’ M’lir added.

D’gar watched R’mart’s face fall. It would be potentially embarrassing for him if the other Weyrleaders found out he was unable to supply the pairs they’d provided with food and fuel. Autonomy wouldn’t allow them to interfere, but there would still be talk of mismanagement and possibly a reluctance to spare any more riders in the future.

‘I don’t think there’ll be any need to do that,’ he said hastily. ‘I’m most grateful to your Weyrleaders for sending you to help us. I wouldn’t want to bother them any further. I think we can agree to make an exception in your case.’

‘All of the seconded riders?’ D’gar asked, wanting to make it clear. ‘Not just us five.’

‘Yes, yes, of course. From now on, if you need anything extra to eat outside of mealtimes, just ask one of the kitchen staff.’

‘And they won’t try and charge us?’

‘What do you mean?’ R’mart was obviously unaware of the extortion.

‘I’ve been told people have been paying for extra food. Of course, I may have been misinformed,’ D’gar said lightly.

‘I shall look into that, but certainly, there should be no charge. And at mealtimes, you may go up and serve yourself whenever you wish.’

‘What about our dragons?’ T’san asked. ‘A bronze can’t be expected to work on a couple of wherries each week. It’d barely feed a green.’

‘Your dragons may feed whenever they wish, too. All I’d ask is that you let your Wingleaders know what they’ve killed, for our records.’

‘That shouldn’t be a problem.’ D’gar looked at the others. ‘Everyone fine with that?’

They all agreed.

‘So, you’re happy now?’ R’mart sounded uncertain.

‘We still have an issue with firestone.’ There was no point in half measures. Even a well-fed rider and dragon was useless without flame. ‘We need prompt supplies so no dragon is in danger of running out.’

‘Well…’ R’mart was obviously reluctant to give any more ground. ‘I’m not sure…’

‘Do you want us to fight Thread or not?’ D’gar found himself getting angry again. A small part of his mind warned him he was talking to a Weyrleader, a man he should respect, but he also knew that if any of the seconded riders or their dragons were injured through such a stupid policy, he’d feel partly to blame.

‘Are you threatening not to?’

‘We’re not threatening. I’m just stating a plain fact. If my - or anyone’s dragon - can’t flame, he can’t fight. Simple as that. We can always return to the Weyr and get our own from the dump, if you’d rather not spare a weyrling or mess with your system.’

‘Or get the incoming greens and blues to bring it,’ S’naull suggested. ‘Might get them up to us a bit quicker.’

‘Yes, we did have some delays on the shift changes,’ D’gar said, taking up his point. ‘I was told that was due to bags being checked. If we supplied ourselves, there shouldn’t be a problem in future.’ His head spun as he tried to work out the logistics of it.

‘I can make sure the weyrlings supply you. In fact,’ R’mart paused for a while, evidently calculating. ‘I think the best way to deal with this problem is to remove you seconded riders from the points system entirely. It will still apply to our own Wings, but I can make sure you get what you need.’

‘That’s very generous of you,’ D’gar said. He wasn’t sure how well that would work. In fact, he could already foresee potential problems. But he and the others had wrung enough concessions from the Weyrleader. They could always come back and talk again, if things didn’t work out. ‘Once again, might I just say we have no intention of interfering with the way you run your Weyr. We just want to do our job as best we can for however long you need us to do it.’

The other riders gave nods of approval. ‘That’s right,’ T’san said. ‘Benden’s behind you.’

‘And Igen,’ S’naull replied.

‘Ista too,’ Z’ma said.

M’lir joined in. ‘High Reaches.’

‘Fort Weyr rides with Telgar,’ D’gar added, feeling a bit like a Weyrleader himself at that moment. Silly, really. All he’d done was find out how people felt and discussed the issues. Anyone could have done the same.

They left the weyr. Most of the onlookers had gone, tired of waiting for something interesting to happen.

‘I can’t believe you really just did that.’ Z’ma slapped D’gar on the back.

‘We did it,’ D’gar said. ‘If I’d gone in there alone, it would have achieved nothing.’

‘Don’t talk yourself down, man,’ T’san said. ‘You spoke well. You’re a quick thinker, too.’

‘Some folk say I think too much.’

‘Well, it’s done us all a good turn today. Now, shall we give the good news to our colleagues?’

They made their way to the dining hall. Many of the seconded riders were already there. D’gar asked Herebeth to inform the other Fort dragons they should bring their riders down. Within a short time, all had assembled. They took over the table they’d sat around the first day. It was always empty and he guessed it must have been where one of the disbanded Wings used to sit. Once everyone was settled - and with a few Telgar riders looking on with interest - he told them what had been agreed. The news was greeted with cheers and whoops, plus some banging of the table. G’tash looked surprised, T’mudra impressed and J’rud stood up and hugged him. ‘Well done,’ he said in D’gar’s ear. ‘I knew you wouldn’t let us down.’