intended,’ Clisser said with droll satisfaction. Shall I wait for your
message?” No need for that, my friend, but thanks for offering.
This I will take pleasure in penning.” And Fort’s Lord Holder grinned.
And I’ll remember to keep a copy for the Archives.
By the way, wasn’t there some ancient way of making copies …
something that would transfer the writing to the next page under?”
Clisser bowed his head briefly in thought. Carbon copying, I think you
mean. We don’t have it, but Lady Salda might have some ideas.
We’ve got to figure a way to make multiple copies or else spend hours
copying.” He gave a heavy sigh of regret.
I’ll leave it to you then, Clisser,’ said Paulin. Thank you all. Now
get out here, the lot of you,’ and he grinned at the Benden leaders and
Kalvi, and enjoy the rest of the evening while I get on with this task.
Not that I won’t enjoy it in some respects,’ he added, picking up his
pen and examining the tip.
At that polite dismissal, they all filed out of the office.
Clisser thought that Issony looked disappointed at not being able to
recite his catalogue of complaints against Lord Chalkin; so he made sure
that Issony had as much of the good wine as he wanted.
Telgar Weyr lantine asked to be allowed out again on the next sunny day,
so he was in the Bowl when the travelling traders arrived.
The entire complement of the caverns flocked out to greet them.
lantine furiously sketched the various scenes around him: the big dusty
carts with their multiple teams of the heavy-duty ox-types which had
been bred for such work. They had been one of the last bio-engineering
feats from Wind Blossom, whose grandmother had done such notable work
creating the dragons of Pern.
lantine had seen traders come and go on their routes since childhood,
and fondly remembered the stellar occasions when the Benden trading
group had arrived at their rather remote sheep hold More specifically,
he recalled the taste of the boiled sweets, flavoured by the fruits
which grew so abundantly in Nerat, which the traders passed out by the
handful. Once, there’d been fresh citrus, a treat of unsurpassed
delight to himself and his siblings.
For a remote holding, having travellers drop by was almost as good as a
Gather. To lantine’s surprise, weyrfolk were equally delighted.
Despite the fact that they could usually find a dragon to convey them
wherever they wanted to go, the arrival of the traders was even better
than tithe trains.
(The tithe wagons were a different matter, since everyone had to pitch
in to store the produce given to the support of the Weyr.) And traders
brought the news of all the Holds and Halls along the way.
There were as many clusters of folks just talking, lantine noticed, as
examining goods in the stalls the Liliencamps set up. Tables and chairs
were brought out from the Lower Cavern; klah and the day’s fresh bread
and rolls were being served.
Leopol, always on hand for lantine, brought over a midmorning snack and
hunkered down to give the artist the latest news.
They’ve been setting up sheltered halts, he said between bits of his
own sweet roll, along the road to here. They won’t stop doing their
routes just because Thread’s coming. But they gotta prepare for it.
Half of what they got on those big wagons right now is materials for
safe havens. Course, they can use what caves there are, but no more
camping out in the open.
That’s going to cramp their style,’ and he grinned broadly.
But if ya gotta, ya gotta. See,’ and one jam-stained finger pointed to
a group of men and women seated with the two Weyrleaders.
They were all hunched over maps spread out on the table. They’re
checking the sites over so’s everyone here’ll know where they might be
if they’re caught out in a Fall.” Who trades through Bitra?” lantine
asked with considerable irony.
Leopol snorted. No-one in their right mind! Specially now.
Didja hear that Chalkin’s closed his borders to keep his own people in?
Didja know that Chalkin doesn’t believe Thread’s coming?” The boy’s eyes