But I suppose there are women stupid enough to fall for your
ever-increasing land masses. Ssshish,’ and Salda turned from him in
disgust. Get him out of my sight. He offends me. And sullies the
spirit of this occasion.
He’s not so wounded he can’t travel,’ the medic said helpfully.
Travel?” Boris exclaimed, pretending dismay as he had glanced in the
direction of the Lower Cavern where the roasts were being served.
I could find him a place overnight, Maranis began hesitantly.
Just then four young weyrfolk led up the visitors’ horses which they had
recaptured.
Ah, here are your mounts, Boris,’ Zulaya said. Let us not keep you
from a safe journey home. You should easily make it back before dark.
Maranis, give Lavel enough fell is juice to see him to his hold.
Lads, help him mount. Come, K vin, we’re overlong congratulating the
happy parents.
She linked her right arm in K’vin’s and her left with Lady Salda and
hauled them along across the Bowl.
A very good Hatching, I’d say,’ she began, without a backward look at
the three dismissed holders. Nineteen greens, fifteen blues, ten
browns and seven bronzes. Good distribution, too. Good size to the
bronzes as well. I do believe every clutch produces dragons just
slightly larger than the last.” Dragons haven’t yet reached their
design size,’ K’vin said, answering her lead. I doubt we’ll see that
in our lifetime.” Surely they’re big enough already?” asked Salda, her
eyes wide.
Zulaya laughed. Larger by several hands than the first ones who fought
Thread, which will make it all that much easier for us this time round.
You know what to expect, too,’ Tashvi said, nodding approval.
Zulaya and K’vin exchanged brief glances. Hopefully, what they could
expect did not include unwelcome surprises.
Indeed we have the advantage of our ancestors in that,’ K’vin said
stoutly.
Zulaya gave his arm a little squeeze before she released him and strode
to the first table where the families of two new brown riders were
sitting. K’vin continued in with Salda and saw her and Tashvi settled
at the head table, where he and Zulaya would join them after they’d done
their obligatory rounds of the tables. Then, making a private bet with
himself, he started at the opposite end of the wide Cavern.
By the fourth stop, he had won his bet: news of the unusual Impression
of the last green dragon was already circulating.
Is it true,’ the holder mother of a bronze rider asked, that that girl
had to run away from her hold?” She, and the others at this table, were
clearly appalled at such a circumstance.
She got here in time, that’s what’s important,’ K’vin said, glossing
over that query.
What if she hadn’t come?” asked one of the adolescents, her expression
avid. Would the dragon have She stopped abruptly – as if she’d been
kicked under the table, K’vin thought, suppressing a grin.
Ah,’ he said, bridging the brief pause, but I’m sure you saw that
other lads crowded round, ready and willing. The dragonet would have
chosen one of them.” That was not exactly true. Which was why every
Weyr had more than sufficient candidates on the Ground during a
Hatching. Early on, the records mentioned five occasions when a
dragonet had not found a compatible personality. Its subsequent death
had upset the Weyr to the point where every effort was then made to
eliminate a second occurrence, including accepting the dragonet’s choice
from among spectators.
There were also cases where an egg did not hatch. In the early days,
when the technology had still been available, necropsies had been
performed to establish cause. In most of the recorded instances, there
had been obvious yolk problems, or the creature had been mis formed and
would not have survived Hatching. Three times, however, the cause of
death could not be established as the foetus had been perfect, with no
apparent deficiency or disability. The message was handed down to
dispose of such unhatched eggs between immediately: a duty performed on
such rare occasions by the Weyrleader and his bronze.
I saw her ride up, said the girl, delighted to recount this fact.