Threadfall! [Skies are Clear!]

[A'ric]

A'ric and Caldreth followed the Weyrleader's instructions, riding the winds ahead of the 'Fall. Long Threadfalls did not bother the pair. The heavy winds did not bother the pair. Caldreth's wings used them to stay aloft, and above them was only sky, and Thread. The mysterious rider appearing did not bother the pair. It was the other healer and his friendly brown. Nothing bothered them. The Thread was their only concern, and ensuring that their Wing survived the encounter.

They sat for a moment, in the breath between Thread clumps, in that precious moment of rest. Ere they plunged into battle again. They coasted, waiting for more to drop. Meanwhile, Caldreth reached out to the various members of the Mid-Level Flight to check on their health. As expected, t'was the chromatics that flagged, feeling the strain of the prolonged fight. For those under the bronze pair's immediate care, only brown T'wenth sustained injury, and he had assured them that the injury was a minor one. Something best left until after the Threadfall concluded to check. Neither rider nor dragon suffered from it enough to pull them from the Threadfall, so the fight continued.

As the winds took them over Kajano Hold, several silver ribbons spiraled into view. Caldreth's refreshed flames engulfed them with ease, and ash cascaded down onto the Flight below.

Then did the scream from below them echo through the dragons' collective miinds and the healer's instinct to assist surged to the surface. Eyes scanning the Flight below, A'ric leaned in his saddle to search for the injured pair. It's Corona and Superith. In a quick glance, A'ric looked over to check on R'den and Voraidith. The brownrider stayed in his position and as A'ric turned to find Carona and Superith again, he felt tension ease from his shoulders. Superith burst into the airspace below them, then vanished again. He tracked them until they vanished and then continued to stare down at the space where they'd been. The healer, unable to do anything for Carona from this distance, A'ric asked Caldreth to reassure the dragon instead. Caldreth found her mind at the Weyr, and he sent to the green no words only empathic reassurances that she'd be fine.

Far below, small figures skittered about, one or two paused, perhaps they too heard the green's cry. As he stared downward, A'ric wondered, briefly, if Lord Holder Feytolian deemed such an event worthy enough to come forth from his stone walls. When he fought for White Sands, Lord Herron always attended, always ensured the groundcrew was ready. That man earned A'ric's respect in the turns he'd been part of the southern Weyr. Feytolian on the other hand...

It comes! Caldreth's words broke through his rider's reverie and pulled A'ric back into the present time-and-place. Then, there was no more thoughts of Lord Holders and their petty grievances. Only the fight, or the anticipation of the fight, and the bronze pair plunged back into the fray to battle their enemy once more.  

[D'nel]

D’nel and Ebonth continued to ride the winds, flaming the silver strands now falling in threads. Young and strong, both had the stamina to easily fly the full fall, and reported as much to Caldreth when asked. The pair remained focused on their task, with Ebonth spewing short, intense bursts of flame so that only ash fell below them. D’nel hoped that once again they would come out of this fall tired and only needing to bathe.

Surperith’s cry made both dragon and rider pause. D’nel glanced over where the green had been and saw only empty space that was filled a moment later, only to have the pair vanish again to the cold of between.

They live, Ebonth said in answer to D’nel’s unspoken question. D’nel breathed a sigh of relief.

Nothing gets past us, he said, his tone filled with determination.

Of course not, Ebonth replied confidently.

[Jannasper]

Jannasper stood waiting with the First Unit Groundcrew. This was his first time being part of a groundcrew and using a flamethrower. He was surprised when he was asked to join in, but didn’t question the request when he saw the need. He was attentive during the class J’zeni held, the usual smile on his face replaced with a look of serious concentration. He turned out to be a quick learner, picking up the formation and use of a flame thrower, only needing little practice to get the aim right. Now, he looked skyward as the dragons and their flaming breath came into view. He wasn’t sure which one was S’yloa and Engmyth, so he just watched for all the greens. His head jerked around when a dragon’s cry was heard, and just caught sight of a green dragon vanishing from the sky. A cold feeling grew in the pit of his stomach. Was that his master? Were they seriously hurt? He wanted nothing more than to run back to the Weyr and find out. If it was Master S’yloa, he had to be there to help!

[Jannasper]

Joliffe set the tank of his flame thrower down on the ground next to him. It has been many turns since he had been on a groundcrew. J’zeni’s class had been more of a refresher for him, his muscle memory reviving quickly as he handled one once again. But he was a lot older now, and did not have the stamina of his youth. His shoulder ached from holding the tank and he shifted his weight from one leg to the other. He endured the discomfort though. The Weyrleader and Weyrwoman had given him purpose, and a second chance not only at his craft but at being a useful member of society again, something he hadn’t felt for a very long time. He wasn’t going to let either of them down now.

He glanced over at Kerrin, stationed in the center of their formation with the healer Millian. She would be safe there. He would make sure of it. No one, not even Lord Feytolian himself, would take the young woman away. The Weyrleader had tasked him with keeping an eye on her. He would see to it. Mikkale was a brazen fool, and Joliife had no doubts that if he knew she was so close to the hold, he would try to take her back. The dragon’s cry made the older man look overhead and silently hope both dragon and rider weren’t seriously injured.

[Kerrin]

Kerrin readjusted the scarf on her head again. F’rendil had given it to her the day before, telling her it would keep her safe, as it had him through so many falls. She had resisted at first, not wanting to take something precious to him, worrying more about his well being than her own. He would be risking his life after all while she would be safe on the ground. The riders of Great Cliffs had never shirked their duty to the hold, not even during the Dark Times. She did not fear thread would get past them this time. She worried more about being recognized by the hold’s groundcrew. If Mikkale knew she was near, she didn’t know what he would do, but she knew it wouldn’t be good for anyone.

She felt self-conscious standing with Millian at the center of the formation. She didn’t feel she was so important to warrant such safeguards, even though she was grateful to the Weyrleader for his concern for her. After making sure no strands of her tell tale red hair were sticking out, she checked over the agnothree tank and spray. It was her first time using one, and was very glad she hadn’t been given a flame thrower. The only flames she wanted to deal with were in her kitchens. But every able body was needed, so she of course offered her help. She too looked skyward at the dragon’s pained cry, her concern for F’rendil and T’weneth swelled and she stared worriedly at the sky.

[Lord Herron]

Pain pulsed through Superith’s wing where thread had scored her and her side ached from the rough landing, but she sent feelings of gratitude to both Baizyth and Caldreth. Carona unhooked herself from her riding straps and quickly dismounted, ignoring her own scored shoulder. “Healer!” she shouted, not caring who came, as long as they came quickly and had numbweed. Her first and only thoughts were for relieving her dragon’s pain.

[J'zeni]

When J'zeni saw one of the green dragons appear in the sky and all but crash onto the ground, he had the urge to find out what happened and who it was, but didn't want to break formation until the Weyrwoman gave the "all clear". So, he turned his head and watched the adult dragon's descent. Not long thereafter, a second green appeared, she much smaller than the first one. Following the path of the first one, she descended to the ground more gracefully. At this point, the two passed beyond J'zeni's ability to see them.

Between the sense of pain that radiated from the sky and the fact that the Thread passed the Weyr and it was safe once more, Alvoradath's bloodlust dissipated. He too craned his neck to watch the two green dragons descend toward the Weyrbowl's floor as he answered his rider's unspoken question. It is Surperith who falls. The other is Rasuith.

The Weyrleader must have summoned them. I hope everyone's all right. That it's nothing too serious. Of course, any Thread injury was automatically serious in his head, but there was a huge difference between a wound that would leave a scar and one that permanently crippled dragon or rider.

[Narrator]

Called into action by the Weyrleader, Kai and Najjath broke ranks and Kai urged her blue toward the descending green. The duo followed Surperith's spiraling path until the older dragon landed. They were there by the time Corona shouted for them. Kai didn't take offense because she'd been bonded to Najjath long enough to know that when your dragon needed something, you sometimes couldn't think of anything else except what the dragon needed.

Najjath immediately made contact with the green and touched her mind to send her reassurances. As the Weyrleader surmised, a large injury remained beyond Kai's meager healing skills. She decided to concentrate on the dragon because again, Corona might not be able to answer questions, or even care about herself until Surperith wasn't in pain anymore. And, during her training under Master K'ivan, he'd told her to focus on the dragon.

Withdrawing a jar of numbweed from her belt pouch, Kai began to approach Surperith. She didn't think about asking Corona to do it because Kai wasn't sure of Corona's condition and, again, K'ivan urged her to take care of the dragon first. But, after two steps toward the long laceration in the dragon's wing, she hesitated, knowing that a dragon in pain could be dangerous to themselves as well as anyone else around, the blue Weyrling decided to ask the Wingrider first. "Will you, may I put the numbweed on her, Corona?"


It took Mira and Rasuith a bit longer to get there, so by the time they landed, Kai was already trying to attend to Surperith. In the middle of unfastening her riding straps, Mira shouted at Kai, "Just put it on!"


The younger healer didn't need a secondary urging. Kai opened the jar, covered her hand with the numbing paste and quickly began to slather numbweed on Surperith's Threadscore.


Mira dismounted by jumping down and when she hit the ground, she rushed over to Corona to check on the rider. "Are you all right, Wingrider?" Even as she asked the woman about her status, she offered a jar of numbweed to the other in the hopes that Corona would put it on herself.

[S'yloa]

Much like Jannasper below him, S'yloa wondered how his boy was doing and looked forward to spending more quality time with the other after the 'Fall. Then, the Thread was upon them again and S'yloa's mind turned toward the fight. When Surperith screamed, S'yloa didn't know who it was at first. He looked every which way and then spotted the other green as she reemerged. "Oh!" He exclaimed aloud, but the wind caught his word, stealing it away. They made it to the Weyr safely. Well! That's a relief. I hope they're all right. Normally, he'd encourage Engmyth to reach out to the other green to find out what was going on, but they had to finish Threadfall first. Confident there were others to take care of the fallen dragon, S'yloa focused his attention on Threadfall again.

[F'rendil]

Meanwhile... F’rendil and T’wenth continued to fight. Due to the Threadscore that he'd taken earlier, the brown dragon sported a large hole with spiderwebbed tears caused by the constant use in his wing sail that had to hurt, but the duo appeared intent on finishing the 'Fall. Anyone close enough might see the lines of yellow that laced through the dragon's eyes. They swooped toward a clump and a cone of fire spilled forth from T'wenth's mouth to engulf the Thread and turn it to ash.

[Lord Herron]

Superith swung her head toward Najjath and crooned plaintively, the pain evident in her cry. “Yes! Help her, please!” Carona replied just before Mira appeared and began giving orders. There was a collective sigh of relief from both Carona and Superith when Kai started to apply the numbweed, but Carona’s attention continued to be on Superith.

“I’m fine,” she said to Mira, barely glancing at the other healer. “See to Superith first.” She couldn’t see the extent of her injury, but felt the intense burning sensation in her shoulder and down her back and arm. The thread had seared through her wherhide jacket straight through to the skin, but she assumed the pain was from Superith.. “Her front foot on the left side is hurt too. She injured it while landing," she called to Kai.

[Narrator]

"Yes, we are taking care of Superith. Kai has your dragon, but I need you to focus on your own injuries too," replied Mira unperturbed by the older Wingrider's demands that she leave her alone. Since Carona didn't take the numbweed, Mira withdrew her hand and opened the jar as she continued to talk to the injured Wingrider. She repeated herself on purpose to make sure Carona understood and to reassure her again. "Kai has Superith. I need to look at your injuries too." While looking Carona over, she noticed the tears in her wherhide jacket. "Please remove your jacket. The Thread may have gone through it. I need to make sure you're all right too."

The young Healer had a patient and she was determined to make sure she didn't abandon her patient until she was good and ready to do so, and convinced that Carona wasn't losing blood or ignoring her injury in favor of her dragon's. These were both things that Millian told her to watch out for, so she stayed persistent. Her voice was as calm as it could be.


"Will do! All right!" Kai called back to the others as she continued to slather the green's wing and shoulder injury with the cooling substance. She had to make sure it was completely covered with numbweed. When she emptied the jar, she dropped it on the ground and pulled another one from her pouch. Millian made sure her healers were prepared for this eventuality. "Her foot? I'll look when I finish with the numbweed."

Blue Najjath fixed his gaze on Superith. He sent a constant, quiet stream of reassuring thoughts. Be calm, older sister. It is fine. You are fine. You are safe here. My-Kai will make the pain go away. Yours is safe. The healers will help you.

Young green Rasuith did not say anything. Instead, she merely sent soothing waves toward the older green.

[Lord Herron]

“My injuries?” Carona asked, sounding slightly dazed. She looked over at her left shoulder, and tried to move her arm. She slowly realized the burning sensation she was still feeling was coming from her. Superith gave a soft whine in sympathy to Carona’s pain. Hearing her dragon cry because of her hurt more than the thread score. She immediately tried to remove her riding jacket, but stopped at the shot of pain that hit her when she tried to move her left arm. She shrugged it off her right shoulder and shook her arm until the sleeve slid off and the jacket fell off her back. She then removed the rest from her injured arm and let it fall to the ground. Black lines scored the wherhide where the thread has burned through. On her shoulder there were signs of first and second degree burns where the thread had smoldered through. “How bad is it?” she asked through clenched teeth as the realization that she was injured seemed to make it hurt more.

With the coolness of the numbweed and Najjath calm reassurances, Superith slowly settled down. She leaned to her right, favoring that side. They must take care of Mine! she said, raising her head suddenly. We tried so hard to stay with the wing. But we are so tired. It's been so long. She hated to sound like she was complaining. Other greens and blues were still flying, but it proved to be too much for her. I didn’t see the thread. I didn’t see it… she said forlornly, hating to admit her weakness. She lowered her head to rest on the ground slowly.

[Thread!]

An errant wind whipped across the mountains and caught hold of the Thread storm. Gray skies turned near black whilst the Thread churned at a higher altitude than e'en the dragons could fly. So t'was that the dragonriders crossed the territory and made it to the airspace above Kajano Hold ere the Thread. They hovered, waiting, for the silver strands to fall, but for hours, days, weeks, the strands stayed caught in the higher altitude. Long enough for the fatigue to pull at the remaining greens and now the blues, and possibly the weaker browns too felt the strain on their already beleagured forms. And yet, vigilance finally paid off and as the wind released its prey, the dragonriders' respite came to an end.

Fortune favored the dragonriders in that the Thread only fell down, tugged by gravity's beckoning, and did not decide through fickle wind movementts to go sideways. The rush of silver poured down upon the dragonriders in sheets of silver strands. This, the last gasp of Threadfall, blanketed the sky with gray. A great storm of Thread that washed downward in sleeting mist. As though the mindless spore had targets, four strands shimmered their way toward Ebonth, and another three spun wildly toward T'wenth's already scored wings.

Not even the most experienced dragonrider could prevent all the strands, so did it pass through the ranks until a scattered handful of Thread managed to get to the very bottom where the gathered groundcrew waited in their formation. A dozen strands fell near and around the groundcrew, the others fell into the midst of Kajano Hold itself.

[A'ric]

The mighty bronze felt no fatigue despite the lengthy moments hovering in the air. They waited for Thread to fall again. Why was it taking so long? When, at last, it fell, A’ric bid his dragon go after it. Caldreth rushed toward the nearest clump and burned it to ashes. He followed it till he knew all the strands wert truly dead. Then, rising upon the air currents, went after another clump, and another. They still had many minutes to fight ere they could truly rest from this ‘fall. The dragon duo both longed for it to finish, but also secretly wanted it to continue. They as a pair enjoyed the rush of adrenaline and sheer power of destruction against the ancient foe.