A Dangerous Endeavor (R'khol, then all)

[Spirithawk]

Christae paced in front of her dragon. The queen was less agitated than she had been when her clutch was laid awaiting the hatching, but tension was in every line of her frame. She could sense both the worry and the determination in her rider, and she had the same feelings.

"Call them." She told Kaith. Her Wingleaders were supposed to be here. She didn't know where R'khol was, that was probably where her Wingleaders were, with him. Had they lost track of time? It wouldn't do for the Weyrleaders to show a front that was not united for something this important. She hadn't been able to speak to her Weyrleader much about what was going on, and what she was planning, so she wasn't sure if he truly approved or not.

This would be the moment of truth. The Red Star was dangerously close to the Eye rocks on Fort Weyr. Christae had gone that morning, during Dark Moon's night, and then Kaith had gone *between* to Benden Weyr. They had even done the timing trick themselves to catch the sunrise at another Weyr. The Queen had come back a tad bit more tired than she normally would have from a short hop *between* and had eaten voraciously when she returned.

Wingleaders or all?

"Wingleaders first."

All Wingleaders are required to report to the Weyrwoman in the Weyr Bowl. This includes the Weyrlingmaster and the Assisstant Candidate Master. All bronzeriders who are not Weyrlings are to come as well.

[Spirithawk]

OOC: Bump for those mentioned. Will announce when the rest are needed.

[Minajerie]

All Wingleaders are required to report to the Weyrwoman in the Weyr Bowl. This includes the Weyrlingmaster and the Assisstant Candidate Master. All bronzeriders who are not Weyrlings are to come as well.

The message found the Weyrleader and his dragon in the air, currently at 'rest' from a drill.

I'm sure we're included in there Mine... somewhere. Does Weyrleader fit under Wingleader or are we under the bronzes that aren't Weyrlings?

R'khol punched the neck of his dragon. Kegrith replied with a chuckle, seeing his humor had struck the note he was aiming for with his rider. His wings beat a bit before returning to their glide.

To the Weyrbowl then. Must be important if all bronzes and Wingleaders are coming. R'khol preferred more personal contact with the Wingleaders, and so had decided to ride with choice Wings as they practiced, instead of with them all at once. After all, a man could only spread himself so thin, and even then, perhaps there will be holes where trouble spots would fall through.

He had chosen to fly with two Wings today. They were Riders that he had started to understand a bit more, so felt comfortable trying out drills with these two wings first. However, sometimes life did not go as planned. Surely thread would not. So he nodded to the two Wingleaders he was with, and to their seconds and lead them towards the Wery Bowl.

Once landed he strolled over to the Weyrwoman, a small quickness in his step. "I'm not sure what's going on, but I trust you'll fill me in as you go." When he got closer he noticed a difference in her pallor and touched her shoulder. "Are you all right? You look a tad pale."

[Spirithawk]

Christae looked relieved when her Weyrleader showed up. She didn't answer his question about her welfare. He would know soon enough why she was so pale and she wanted to talk to him before the Wingleaders arrived. "Did you forget what day it was?" She asked quietly. She didn't want an argument, but she was definitely on edge. "I have been trying to speak to you about this," she gave a rueful smile, "but something always intervenes. Remember I mentioned that one of my, er our, brownriders accidentally discovered that dragons can go *between* times as well?"

She waited a few moments for that to sink in before going on. "This morning I went to several weyrs. Kaith and I jumped times to get to some of them to look at their star stones. The ones in the north are more accurate than what we have in the south because of the angle. R'khol, we are running out of time." There was a hint of desperation in her voice. "We only have a few more months, if that, before Thread hits."

He knew the dragon count. He knew what that meant. Most of their dragons were still weyrlings, the oldest only 4 months old, and not even stable enough to carry their riders. "We need to do something. The most of the other weyrs will be fine. They have already talked about pooling resources if the time comes, but we weren't included in those deliberations. Most of them think we are too small to worry about and will come crying to be under the wings of a larger weyr." A fierce pride shone in the Weyrwoman's brown eyes. "I WON'T go crawling back to the North, or to a larger Southern Weyr."

"I've been thinking about that trick that T'ren discovered. If we could get our Weyrlings back in time, they could be trained for the year there, be fully grown, and then they could come back, say in a week or a few days even. Personally I'm thinking of two weeks just to be certain, and that will give us a couple of weeks to integrate them into our wing structure. It would be staggered. The transfer clutch is a little younger. We could leave the last clutch there until they are nearly grown, and let them come back here to be our Weyrling wing for firestone like they should be."

"It would also allow us to have a fully matured Queen who could lay another clutch." Faranth knew they needed that. "I was thinking of leaving one of the twin Queens back here to grow normally if she and her rider would consent. I would have to do some of the other twin's training when she returned, but that might be an option." She fell silent. It sounded so crazy, and dangerous. The whole Weyr was cautious about Timing it after they had lost one of their own to a careless mistake, and now Christae was proposing to send their entire lot of Weyrlings back in time.

[Kandarra]

You are to report to the weyrwoman in the weyr bowl, Kaith says, Amparath said suddenly, jolting T'rin out of the daze he had been in while oiling the big bronze's hide. The bronzerider raised his green eyes from his dragon's side to his face.

"Did she say why?" T'rin asked, alarmed. Had he done something out of line? Why would Christae be summoning him? He searched his mind for any reason possible under the sun, but came up with nothing.

Amparath said nothing for a moment, amused at his rider's racing mind. He thought it funny that his rider would worry so readily over it. Finally, he intervened. It was not just for you. She wants all the wingleaders and full grown bronze riders.

T'rin sighed in relief, then realized that it probably still wasn't a good situation. "Alright." He put away the oil, rag, and brush, and made his way down to the weyrbowl.

He arrived moments later, a slight breeze ruffling his hair. He made his best attempt to pat it down, then stepped in front of Christae. "Weyrwoman, my regards to your dragon," he said, inclining his head in a miniature bow. He raised it up again, and smiled. With a bit of dramatic flair, he saluted, and said, "Your wish is my command."

[Minajerie]

R'khol could tell that Christae was rather tense, and he did vaguely remember her telling she needed to speak to him about something important, but somehow it had always been pushed aside between one thing and another. So he was patiently quiet as his Weyrwoman spoke.

He nodded when she mentioned the reality of time travel. He stilled when she mentioned herself and Kaith timing it. That was dangerous, and R'khol didn't want to think how much it scared him at the moment. He pushed through to the reality of how few Wings they had to protect themselves and the enormity of thread. It wasn't good.

"We will be hard pressed if we simply work with what we have- just to protect ourselves. We have Holds to protect as well. I truly wish we did not have to put all of our eggs in one basket and see if they would make the trip there and back safely... but if you leave out one of the twins, there is at least a small insurance policy for the future." He shoved a hand into his hair, dislodging a few strands from his tail. "I wish we had more weyrlings that we could hold back for a better sense of security... but I think this is a fair plan. A good plan. We just have to make sure that the weyrlings understand just how serious both the situation here is, and the dangers of timing it."

R'khol went ahead and rushed his fingers over Christae's cheek. "I believe in you decisions."

When the first bronze rider other than himself arrived, R'khol was amused to find that the man greeted only the Weyrwoman. He cocked an eyebrow at his comment, and then looked back at Christae. His eyes sparkled with muffled mirth.

[Dragon]

All Wingleaders are required to report to the Weyrwoman in the Weyr Bowl. This includes the Weyrlingmaster and the Assisstant Candidate Master. All bronzeriders who are not Weyrlings are to come as well.

Gerenanth was laying about at the lake, sunning himself. G'han could be found some distance off. The man had simply been sitting on a large rock, skipping small stones as he looked out over the lake. Whether in deep thought or relaxation, G'han would find either to be disrupted. Gerenanth's voice rumbled in his head with a sort of authoritave thunder only a proud bronze could have.

Kaith calls us to the Weyrbowl. All wingleaders and bronzes who aren't weyrlings. Either way, that's going to include you.

G'han glanced over at his bronze for a moment as if to answer him vocally. Instead, he turned to the lake again to skip one last stone. One, two, three, four skips before it sunk. G'han stood up and walked over to Gerenanth. The young wingleader patted him on his side and the bronze stood on all legs. G'han lifted himself onto the mighty dragon.

"Yip yip", he finally spoke. A joke G'han often played on the bronze to get him to fly. Sometimes Gerenanth would be stubborn enough not to fly. But being commanded by his queen, Gerenanth knew what G'han was playing at. The bronze had to listen to the command. I will so get you back for this. Mark my words. I know where you sleep at night.

G'han smirked. "I wonder if you do half the time", he snapped back. The duo took to the skies. Only a brief flight, but G'han didn't feel like wasting anymore of the Weyrwoman's time by simple walking. The bronze simply snorted in response to G'han's remark. Sometimes the rider's sense of humor irked him.

The two finally landed just a short distance and within sight of the Weyrwoman and her possy. The young man dismounted gracefully from the bronze and walked towards the group. "Nice day for a pow wow, isn't it?", G'han remarked simply as he looked towards the sky. Though even he couldn't escape the reality before them. G'han's sense of humor often diffused tense situations and kept a sort of calming effect with his light humor. But just as often as it would work, it would also be ineffective. Still, it was in G'han's personality to be so easy going. G'han was obviously not one to go against his character. If nothing else, you couldn't accuse him of being who he wasn't.

"Weyrwoman Christae. Always a pleasure to see the jewel of our humble weyr", G'han said as charming as was usual. The charm was often there with any female, but with the Weyrwoman, it was in a sort of respect. He gave a slight bow, before facing the Weyrleader. "Ah and Weyrleader R'khol! Good to see you as well", not quite as extravigant a greeting, but to be fair G'han did know Christae quite awhile longer. He gave the Weyrleader a polite nod.

The bronzerider folded his arms over his chest. He had to wonder when the rest would show up as well. So far it was but four people attending this little meeting, and G'han wasn't usually one of the first arrivals to a meeting. He wasn't exactly the late one either, but rarely was he one of the first ones to be present. It gave G'han a sort of awkward feeling to be out of his usual pace.

[Akki]

Gold Kaith beckons us. Waeith lifted his head up off the ground and swiveled it so he could stare at his rider, who was currently in a state is disarray. Ah, not us exactly. All wingleaders and bronzeriders, to be more specific. The bronze corrected, knowing that V’ian was going to ask anyways.

A string of curses flew out of the man’s mouth as he practically leapt off of his, grabbing a shirt off from the weyr floor. He had spent the day training and exercising, enjoying a rather nice bath up until a few moments ago. His hair was wet and plastered against his forehead and his body wasn’t fully dry – already his shirt had a few faint wet spots from being put on. V’ian grimaced, ripping the shirt off to throw on a darker color. He had to look at least vaguely presentable and the darker color shirt made any went spots unnoticeable. Hurry..

“Waeith, don’t nag me. You’re not my mother.” V’ian snorted, ranning a hand through his wet hair before striding over to the bronze. Actually, his mother never nagged him. The bronzerider quickly pulled himself on top of the dragon who immediately leapt off of the weyr ledge, spiraling downwards to the weyrbowl. The bronze hit the ground with a ‘Thwump’, sand and dirt flying up slightly as he bowed his head slightly. Greetings Queen Kaith, Kegrith. He knew his place in the world, content with bowing down to the two dragons who ruled over him. The bronze never regretted transferring to Dark Moon – the vibe around the Weyr was much nicer than other places in his opinion. His rider slid off of the dragon’s back and landed on the ground, nodding to the Weyrwoman and the Weyrleader. “Sorry for being late.” He smiled sheepishly.

He glanced at the Weyrleader, biting on the inside of his cheek. His sister had told him all about her little adventure in interrogating the man. How exactly was V’ian supposed to face him now? He could only hope that R’khol had no idea of his and Akki’s relation.

"You're looking awkward, G'han."

[Spirithawk]

Christae closed her eyes as he brushed his fingers over her cheek. " I wouldn't do this if it weren't necessary." Her voice was almost a whisper, because she had seen some of the others arriving, and because she was worried. "If we leave Colvarinth here, we will have another queen, yes, but will she be grown in time to help Kaith repopulate the weyr? Not in time for Thread, but it is a hope. I'm sure they will know the gravity of the situation once Kaith and I are through with them. The more experienced dragons, and the ones who are less likely to panic are going to be the ones transferring the children back in time. "

She opened her eyes when she heard the approach of a rider. She gave T'rin a strained smile. "Bronzerider T'rin. I hope that you and Amparath are well. Those flitt eggs of yours should be hatching soon? We could use something happy to temper the news I have for everyone." She told the bronzerider. She glanced pointedly in the direction of the Weyrleader, wondering if the young rider had done that on purpose or if he was just so used to her taking the lead that he didn't really think about greeting the Weyrleader. She had been running the weyr nearly by herself after all.

Christae nodded as G'han, and then V'ian arrived. "G'han, V'ian, I hope you and yours are all well. We have serious business to discuss. We are waiting for a few more arrivals.

Kegrith, it is good to have your support. The Queen shifted so that she was nearer to her mate, to show a united front. Amparath, Gerenanth, Waieth. Welcome my bronzes.

[Marnark’tranarprol]

Something serious is afoot. Geth told his rider, rising from where he had been crouched down watching events unfold beneath where he was perched.

"You think?" R'anl answered, irritably. The both of them were at the firestone mines, trying to talk a bit of urgency into the operators ... R'anl also had seen how close the Red Star had been getting to the Stones. It was a fear that knotted in the pit of his stomach - the ages old enemy was returning, and the Weyr was by far not prepared. Worse, the people in the mines didn't think it was that close. Thus, getting them to mine more than what was needed for drills? Proving to be a very frustrating endeavor. Worse, he hadn't even spoken to the Weyr Leadership about it before heading down here in the mountains to see to it. So he had no real authority - only that which he could bluff off of his dragon's metallic hide. On top of it all, he hadn't managed anything but to come off as the typical anti-weyr Holder's view. A Rider, showing up unannounced, demanding more.

But really, how else was there to do it?! Thread was coming, and in R'anl's estimation, they were going to need every scrap of firestone they could lay their hands on for the coming rain.

Geth was not the least bit put off by his rider's snarkiness, however. We are needed at the Weyr. Kaith calls us. We are late already.

R'anl paused. Kaith? Was calling them

---

Admin's Note:[/hr] To the Weyr? Something was afoot. "Shards and shells, one of these days ... argh!" R'anl scrambled up the mountain side as fast as his feet could take him, using his hands in places until he managed to make it to where Geth was waiting for him, crouched. With practiced ease, the man leapt aboard his massive, mean-looking dragon, settling in and snapping his safety straps on even as Geth shoved off of the mountain and spread his massive wings. A singular stroke of the wings and they had a great deal of altitude already, the mountain falling away beneath them.

A half a heartbeat later, and the pair were between. Three breaths later, and Geth was washing the weyrbowl with the chilly backdraft of between, having reappeared awfully low. He slammed to a halt on the ground a tad faster than he'd reckoned on - he had hurried after all, considering that any summons by the Queen was an important one. Just as fast as he could manage, R'anl was off of his dragon again and jogging over to the gathering as he tried to suppress the chattering of his teeth - in his haste he'd forgotten his jacket at the mines. Slowing to a walk, he then stopped completely as he reached the group. Not a word he said, taking stock of the situation. The expressions on their faces, the stances they held ... the gathering of the biggest dragons in the Weyr. It did not bode well.

R'anl crossed his arms over his chest - partly in reflex, partly to regain a touch of warmth to his arms. And there he waited for the other shoe to fall.

[Kandarra]

T'rin nodded, saying, "Yes, I've been watching them. They should be hatching within the sevenday, and of course the hatching will be open to all." He certainly didn't want another for himself; Micra was quite a handful by herself.

When she nodded to the new weyrleader, he realized his gaffe. He bowed deeply in apology. "I'm sorry, Weyrleader. Christae has acted as both weyrleader and weyrwoman for so long that I have not yet become accustomed to having two of you." He grinned his trademark flash of teeth and added, "I hope it is forgiven, and that your dragon fares well."

His words implied great respect for the Weyrleader, but the truth was that he was reserving judgement. He had learned to be wary after two-- or had it been three?-- weyrleaders had disappeared in quick succession, leaving Christae to shoulder the responsibility by herself. He had unending respect for her, but, in his mind, this new weyrleader had not yet proven himself worthy of the position. But it was not his place to question, only support, so he smiled again and stepped aside.

Thank you, my golden queen, Amparath said, obviously feeling much the same as T'rin did. I hope you are well on this day. The sun shines brightly on you, he added in his most charming tone.

[Minajerie]

R'khol gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm sure your decisions are sound, Christae. You have my support. No one will worry more about the weyr's safety and well being than yourself. Don't second guess yourself. This is a good plan." He reached over and gave her shoulder a squeeze.

R'khol muffled his deep chuckle and inclined his head. "He is, and yes, all is forgiven. After all, out Weyrwoman has such a strong presence and force of will. I hope my presence will become more expected as time goes by, I won't be going anywhere."

Kegrith rumbled a bit at having so many charming bronzes around his mate, but didn't embarrass himself by acting out. He was the mate of Kaith, him. Always, dear Kaith. Still, his status as her mate didn't stop him from twining his tail with hers for reassurance.

R'khol nodded to the other bronze riders as they arrived. Some he had yet to meet, and others who he had met, but hadn't gotten to know very well. He planned to rectify that, but now wasn't the time.

[Dragon]

G'han looked to the side as he heard a familiar voice speaking to him. Ah, it was V'ian! G'han had made V'ian his official best guy pal. Since there weren't really any others that qualified for that spot. Sure, there was K'dan. But G'han saw him as more of a little brother sort. Not someone he could paint the weyr red with and stay out late partying, and hitting on girls. Oh K'dan was terrible when it came to girls. Poor guy.

Well, okay, G'han kind of had a girl. It was a bit complicated really, though. Really, he did like Andilay. But he couldn't really see a weyrling. The situation was complicated. Plus it didn't help that half the time he would wake up with Akki in his bed. Truth be told, nothing ever really happened between himself and the bluerider, despite the way they joked towards each other. Akki would be the only girl to get away with sleeping in his bed without anything ever happening.

"Awkward? Never. I don't know the word", G'han responded. Lies, lies, lies. G'han knew awkward, and he knew it well. Though truth be told, he was more adept at making people awkward as opposed to himself looking awkward. Like he could make some backhand comment to V'ian about his sister. But he decided such games weren't proper at this time. This was serious business.

He turned his attention back to the weyrwoman. "Weyrwoman Christae, Gerenanth and I are well. The more pressing matter should be if you are", G'han responded in kind to Christae. It was truth, in G'han's mind. To him, the Weyrwoman's wellbeing came before his or pretty much any other weyr. Christae, especially, had been running this weyr since before he was a dragonrider.

G'han was fully convinced that at this time if something were to happen to Christae, then the weyr might very well fall apart. Christae was the heart of the weyr keeping it alive. Though if Christae was the heart, G'han mused that Akki would be like that bone you hit and you can't stop laughing, a funny bone.

G'han looked around curiously, wondering who else would show up. This was obviously serious, even before Christae said so herself. One simply didn't gather all the bronzeriders together for nothing. What exactly would take place though? Just what exactly would be said? Or done? G'han questioned what was going to progress from this meeting.

[Spirithawk]

P'rin was later than he would have wanted to be. He and Kilzanth had been hunting when the Queen had summoned them. The bronze's maw was still bloody from the food he had begun to eat. He had carried the carcass of the wherry buck back with him. The supplies weren't so plentiful that he could waste and the wild buck could be eaten later. His rider made the bronze drop it outside the feeding pens where it wouldn't be so close as to stampede the food beasts, but it wouldn't make a mess elsewhere.

Dragon and rider then hurried to join the group. P'rin bowed. "My apologies for being late Weyrwoman, Weyrleader. My regards to you and your dragons." The blue-eyed rider bowed again and then waited. He knew this had to be serious. He could feel the heat of his dragon radiating from behind him, and the great bronze's head came down to be near his rider.

P'rin put a hand on the dragon's head. It was a mark of how serious the issue was that Kilzanth didn't chide his rider for being weak for some reason or another. The bronze had toned down his arrogance for now, and P'rin was grateful for that small favor.

Kilzanth had already sent his greetings to the Queen and her mate, and now he waited. It wouldn't be long before the reason behind their summons would become clear.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rhia had been waiting for the summons. She knew Christae was cooking up a plan, but for once the Weyrwoman hadn't spoken to her about it. She didn't mind. She had been having her hands full. There were now 3 classes of weyrlings, and one of them included a gold that was quite a character, and not in a good way sometimes.

Most women would feel a bit self-conscious about being in a group comprised mostly of men, but Rhia had been in her position for quite some time now and was comfortable in her own skin. She had nothing to worry about with these people. She was secure in her place.

Mneith had been doing drills with the older Weyrlings when Kaith's call came. The brownrider hadn't taken the time to secure herself in her riding straps even though the dragon was tacked up. She wouldn't fall for such a short hop from just outside the weyr to the weyr bowl. She slid off the massive brown's back and strode quickly to the gathering.

"Weyrwoman Christae, Weyrleader R'khol, my duty to you and your dragons." She bowed. She was one of the few that Christae wouldn't chide for not showing respect in a time like this, but Rhia wished to show her Weyrwoman that she respected her authority in a position like this. If it had been a casual meeting, she wouldn't have bowed.

Lovely as ever clutch-sister. Mneith spoke to the Queen as he moved closer to the other dragons around their riders.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Christae glanced around. With the arrival of Rhia and the others, all of her Wingleaders and bronzeriders were here. She hadn't responded to the other comments. She wasn't really in the mood for a dance of polite trivialities.

Bronzes of Dark Moon, and Mneith, we have serious business to attend to. The Red Star draws ever closer, bringing our ancient enemy, Thread closer to falling upon us. Are you with me in our quest to rid this menace from our skies? The Queen's eyes whirled red and orange with the mention of their ancient enemy and she waited for her dragons to respond.

Christae waited until her dragon had finished and then addressed the riders. " Most of you probably know that this is not a pleasant social call. We have very grave matters to discuss. Once I have discussed them with you, the rest of the Weyr will be summoned to break the news. Kaith and I have been in the North, checking on the position of the Red Star. According to the star stones, we have 3 or 4 months, if not less, before Thread falls on us." She waited for her riders to absorb that shock. They knew it was near, but had they known it was quite so near?

"We would have close to full wings if our current Weyrlings were old enough to fly in wings. However, since that is not so, we are in serious danger. Most of the other weyrs can't be counted on to help us. We need to help ourselves. Brownrider T'rin, as you know, has discovered that dragons can move between time as well as location. Kaith and I were using that this morning to check the star stones. I have been mulling over a plan in my head for quite a while, trying to see if there was any alternatives, but I see none." She paused again to let her words sink in and then began bluntly.

"I propose to send our Weyrlings, minus the younger twin Queen, back in time. There, Rhia and those who go with her will train the weyrlings in the past and then bring them back to our time, fully grown and trained. It is risky, but the risk of being under strength with Thread falling is even greater. What say you?"

[Dragon]

G'han watched as Rhia arrived. To a number of people present, they might think the presence of both of them might prove interesting, explosive, or both. It wasn't exactly wide spread that the two had worked out their differences. G'han was a bit interested himself in what some of the others would be thinking and wondered how this element would affect things too.

But it wasn't like he would be intentionally prodding the element. His mind was much more focused on what this meeting would hold. Did he know of the ever-nearing thread? Yes. Did he know how soon? No. Would he show shock? Also no. He wasn't in this position to crumble with worry.

He had listened intently to Christae's words while his dragon listened to Kaith in the same manner. Gerenanth answered his queen respectfully. You will have my strength, my queen. It was pretty much only the queen that could get that sort of reaction out of Gerenanth. Usually the dragon was chock full of ego and arrogance.

G'han looked around, then to the weyrwoman. Apparently he would be first to speak. Fine by him. "I'm for it", G'han stated simply. If she needed someone to back the plan, G'han was certainly for it. With the weyr under strength, it didn't seem they had many options. Even if there was a risk from this, it didn't seem to matter anyway with the impending threat looming ever so close.

The wingleader looked around to the rest of the group, wondering their stance on the plan? Did they object? Did they agree? Did they have ideas to add to it? He also had to wonder if there were those that would appear more shocked than him at the realization of how suddenly thread would be here.

[Kandarra]

Dramatically, Amparath said, To the ends of the world, Kaith, and executed a dragonish bow. Despite the flair in his words, he truly meant them. He was a bronze, and bronzes followed their queens. That was the way it was meant to be.

T'rin paid his dragon's theatrics no mind as he was trying to absorb the sudden deadline they had been given. Three or four months? Their grown fighting dragons were so few in number, hardly prepared for Thread at all! They would be hard pressed to protect the lands close around the weyr, much less the holds full of dragonless, defenseless Pernese. He shook his head in dismay.

He listened mutely as Christae presented the fact that the weyrlings would not be ready for Threadfall. That he could surmise himself. It would help so much if they could, though. It would add almost a full wing-- or maybe more, he couldn't think of the numbers at the moment-- to their strength. When Christae brought up T'ren, he wondered what that could do with Thread coming. It seemed like a complete topic switch, and the bronzerider puzzled over it, until Christae revealed her plan.

To say he was shocked would have been an understatement. Send the weyrlings back in time? How would they get there? What if they were lost between? And what about the newly-hatched dragonets? How could they manage even going between at their age, much less between times? The risks made T'rin uneasy, and he shifted from one foot to the other, his thumbs hooked in the waist of his pants.

G'han spoke first, which didn't surprise T'rin at all. Neither did his vote of unquestioning support. But he, himself, could not show the same unwavering certainty. He trusted and respected Christae, but this was a big, and as far as he knew, unprecedented decision to make. He had to think on it more. Thoughts swirled through his mind and he struggled to organize them as he stood and waited to see what the others would say.

[Marnark’tranarprol]

R'anl remained as silent as he had begun, listening to what was said. Behind him, his bronze changed his stance just a bit, a subtle shift to solid stability. Any dragon not with you on that task is no dragon at all. The big bronze answered, sternly. And indeed, in his mind, any dragon not willing to fight thread and defend Pern wasn't a dragon. Naturally, he not only considered himself a dragon, but a rather magnificent one at that! Not as magnificent as Kaith, but pretty close.

If it had been any other setting, R'anl might well have elbowed his dragon in the shoulder for that kind of statement, self-inflating and arrogant as it was. But given the situation he still held his silence, listening and watching. Paying close attention to the carefully schooled faces around him even as he absorbed everything that the Weyrwoman had to say.

Finally, he did open his mouth, but it was not an outright agreement. "It sounds like a decent plan on the surface, Weyrwoman. But I have to ask - how well planned out is this endeavor? No disrespect intended, but I must ask before I can offer any kind of agreement. Going between times is no small joyride, and may dragons have killed themselves doing it. So far as we know, only the white dragons - few and far between as they are - can safely navigate and guide through time. I am not saying it can't be done, but without such a guide, do we really want to risk such a large percentage of our dragons to it?" He asked.

Indeed, once upon a time a singular Gold rider had led all but one of the Weyrs through time. But even what Christae was proposing was different from that. He highly doubted she intended to lead the journey herself, with the only adult Gold that Dark Moon boasted.

"On the whole, do we have any assurances that the young will make it there, much less back again, is what I want to know. Also, there is the problem of moving the weyrlings, some of whom are too young to fly. What is your proposal on that?" R'anl really wasn't trying to upstage the Weyrwoman, or make mockery of her, nothing like that. Instead, he was merely voicing his very real concerns, asking for answers and assurances that it really was a well thought out plan.

[Spirithawk]

OOC: We don't have Ruth or Ramoth in this alternate universe. We use them as references but there was only one white dragon actually in the weyr though that was from someone who wound up getting banned.

IC:

Christae listened with a grim expression to G'han's support and then R'anl's questions. Her expression gave the hint that she was mildly offended that he thought she would rush into this without thought.

"How well planned? I am perfectly aware that between, whether between times or places, is no joy ride. I feel my Queen's anguish quite acutely when any of dragonkind dies, or do you forget that the Queens can bespeak each other over long distances? Do you think that I would send the children of my Queen to certain doom? Do you think, if I had ANY other choice other than give up, that I would put a single one of my children in danger?"

There was just a hint of ice in her voice, but she also knew that it was her wingleaders place to make certain that she didn't do something that could potentially harm the weyr. She was the final say, or rather she and her Weyrleader, but they had some say. Christae would have to get used to having a weyrleader. R'khol didn't seem to be quite as concerned about the extent of her leadership as some other men might be, but she hadn't really seen him in a position where they disagreed. Her riders would follow her before they followed R'khol. It was not that she'd ever order them to, but if it ever came down to it, they would follow her. Kaith's eyes were whirling quicker than before in response to her rider's emotions and Christae took a steadying breath. Her voice lost its ice and was bluntly grim.

"One of the twin Queens will remain here to mature normally. Kaith and I have been practicing timing it. The silver will be the last one brought. I plan on transferring them over the period of a sevenday, more if need be, so that the dragons who are transferring them have a chance to rest. None of our Weyrlings can fly, so the adult dragons will fly for them. Some of our dragons have shown that they can keep their heads while timing it. If they have a Queen directing them, they are even more likely not to panic. Kaith can time fairly well. We all remember the loss of Hithorth and K'tar. None of us want a repeat of that."

"We won't send the whole crop of weyrlings at the same time. We will send either the oldest or the youngest first. That remains to be decided. Do we risk our youngest or the oldest, who will be matured faster than the younglings who just hatched? I would suggest sending the youngest first, though it is only because they have longer to go, not because they are any less dear to me than the older Weyrlings. We have 3 crops of Weyrlings right now. They are 4 and a half months, 2 and a half months, and 2 sevendays respectively."

[Dragon]

G'han listened in as R'anl questioned the weyrwoman about how fully thought out this was. It was really a valid question. One would want to make sure that before inacting a plan as risky as this, that it would be thought out and not half baked. But G'han had known Christae long enough, he felt. She didn't run the weyr singlehandedly with half baked schemes or plans that she hadn't questioned herself.

G'han had full confidence in Christae's ability to think things through and go with something solid. Sure, there would be risks involved. But the way G'han saw it, with the weyr under the proper strength necessary to defend the weyr and it's holds then that risk was a moot point. G'han's views, of course, were just his opinion. It wouldn't be a weyr if it's wingleaders weren't diverse and able to offer up different views and ideas on things. It's how things functioned better, having other people whose thoughts were different. It allowed you to see things outside of your own realm, or box.

Though when he looked back over to Christae, she didn't seem to appreciate such diversity as much as G'han did. Though it was understandable. The weyrwoman had already been under enough stress running the weyr on her own, without a weyrleader, for so long. Now they were facing thread and she had to adjust to running the weyr with a weyrleader. G'han had every bit of confidence, however, that she would adjust well to it in her own time.

But now Christae put forth a valid question. Did they send the youngest or the oldest back? Initially, G'han thought the oldest. They would have more experience with their dragons. But sending the youngest of the weyrlings back first would offer them more time to gain that experience the other weyrlings had. Christae seemed to be on the same wave length. Sending the youngest back would give them more time to train and they would be caught up and ready for the threat of thread.

But wait. There were three sets of weyrlings here. The youngest were actually only a couple sevendays. Should they send such young weyrlings back first? "If we have three sets, might I suggest we send the ones two and a half months first? My only concern would be to let the youngest of the three groups have a little more time before we send them off", G'han suggested.

To be totally honest, G'han would have felt a little better if they were atleast a month to a month and a half old. Time was short, but G'han thought maybe they could risk a little bit of time to mature naturally and let the youngest adapt to their new status as weyrlings.

[Spirithawk]

"I think you misunderstand me G'han. All of the weyrlings will be sent back, except for the younger of the twin Queens. They will be sent back to the same point in time, even if we send them on different days in our time, they will be in the same time in the past. Unless we decide to send the older ones back, let them be fully trained and brought back and then allow our riders to come back to our time to rest for a few days and then send back the next batch and do it that way. We have no time to waste, no time at all. The youngest wouldn't actually be doing anything other than riding piggy back on an older dragon but if we stagger them that way then they will be at least a sevenday older than they are when the rest go back."

Her gaze swept the rest of the riders. "What say you?" The rest of the weyr would be told, but Christae wanted the details ironed out before, and all potential questions answered before they told the rest of the people.