Conclave [Weyrleaders/ BSW Victims/ Open]

[Lyrikitty]

Kisa miniscule figure paces restlessly from one side of the meeting hall to the other, sleeved arms folded under her breast. She wore leggings today, with boots that clicked softly with eah step she took. It had occured to her, to wonder why this was to happen here, in New Cove, but she was not one to question now, not when the Wraith could have killed nearly all the dragons in New Cove without batting an eye. Sure, the massive beast hadn't shown much agression, save for the few times when it was warranted, and a full sevenday had passed since B'ach and his Wraithqueen re-emerged from the seclusion of their Weyr, after who knoew how long.

The dark-haired woman sighed, seeking mental comfort from Sylvith as the Snow crooned softly. ~We may have to take our meeting to the shore, you know. So many riders o attend...~[/color] The dragons, naturally, would be unable to be inside, though they could listen just as easily through their riders, and voice their opinions if needed. Sylvith and Xyuith would be able to be closest, as the hall was attached to their weyr and the Snow was lounging in her couch, her head resting on her paws and the black tip of her forked tail sweeping the floor slowly, picking up on Kisa's nervous mood, and the overall tension of what could come to be.

Kisa nodded faintly in agreement with the Snow, though she was unsure who would appear today. The message had been sent out, for Weyrleaders, Weyrwomen, and fro anyone who'd been affected by, or who had informatrion pertaining to, the recent trouble caused by Black Sands Weyr. "I know, Silly, I know. We'll try to stay in here though, for as long as we can." She looked at the chairs, for the first time unsure where she would sit. No longer could she be a figurehead, a Junior Weyrwoman who agreed to act in place of the Senior Queen until another was available, another more suitable dragon particularly. Sylvith was sweet, and she was intelligent, but she also was playful, and unwittingly prone to insulting other kings or queen with her antics. Now they could not even do this, not in full. ~You will sit where you always sit. You will be proud of who you are, for it has not chaged. You are my bonded, and a queenrider, even if I am no longer a clutching queen. Now hurry up and take your place. The watchdragon says the frst has arrived.~[/color] With a bracing breath, Kisa settled into her seat near the head of the table, next to where N'nika would sit as the Weyrleader of New Cove.

Just in time as well, for the first arrival appeared in the sky, and a despondent moan ran through the Weyr at seeing the dragon's color. It was the Eden Magma, Honuth, who had spiraled downward in her mindset and her rage in the short tie since she was attacked. Her great wings, nearly twice her length, flared wide as her maw parted to let a gush of flame spew forth. Those who knew the breed, or this particular Magma, would know that the color in general was able to chew firestone without worry, and some were able to flame without even that. Honuth was the later, and as if to mock the world and let them know who she was she flamed as she spiraled down, landing in the weyrbowl and hissing at any beast who came too near. Her long spines rattled against eachother, and Xai, perched precariously between two of them in the saddle, shook her head. Hush now you wherry-headed fool. You may be bad, but have you forgotten they have an Amber here?

~Bah! An amber? I could take him. I'll spear his skull on my back and then rip it from his meager neck! I'll roast his brains and feed it to a wher.~ The Magma had a reputation for her temper, but this was a new extent. ~And anyone who dares get in my way will pay dearly for it! You too, little weakling. You live only by my good grace and limited mercy.~[/color]

Xai snorted, and unstrapped herself, swinging a leg over the spined neck and kicking away from the dragon. She couldn't very well slide down the side of the beast as many did, for the Magma's bodu was covered in minuscule scales, which if rubbed the wrong way would slice nearly anything and shred it. Xai had suffered this many a time. She didn't make a graceful landing, but rather rolled when she hit the ground, using that to get to her feet, the idea that this way of dismounting was not new to her made clear. The woman wore a tunic and leggings, with her riding boots, her arms showing a fair number of scars earned from being Impressed to a Magma. "Off, you proddy dimglow. Take a dip in the water and see if that will dull your temper some." Xai waved a hand at the Magma and turned, looking for someone to direct her to New Copve's meeting hall.

She guessed that the young man standing at a distance was it, drive nback by the Magma's display. "You, boy! Where to?" She was just as prickly as her dragon, though not so quick to anger. The lad crept closer and pointed, giving a quick list of directions. Xai nodded and stalked off, as Honuth snorted indignantly and snapped at her rider's back. She wouldn't actually hurt Xai, at least not to the point where it was dangerous. She needed the rider too much, and while it was immense fun to torment her, death or crippling wounds were unacceptable. She snapped her wings up and jumped, rowing them several times and gaining altitude to glide off to the beach and drop into the water.

She hadn't thought to ask Dharth if he would be making an appearance, with her luck he would. The Magma was in no condition to be left unsupervized, and while she had been kept away from exposure to a large majority, she was getting very close to a dangerous level of withdrawls inflicted by the single exposure to Riosian.

Only moments later appeared the second queen, and the first one to be attacked n the long list. The small Gold appeared overheard, offering a small bugle to announce herself. Far less flashy than the Magma had been, but thenshe was not like the other queen, native to her Weyr. Daisyth landed lightly, delicately, and crouched low to the ground as Llaina slide off, aided by a bent leg and the same young man from Xai's arrival.

The Goldrider wore flowing skirts, and while the near-sickly pallor that had tainted both her own and Daisyth's appearance was fading, dark circles showed heavily under the woman's eyes, and the Gold was dull, her movements lacking heart. "Thank you, if you would direct me to the Meeting Hall, I would be grateful." Once more, the lad pointed and rattled off the directions, which halls to turn at, and let the Goldrider know hat others were waiting along the way, in the even she got lost. "No, I think I've got it." She gave a weary smile, and the lad backed away. He felt sorry, for this woman, neither she nor beast looked well. My love, be careful. you do not have to go with the others if you do not wish. Perhaps you could go find our beach? The Gold dipped her head, pressing her muzzle lovingly aginast Llaina's torso and exhaling slowly.

~I think I will do that, MineOwn... I have no desire for looking at another Magma... Medeath is more than enough for me.~[/color] The gold turned and padded a few steps, before crouching and shoving off the ground, working her wings to carry herself the short distance, to a more secluded part of the beach she had visited several times before.

Llaina watched the Gold go, and only when the queen sank from sight did the woman turn and start her way to the Meeting Hall, arriving to find several already there, and Xai seated comfortably, her back against a wall and facing the door, Kisa, sitting in her own chair and looking oddly perfect for the spot, her lovely features serious, and tainted with sadness. Her pain was not written so clearly as Llaina's, but it was not hidden so stubbornly as Xai's.


((Will be bringing in the rest shortly, but I'll start with the first few and wait for a few posts))

[Epic Squid of Legend]

N'nika still had leftover rage from that night not too long ago, and it flashed across her face every now and then as she paced along her end of the table. Her fists were clenched, as was her jaw. so tightly, in fact, that the sinews on her neck and arms were bulging out. She was not just mad, oh no, but infuriated. She would glance through the door into the dragon's weyr every now and then, reaching out to touch Xyurith's mind to see how he was doing... and it wasn't anywhere near as good as N'nika was doing.

Xyurith was seated apon his couch, staring out past the ledge with bright red eyes that swirled quickly about the multi-faceted eye. His head was weaving apon his neck as he watched a magma appear over his Weyr. He bristled for a moment, before N'nika reached out and soothed him with a quick 'not her fault' thought. His weaving hesitated a mere moment before resuming at the same pace. His long deadly claws dug into the rock as the Gold appeared, and he all but launched himself out the weyr before N'nika stopped him as he rose to do so. Not her fault, either. She was attacked as well, do not hate them for what Black Sands did.
Xyurith settled back down, not even looking at Silvyth, whom he was still slightly miffed at for eating the firestone. He was almost ignoring her as he stared out the opening to the weyr, growling deeply.

N'nika continued her pacing right up until Xai entered the room. The woman looked at the Magmarider briefly before turning sharply to take her seat at the head of the table, next to Kisa. She busied herself examining her hands, as if she were extremely interested in them. Her gloves were in place, having not been removed at all since that day a sevenday ago. Her blue-green eyes shifted from one hand to the other before centering squarely on the wall opposite her, on the other side of the room. They only moved when the Goldrider entered the room, watching her for a bit before once again riveting on the wall once more.

[Desert]

The next to appear in the sky over New Cove was a dragon nearly equal in size to Xyurith. The black behemoth roared stridently, both in a greeting to the dragons assembled and to identify himself. Dharth had expected at least a few of the dragons in the gathering to be agitated enough to be tempted to attack an arriving dragon -- especially given the temperaments of some of the gathered dragons -- and by the look of Xyurith, he was right again.

Honuth, if you make an attempt on Xyurith's life, if you succeed you will have to deal with myself, Sylvith, and whomever else takes offense to your actions. So settle down. We will need your cooperation to figure out what is to be done,[/i][/color] he warned the magma darkly. It was unusual for the big black to want to cooperate with another, much less another from outside Eden, but he was too smart to let rage blind his actions. Taking on an entire Weyr was a different story entirely from just a few dragons -- Dharth had no doubt that the ones who visited Eden did so on orders -- and he knew it would take more than he had at his disposal to do much.

As Dharth touched down near where Honuth was, K'dran swung off of the huge black's back. He got the directions from Dharth, who plucked them from the waiting (and very nervous) boy's head, so when the lad approached with mouth open, K'dran waved him off. This should prove to be interesting, he thought to himself. Dharth only snorted scornfully, which sent a cloud of gritty sand skittering away from him. The big black had arranged himself to take advantage of the full glare of the Southern sun during the peak of summer and had his huge wings spread out to soak up the lifegiving rays. Neither of the blackpair had believed for a second that Eden was the only one hit, and the sight of the dragons and riders at this conclave cemented that idea into certainty.

K'dran entered the hall and nodded at those already gathered. "Our other Wingleader Y'zem is indisposed, so Xai and I are the only ones here for Eden." In fact, Bulgolth was too injured to between, due to a rather nasty-looking burn on his body. It was earned when the stocky tempest, in agreement with his rider, expressed the desire not to get involved with the whole fiasco. The tempestpair were good leaders and fine fighters, but Y'zem had a streak of insular cowardice in him that made him unwilling to stick his neck into a Pern-wide dilemma like this. Needless to say, that earned the pair of them a taste of Dharth's temper, and the big black made sure that his fellow Wingleader was unable to show his faces at the conclave. K'dran took his own seat next to Xai and crossed his arms over his chest, wearing his typical expression of bored indifference.

Two more dragons burst into being simultaneously, and the black hunks of stone hanging from cords around their necks marked them as dragons born of Solainoti.

His lightning-marked wings flailing at the air, Xanntorith backwinged to a landing on the soft sand. Muuth followed suit, neck-frill flared for added stability for the landing, and both dragons crouched for their riders to dismount. Xann looked around himself at the gathered dragons and heaved a sigh. I see Eden and Crystal Cavern here so far,[/color] he commented. The magma and amber both seem quite miffed, but magmas and ambers are like that no matter what.[/color] N'yx shook his head. "We'll have to ask, Xann, and wait to see," he told the tempest. It would take a while for the effects of a Riosian addiction to become clear enough to make a confident diagnosis.

Sh'kith stroked his dragon's head in a parting caress before he followed the Weyrleader into the Weyrhall. Both men saluted respectfully to the others. "Vsasi will be here promptly with Isionyth, I believe," N'yx observed, unable to keep a hint of wry humor from his tone. With so many prickly draconic and human personalities in this room, all with a grievance to air, things would be bound to get interesting very quickly. Solainoti's Weyrlingmaster suppressed a grin at N'yx's statement and took his place at the tempestrider's side, leaving the other seat for Vsasi.

As Xann settled down next to Muuth, he glanced over his shoulder at the other dragons, finally fixing his eye on Dharth. Where is Bulgolth?[/color] he inquired suspiciously of the black. Though Bulgolth was Eden-Hatched, he was still a tempest, and as such Xann considered it his business when the tempestrider Wingleader was absent when he had every right to be there.

Recovering from an unfortunate injury,[/i][/color] Dharth explained, his mental voice dripping innocent concern for his fellow king. His right wing was badly burned by a stray emission.[/color] Xann blinked as he considered the image that Dharth showed him, of Bulgolth with a badly seared wing. The clever half-truth convinced Xanntorith, who asked the black to convey his condolences to Bulgolth before turning his attention back to the matter at hand.
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[Bacchante]

A noise sounded in the air above the Weyr. Quiet at first, but then suddenly growing to a thunderous detonation as the Wraithqueen Zenith tore her way out of Between and into the sky of Pern. She began to glide down slowly, her massive wings blotting out the sun overhead. The dragon and her rider had left early that morning to check up on things back at Skrull, particularly one thing that B’ach was going to tell the others of today. The people and dragons didn’t panic, having seen her come and go many times, but still felt uneasy at the presence of such a behemoth. She headed toward the other dragons with a relatively quiet bugle to announce her arrival. Given that she was the largest living thing in all of Pern, that bugle was just as loud as the Magma’s had been. Nonetheless, she very carefully floated downward with a grace seemingly unnatural to her bulk, and landed near the other dragons on the very edge of the Weyrbowl, curving around it.

Zenith’s rider, B’ach, slid off his place at the base of her neck, landing hard on his padded boots. It was a fair height, but the smoothness of the bone meant he was not shredded by the scales below. In the sun the Wraith was quite a sight, the sun reflecting off her white armour and illuminating the surrounding area. He’d had it polished, and new designs were carved into it. A pattern of dragons, many dragons, fighting Thread in the sky. The greeter boy was nowhere to be seen, and nobody could blame him. B’ach had his horned helm in place which gave him a certain demonic look. He removed it and placed it under his arm before heading for the meeting hall.

B’ach walked into the hall with a smirk on his face. He wore his father’s riding gear, with plates of white bone sewn on to them, and a pair of black leather gloves with white fingertips which were pointed to give an added weapon, just in case. A thick purple cape swirled from his back and his bone helm was placed on the table. He eyed up the seven inside the room already. “Perhaps not enough to start, but I will introduce myself nonetheless. I am B’ach, Weyrleader undisputed of Skrull and the one who requested this meeting be called. Outside is Zenith, Wraithqueen and my partner of twenty turns.” Despite the long scar across his face it was obvious that B’ach was only in his twenties, which begged the question of exactly how long they been together.

He removed his cape and draped it over the chair he had chosen, the one furthest away from all the others. He left his gloves off, so he would have an excuse not to shake hands. Then the Weyrleader walked around the table to Kisa, the only one he really knew, and held out his arm to greet her as he had done before. He did not do so with the other woman, as they had not really spoken in an in-depth manner. He followed the curve of the table along his way, examining each person with a cursory glance. Then when he was done he stood behind his seat once more. “I must apologize for not greeting you, but Kisa is the only one who I have properly met. In any case, now is the time for introductions. Please give me your names, and tell me how Black Sands hurt your Weyr.”

Outside, Zenith was examining the other dragons. Again there were none as large as her, which was depressing. She had hoped to find someone similar to her; a forlorn hope apparently. In any case, she could at least greet these ones in a cordial manner. -Greetings, I am Zenith, Wraithqueen of Skrull. Who do I have the pleasure of greeting?- She addressed this to all the other dragons, not knowing how... twitchy some of them were as of now.

[Lyrikitty]

Honuth hissed irately at Dharth, having little desire to listen to his babble and threats. She was far from a civilized dragon at her best, and things seemed only to be going downhill. Before she could offer him a choice response, the sun was blotted out, and a dragon who was, by far the largest beast she'd ever had the ispleasure of laying eyes on, circled overhead before settling herself down and letting her rider dismount.

Insulted by this, for whatever reasoning was possible to glean from the Magma's disturbed mind, Honuth bellowed and snapped her teeth in the air, rattling her spines in what would be an impressive display of agression, were not the behemoth so much larger, and protected by a thick coat of armour to boot.

Seeing clearly the uselessness of her attitude, she shot a jet of hazey smoke from her muzzle, glaring at the beast when it opened up to greet the dragons present. Well, if the beast knew not who she spoke to, did not she deserve a proper answer? A wry smile curved the Magma's lips, and she turned herself, spines softly clicking against eachother as her sinews coiled. Pleasure is a relative term, for I see no reason this should be a pleasurable meeting, all circumstances considered. What so large and bumbling a beast as you is doing here I know not, and care not, oh great Wraithqueen Zenith.[/color] The Magma spat the words as if they held a disgusting taste, happily ridding herself of them with malicious glee. She wanted a fight it seemed, and she'd been told off of Xyurith. Well, this monster of a dragon should be plenty entertainment, no?

The Wraith easily outsized Xyurith and Dharth, so by all means, the Magma was thrilled with the possibilities. Honuth, don't, I mean DO NOT start ANYTHING with anyone. I don't care what mood you're in you foul mouthed, single-minded trundlebug. Xai had naturally been listening in on what the Magma said, and caught the flow of thoughts which would most surely resultin physical harm to the Magma, and therefore an even more volatile dragon to deal with. And what do you care you slithering tunnelsnake? Call yourself a rider do you? Bah, were it not for my need of you I'd show you what I thought of you.[/color] Xai snorted and chose to ignore the rest of the dragon's rambling. Honuth could be creative in her insults when she so chose, but as it were, the rider of the Wraith, who Honuth was so keen to insult, arrived and took stock.

As a majoity of those who she assumed would assemble arrived, Kisa looked about, wishing that N'nika would keep her hands still for a little bit. She was sure the woman was still upset with her, otherwise there would be more familiarity between them, and Kisa wanted badly now for the comfort of even an assuring look, to remind her that life was not going to end, and that things would turn out alright.

When B'ach approached, she glanced at the gloves he wore, and when he neared hre, she correctly assumed what he was going to do, and she rose to preform her part of the greeting traditional to his Weyr. "As most assembled know, I am Kisa, rider to the Snow Sylvith. Our Weyr was struck, and my Snow tricked into chewing firestone. We fear for the clutch she carries." Kisa snuck a glance at N'nika again, wondering if perhaps she would get some reaction from her, anything to show some sort of emotion, hopefully forgiveness.

Xai snorted and brushed a clump of hair out of her eyes, finding herself looking at those assembled, and considering most lucky. Firestone would have been a blessing, compared to what she had on her hands. "I'm not sure what they did to Honuth. Wraithrider, I'll apologize on her behalf now. Tell your dragon the Magma is not in the... Sanest of minds as of late." She chuckled and shrugged, looking at the forlorn faces of those who had their dragons sterilized.

Llaina remained silent, in her seat, as she looked from one face to another. Was it not clear enough whathad been done to a majority of those gathered, that it had to be asked? She also had a bit of dislike for the Magmarider Xai, and felt uncomfortable in the presence of the woman, who made so little fuss over her partner. That simply was not right, she should be distraught. But then again, Llaina was no stranger to Magma's, and from the sounds of it, Honuth was in an especially ill mood. She almost couldn't blame Xai for the near-mocking tone and words.

At that moment, an Emerald appeared in the skies. for his color he was a runt, however, he was no resident of Crystal Caverns, his native Weyr, but a transfer out, living in Talune. He came on behalf of the Weyrleader, for after the incident with meeting Sylvith and Xyurith, it was doubtful things would go smoothly were the Onyx weyrking to make an appearance here.

He glided down, circling and finding a raised patch of pale ground to land on, or what he though was pale ground. As his paws made contact with solid mass, which felt nothing like soil or rock, the Emerald hauled himself into the air again, using his better eye to trace the line from where he was, to discover this mass to be a dragon.

Dumbfounded, he stared for several moments, before F'st tapped his hide to remind him to land. Hastily the Emerald settled to the ground, his paws testing delicately first, and crouched so his rider could dismount. My... My apologies, I realized not that you... That I...[/color]

While the emerald tried to make sense of himself, F'st made his way to the greeter, got his directions, and headed for the Meeting Hall, and those already gathered. He entered just in time to catch Xai's comment on the sanity of her dragon, which he personally doubted was ever in good state. He dippe dhis head in apology, and leaned against the wall. "Sorry, if I'm late. I come as a representative of Talune, in place of the Weyrleader D'ron who sends his apologies for not comming in person."

Um...[/color] Typhith was still trying to figure out how to apologize for landing on the dragon.

Honuth tilted her head back and let a rumble of laughter ripple forth from her chest as the Emerald landed on the Wraith, her tail lashing violently as she considered trying to spear something on 'accident' with it. Another bumbling fool! Why look at you, a runt to boot stupidity. no wonder they kicked the likes of you out of the Weyr.[/color]

F'st turned his gaze on Xai, and narrowed his slate eyes. "Xai, tell that beast of your's to shut her mouth, or find something productive to do with it. I don't care what excuse you try to give, just do it." Typhith had been insulted highly, but F'st rarely took insult to his dragon well, and that he remained where he leaned was imprssive for him, especially with the overall stress everyone had been under lately.

[Dragonmage]

The smallest dragon of all those that had gathered at New Cove Weyr popped out of Between. Mosyth felt very small and weak, even more than usual, as she looked down at all the queens and kings already on the beach. She was only a Spring after all and would not have been here, even though Her Nocia was the Crystal Caverns Weyrlingmaster, if she had not heard the bugles of the Black Sands dragons as they left the Weyr, their evil work done.

Mosyth landed neatly on a patch of sand by the most gigantic dragon she had ever seen. In fact, the Spring had had to take three looks at the huge white beast as she circled for a landing place before she was convinced that it was a dragon and not a hump of sand or an oddly shaped rock. If ever a dragon's eyes bugged out of its head, Mosyth's did. How could something that big even fly? But fly it must. It could not have been native to New Cove, or certainly some gossip would have reached Crystal Caverns.

Nocia quickly dismounted and looked around for the meeting hall. She sighed as she found the meeting hall and hurried in. Shard it all, she was late. Way to make a good impression, she thought sarcastically at herself. Well, the dragon was among the wherries now.

"I apologize for my lateness. I am Weyrlingmaster Nocia of Crystal Caverns Weyr and Spring Mosyth." After saying this, she took a seat near Llaina.

Mosyth, for her part, was so very curious about the huge white dragon, that she could not help herself. She turned to the strange beast.

If you don't mind me asking, what exactly are you? You're the biggest dragon I've ever seen in my entire life! Where did you come from?

[Epic Squid of Legend]

Xyurith only moved once as the Wraithqueen appeared in the sky, blotting out the sun with her sheer mass. He did not take offense to such a large creature, like the Onyx had, but was curious at the Queen. Sure, he was not as large, but was the closest thing to her size at New Cove.
He watched silently as the Queen landed with much grace for such a huge beast and then introduced herself. He growled lowly as Honuth went about her usual ways, and was almost amused as an Emeral just about landed on the Wraithqueen.

He looked over his shoulder at Silvyth, blinking slowly at her before turning back around and dropping of the edge of the ledge. He quickly snapped open his wings, gliding the short distance down to the sandy cove. He landed with a thud and a spray of sand, his massive spiraling horns gleaming in the bright southern sun. He shot a look at Honuth, his teeth bared in a warning before looking at Zenith, ~Hello, Queen Zenith, and welcome to New Cove Weyr.~ he said in a voice that only slightly masked his great sadness at the past events.

N'nika listened at B'ach started the meeting, listened as Kisa spoke. Her hands stilled as she watched each person rise in turn and speak of their misfortunes, of the attacks on their Weyrs. She was not alone in her misery, and knew she really shouldn't be taking it out on Kisa by ignoring her, as it wasn't her fault. It wasn't even Silvyth's fault, N'nika was sure that the Snow would have been able to outsmart a simple Wildfire... she was certain that there was more happening than was obvious.
As Kisa sat back down, N'nika reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently. It was a sign of forgiveness to come, though feelings of remorse and the like would stick to N'nika's phyche for quite some time. She looked over at her weyrmate, a small smile flashing over her face very quickly before the Springrider stood and N'nika looked away again. What that Wildfire had done to all the Weyrs present was a massive blow to Pern, with Thread only turns away.

[Desert]

A blast of super-cold air washed over the group of lounging dragons, heralding the arrival of another latecomer. Dharth glanced up, expecting to see the sooty wings of a brimstone, perhaps a bronze Wingleader from one of the other Weyrs: what he hadn't expected was the massive, armor-plated white behemoth bearing down on them with a wingspan that was nearly twice his own. Shock made the big black surged halfway to his feet, eyes wide and filling with streaks of an alarmed yellow and wing mantled, jaws gaped open so that a cloud of hazy smoke could trickle out on the wings of his venomous hiss.

Dharth narrowed his eyes suspiciously as the wraithqueen bugled her greeting, and landed almost daintily nearby to let her rider dismount. He studied the human -- pitifully small next to his mount -- minutely, until B'ach walked out of sight, then transferred his attention back to Zenith. She was easily the biggest dragon he'd ever seen -- a good half dragonlength longer than Dharth himself or Xyurith, and from the looks of it she could hold her own in a fight, if the armor she bore was as thick as he wagered it was. And heavy, too, which made her humongous wingspan more logical.

Just from appearance alone, Dharth would have considered her to be a menace, and immediately been on his guard. But the massive wraith made no move toward any of the others, only scrutinizing them, just as they were studying her. Since she behaved non-threateningly for now and her mind-voice, when her greeting touched his thoughts, was peaceful enough, the big black calmed himself enough to settle back down onto his belly in the sand. He still watched Zenith warily out of one eye, but he was no longer waiting for her to lunge at them.

He settled just in time for Honuth to start her usual act. Dharth's tail began to twitch and flop irritably as more red stole over his eyes like a thick scarlet cloud until the entire ellipse was stained the color of blood. A growl bubbled up from his chest as he turned his head to glare at the magma. Honuth, that wraith is over twice your size and heavily armored. Neither your spikes nor your flame would even make that one blink, and you would get no pity or assistance from anyone if you caused her to break your sorry neck. So stop provoking a confrontation you have no hope of winning and keep a civil tongue in your head. We do not necessarily require the testimony directly from Xai, so there is no real reason for me to allow you to remain here. Behave yourself while you are on foreign ground.[/color]

Then he turned his head back toward Zenith and dipped it in a polite nod. Had yon magma any couth she would have introduced herself as Honuth, ridden by Xai. I am Dharth, a black king belonging to Eden Weyr in the East. My rider is K'dran, a Wingleader.[/b][/color]

K'dran himself had been warned by Dharth beforehand, so he didn't look particularly surprised when B'ach walked into the room. When it came to be his turn to introduce himself, the lanky blackrider didn't bother to stand. "Wingleader K'dran of black Dharth," he said, executing a stiff half-bow in the wraithrider's direction from his seat. "And I'm really only here so that Dharth can babysit Honuth and keep her from eating anyone." His lips twitched into an ironic smirk. From outside, Dharth chipped into the riders' conversation, projecting his words into every human mind present: Babysit is an exceedingly apt term.[/b][/color]

Of the humans in the room who had never before heard Dharth's voice (most of whom were probably unused to hearing any draconic voice besides their own), at least one shuddered. Sh'kith had only ever had Muuth's husky feminine bass in his mind, so it was quite a shock. N'yx, unflappable as ever, simply quirked an eyebrow at K'dran, who grimaces apologetically. Xann took some offense to the black's antics -- he had no room to talk about couth when he went around frightening others' Weyrlingmasters -- but the big tempest was still too wary of Zenith to give Dharth a proper piece of his mind.

Then, Solainoti's Weyrleader stood smoothly to fill the slightly awkward pause after Dharth's quip. "I am N'yx, Weyrleader of Solainoti, rider of tempest Xanntorith. This is my Weyrlingmaster Sh'kith, who rides chrome Muuth."

Sh'kith stood so that he could bow respectfully to the other riders. "Muuth was the victim in Solainoti, though chromes are not queens. It wasn't that she was given a firestone-like mineral that we're worried about, since both of our native female mutants can flame and clutch, so we come more with a warning than a complaint." The stocky Weyrlingmaster wore a grim expression as he sat to give N'yx the floor.

N'yx took a deep breath and leaned forward to splay both hands on the table. "Forgive me if it sounds like this has nothing to do with any of you, but by the time I finish, it will. Now, I'm sure that none of you know much of anything about Riosian, if you've even heard of it, so allow me to explain briefly. It is a very hard type of firestone that is found only in the mountain range around Solainoti. When chewed by dragons it has a number of side effects, of which I'll only explain one because the rest aren't relevant right now. Riosian is highly addictive: the slightest taste of it is enough to trigger the addiction, and it is a severe one. Withdrawal symptoms are torturous to the dragon, and very violent." The Weyrleader's face was drawn with the recent stress of wondering where the missing Riosian had gone, and he looked at each of the faces around him gravely. "Shortly after Solainoti was founded, every gold, bronze, brown, blue and green we had became addicted, and it wasn't long before we were near collapse because of it. A remedy for the withdrawal symptoms was found, though every dragon in the Weyr still has the addiction, which is why every dragon born in Solainoti has a Birthstone." N'yx sighed slightly. "You can see why we keep that part of our history to ourselves. Our Riosian stores have been a closely guarded secret for the past fifteen or so Turns, until Black Sands invaded. They tricked Muuth into showing them where the Riosian was stored. I don't know what they did with that Riosian or exactly how much was stolen; all I know is that however bad it was in Solainoti during the Weyr-wide addiction, if it got into another Weyr the chaos would be increase several fold." Once more N'yx's gaze skimmed over every face, lingering slightly on the faces of K'dran, Xai and N'nika.

Outside, Xann and Muuth traded wary looks. Both having been of the first Riosian clutch of Solainoti, they had seen the tail end of the addiction, and both their riders had seen it at its peak; N'yx more so, as Sh'kith had been at the Harper Hall for several Turns. The images they were seeing in their riders' minds as both men recalled the affliction were disturbing, especially if they imagined the same thing twisting the minds of some of the dragons around them. Muuth hunched down further into the sand, tail curled tightly about herself, and closed her eyes against the horrific imaginings. Xann looked about himself with wary suspicion, staring hard at each dragon, wondering which, if any, had been given Riosian.
[/font][/size]

[Bacchante]

((Note, the event mentioned later occurred with Mitten's full knowledge and permission. You'll know which one.))

Outside the meeting hall Zenith let out a low rumble. She had watched impassively as the large red dragon called Honuth subsequently insulted her, threatened her, was admonished for it, and then threatened a silly little green dragon that landed on her back. All the creatures here were strange, so many colours. Best to answer the black and red first. –You hear that rumble Honuth? That is me. Laughing. At you. You see, the black is right. Your flames would be nothing to me. Your spines are useless. And even without flames, I can still do this:- Zen spat a spray of acid on to the stone below her head. The rock began to bubble and wisps of smoke floated into the air. Her next sentence she projected to all the humans in the meeting hall as well as the dragons nearby. –Besides, I may be large but I am certainly more intelligent then you, the proof being that unlike you I was not outsmarted by the Wildfire when she came to me!-

Inside the meeting hall, B’ach sighed. The others had told him interesting and useful information. Multiple sterilizations, theft, and attempted murder on the part of Katya. More than enough justification. Hopefully. “Well, I had hoped to say it with a bit more tact then that. But yes, the Wildfire Veseleth did come to Zenith as well. Zen told me that she was roused from her nap on the beach by the dragon, on what was presumably the morning after the last attack. She tried to flatter Zen but thanks to a description of the Wildfire I… acquired, my Wraith realised who she was and caught her.” The Weyrleader grimaced, as this next bit would be hard to explain. “I have good news and bad news. The bad is that Zenith released the dragon to carry a message to the leader of Black Sands. The good is that she released Veseleth after shredding one of her sides and wounding her rider. So some measure of vengeance has been served personally.”

Outside, Zen’s eyes reverted from the swirling red they were to a calm blue colour. Only the close observer would note he flecks of anger. That aside she began to address the others. First the emerald coloured dragon that landed on her. –Do not worry little one, I felt nothing due to my bone. Uh, armour. And to you, my little bubbly friend, I am what is called a Wraith. I am slightly large for my breed. My sire was, I understand, perhaps twice MineRider’s height smaller than me. So far as I know, the biggest dragon in my Weyr after me is maybe half my size, roughly speaking. That Amber over there is the largest dragon I have ever seen.- She jerked her head in the direction of Xyurith. –As for where I come from, my rider is ruler of Skrull. It is an island, not unlike Black Sands. Fortunately, we are not all insane like the dragons at that Weyr. Amber, I thank you for the greeting. It is nice to finally meet one more on par with me. The only other was the Amber who chased Katya the Silverrider here, and he was no fun. He didn’t even want to fight me. I wonder why…- She tilted her head in mock-seriousness, but her swirling eyes belied her amusement.

Inside, B’ach made to deliver his more important news. “I can alleviate some of your worries, possibly. Firstly I say this: I made sure to take full responsibility for my actions. It is important that you know that before I tell you what they were. I also must explain a few… nuances of my Weyr.” He reached into his cloak, drawing two rolls of parchment from a sewn pocket on the inside. He then held up a picture of a shade, uncoloured. “This is a Shade, one of the three mutations of my Weyr. They have unique abilities, including the power to make themselves totally unnoticeable to anyone unless they are particularly observant. Certain, sharper eyed, breeds of dragon can see them. You can also see them if it is pointed out to you by another person, but the moment you blink or look away they will vanish again. This makes them impossible to see, hear, or smell. More accurately, you do see hear and smell them; you simply don’t notice that you do.”

He lowered this picture and placed it on the table, sliding it towards the Weyrleaders for examination. “Like all of our mutations, it possesses the characteristic armour plating which in its case is purple in colour, matching the scales below. Its other ability is that, through a variety of bladders and such, it can hold a tremendous amount of the firestone gasses; this enables a much more sustainable flame. They use the same amount of the stone but don’t have to eat it as frequently. They were once bronzes.” That aside he removed another picture and held it up. This time it was a peculiar dragon with massive muscles throughout, and wings smaller than its length. “This is a Ghost. It has no flame ability, and no flight. Instead it is immensely strong and can spray a stream of acid as a weapon. An ability Zenith possesses, as a Wraith.” He slid this picture to the others as well.

Then he removed a final one from his cloak. “This is a map acquired recently of Black Sands and the surrounding areas. As you can see, one section is circled in red. This is one of their holds. At midnight last night twenty dragons, four Shades and sixteen Ghosts, descended upon the village. The Shades were full of firestone, and the Ghostriders carried salt. The attack lasted only ten minutes, with no casualties on the part of my riders. As of now, every person in that hold including the Lord Holder is dead. The buildings have been burned or melted. The boats and fields torched. To top it off, the croplands were sprayed liberally with acid and then salted. Nothing will grow in the immediate area of formerly fertile soil for quite some time. I called this meaning under the pretension of arranging a course of action and for that I apologise. I have already acted.”

B’ach flexed his hands slightly, a barely noticeable gesture. At the small of his back, hidden by the contours of his clothing, was a longer than normal belt knife. He might just need it. Outside, Zenith suddenly stiffened. She flexed her muscles under the armour plates, and opened her claws as innocently as possible to lay them on the ground, palms open. “The real reason I called this was to set an example, and to ask for assistance. I have the necessary skill sets in my Weyr to wage war upon Black Sands. But I don’t have sustainability. I ask for help from all of you. Lend Skrull resources, give us Candidates. Help us find a rider for our King. Once, many turns before the Plague and the time of decline, Skrull protected the people of Pern from both Thread and from the very Weyrs which fought for them. We kept the peace. Black Sands threatens us all, more than that! They threaten all life on Pern!” He slammed his hands on the table, the points of his gloves digging in to it.

“They have Miserys. They have Illusions. They have lies and trickery. We have six Weyrs of dragons. Six! Do they have a Misery for every dragon in Pern? Do they have creatures large enough to stand up to Ambers or a Wraith? Why have we let them get away with this!” B’ach waved his hand in the direction of the Weyrbowl, where the tormented dragons lay. His expression was intense, his eyes fierce, his voice filled with rage and sadness; although at whom this was directed was hard to discern. "Our records say that once Skrull ruled Pern with an iron fist, an army of dragons. Once we crushed all in our path, all those who threatened the peace we imposed!" His jaw was clenched, and the Weyrleader glared at the gathered people in a way that accented his scar so that it made his face seem ugly. His face softened as rapdily as it had hardened, gaining a melancholy tone to it.

"Never again. No one Weyr should have that power. No one person is incorruptible. It takes all of us to keep our world safe. They struck first, I returned fire. So far as they know, my Weyr is the only one who stands against them. I offer a path. Apparent neutrality. Protection. Safety. What do you say?” He spread his arms and reached behind his back. He removed his blade from his belt slowly, sheath and all, placing it n the table so he could slide it away from him. Then B’ach removed his gloves with the razor points and tossed them to land on his knife. Finally, he held his palms open, his arms wide.

Outside, Zenith closed her claws and laid her head down, unmoving. She closed her eyes and her pulse, detectable by any dragon, slowed to a near-stopped pace. Her mind was fine however, and spoke to the other dragons. -My rider is making a point, and has asked me to make myself helpless. I would appreciate it if you held me down. Unfortunately can't move for the next few hours.- She would have glared at Honuth, but couldn't move and so tried to convey the sensation of glaring. -Whatever plot you may or may not be concocting: Don't. I will get out of this state eventually. I don't want to have to slaughter anybody.- She'd have to rely on the Black Dharth to keep her in line.

Within, B'ach began to plead. He did not whine, nor wheedle. His voice was clear and strong even if his positon wasn't. “I bargain unarmed. I ask for help with no blade in my hand. My dragon hibernates, and will take an hour or more to rouse again. I have no leverage, no way of contacting my Weyr. I am alone and helpless before you, upon your mercy. I ask for forgiveness for my atrocities or condoning of my actions; depending on how you see it.” He bowed his head lightly. “I await you judgement with no lies between us. My plans are laid clear for you to see. What say you?”

[Onyxaeon]

Collected and reserved, the Brimstone senior queen of Solainoti stood behind the colossal Wraith queen who had earlier introduced herself as Zenith of Skrull. She had betweened into the Bowl not long after the other queen, and had not taken kindly to being upstaged by such a beast, let alone having to work her way around the other dragon's bulk to find a safe seat behind her. Apparently, she had not been noticed, but this did not bother her: she was allowed the opportunity to be a dirty little fly on the wall and observe things without being noticed. Tucking her ebony sooted wings close to her body to avoid outstretching them and striking the Wraith, Isionyth lowered her neck to the ground and allowed her Mine to slide off in that manner, the woman mentally reprimanding her dragon for having to make them late. Did you honestly have to find a white runnerbeast colt to eat this morning? It couldn't be any other color or any other bit of fauna on Pern more easy to find? We even had to pay for him because he was of such and such lineage. I swear, Isionyth, you are a great deal of trouble. The queen did not deny this, and merely offered a roll of her shoulders as she straightened her neck, watching Hers depart for the meeting she was required to attend. He was worth it, Mine. At least you got the sleep you needed and haven't been having those night terrors any further. Be kind to them and, as they know nothing of our appearance yet, stay behind and listen well. You will hear things more clearly and understand more if you wait to be involved in this war, and that is exactly where we are heading, dear one. I shall remain here and await being noticed. The queen grumbled her last words distastefully, turning her attention to recognizing other voices and so on as they introduced themselves. Black Dharth, Magma Honuth, Amber Xyurith, an Emerald she watched land on the Wraith's back, Spring Mosyth, and her own Tempest Xanntorith. Others were here, she was certain. Another two females-Was it a Gold who had been left out of this group?-and the Junior queen of this place who Isionyth knew to be a Snow. Mayhaps she was nestled in her couch near the Weyr Hall...? Whatever the case be, the Brimstone was distracted by the acidic liquid that sloshed onto the ground, a glance from between the gaping space in between Zenith's legs allowing her the sight of the scene. What in Faranth? Dragons weren't meant for that. What has Pern fallen to, the queen wondered as her momentarily bad temper was lost, hidden away to her ponderings. Well, she would have her time to voice her opinions when this dragon before her allowed it by moving and, as fate would have it, that came abruptly.

As the requested to be held down and lowered her body's mass to the earth, Isionyth took her chance to announce herself, fresh anger at having been forced to hide from the others for this creature's bulk rushing back into the tone of her voice. I am Brimstone Isionyth, senior queen of Solainoti Weyr, and I kindly thank you for moving your hide so that I can greet the rest forced here by the stupidity of one Weyr. The Brimstone heaved her mass up and over the Wraith queen, literally taking the opportunity to walk over the other queen to get into the much more open expanse of Bowl where the remainder of the dragons were located. My oh so loving nature fled with being ignored for such a time, but I do apologize for having to move across your flank to get away from the edge of the Bowl and not be crushed. I had tried to speak up earlier but, apparently, I was not important enough to be noticed. Okay, so maybe that was a lie, but at least it was an interesting one that could make one of such girth feel a touch foolish. If only it would tug at her for being mildly insensitive, even though such was not her fault. I gathered the lot of your names while being behind Zenith, so no need to introduce yourselves. The queen stretched her neck out a touch, ignoring the cramped muscles as they complained to her with various aches for sitting in such an awkward position for even a short period of time as she had been. Her birthstone wrapped around her neck dangled, furthering the truth of her claim she was of Solainoti sands just as her Tempest was. Speaking of him, he needed to be reminded of several things and, what better way than to take out her anger publicly? Xanntorith, what possessed you to drag me from the Weyr, or even yourself, for that matter? I have nesting grounds that need to be attended to, and you aren't getting out of helping with that. You just enjoying discovering how far you can push me before I turn you down in a Flight, don't you? It wont be much longer you'll find yourself siring any clutch of mine, or even a possible upcoming daughter of mine if you keep testing my limits so rudely. That being said, the Brimstone turned to Honuth, eying the Magma almost admiringly for, in the short time she had heard tale of what the dragon was like behind another, she could enjoy her personality and understand it quite well. You are Honuth, are you not? I do believe we will get along famously by the time this meeting it over. Do tell, what is the most violent thing you have found yourself doing to another dragon? I'll recount my story if you share yours first.


Meanwhile, Vsiasi had taken the time to slip up and through the tunnels to get inside the Weyr Hall: she had not found herself lost for she merely followed the voices as they echoed. It also helped that she ran into the greeter boy as he wandered about the place and gave her further instructioning. Though she had missed the introductions, she had managed to stumble upon the place when the man apparent for calling the entire thing was speaking of what his Weyr had do to rebel against Black Sands and explain the mutations such as his own dragon: so she had been the giant. Throughout it all, Vsiasi remained quiet, not giving herself away until the man whom she had not had the chance to yet know finished his speech. "So your work has been done behind the scenes, secretly in the hopes no one would find out and that you could "protect" the remainder of the Weyrs who have been hit. But that was never the intention: you want us to believe in that lie and come to join you. Because you have run into a dead end, and there's no one in sight; everything will flounder if you stand alone to fight them. You need a few thousand dragons and riders to help orchestrate your schemes in the hopes everyone will listen and accept either neutrality or join your side. Neutrality no longer exists. We will all be forced to one side or another, and that cannot be denied. You fooled a moment, but you're not fooling me. I see the sham, not the man that they see."

[Lyrikitty]

Kisa listened as B'ach once mroe spoke, and a part of her was horrified by the extremes n his actions. None of the other Weyrs had been forewarned, did he not considered what the creatures of the dark Weyr would sink to at so personal an attack? With a single Weyr acting on it's own, he could turn loose the true fury of an Amber far lost to sanity. Her cerulean eyes fell closed, and as N'nika's hand grasped her, she felt herself soothed, comforted by her weyrmate. It didn't occur to her, the thousand things which could go wrong, could be riven as a wedge into the very heart of their relationship, all due to a single Wildfire.

The Weyrwoman of Solainoti spoke, and Kisa found herself surprised. She'd not seen the woman arrive, had not heard the Brimstone, so when did she get here? With a frown, she partially agreed with the woman, a sad fact though it was. She opened her seyes and looked about the room, testing the faces she saw and waiting until she was sure she would not be speaking foolishly. "B'ach's actions may not have been the wisest, but we cannot doubt he did so in good intention. Black Sands will be weakened, perhaps not immediately but soon enough, by the loss of a Hold. However, this will undoubtably infuriate D'myn, and I would advise all to be on guard." She looked to N'nika out of the corner of her eye, for a moment needed to collect her thoughts. The idea of D'myn more enraged than he might have already been was one which struck fear into her heart. Some of these people may not have known the lad, but she did. He'd been here when she arrived, he'd been standing on the sands when Xyurith and Sylvith Impressed. She shoved out the thoughts, and focused on the present, with a soft sigh. "We might have been able to allow the indiscretions of black Sands to be ignored, if they stopped here, but I fear now we will be forced to take a side."

Sylvith lifted her head as Xyurith passed, the look he shot her mildly confusing. She rose, and padded to the edge of the weyr to watch as he descended, though she remained where she stood. Perhaps he only needed time. It was a hard truth that had been forced onto them, and she could understand if her beloved mate was still upset with her. she watched the giant Wriath fall into a state of hibernation, and listened as the Brimstone made herself know, walking over the pale dragon arrogantly. The snow herself was not overly fond of dragons such as the Brimstone or the Magma. She prefered her peace, and while she'd defend it, she would not outright dive into conflict.

Her attention was on the Magma though, seeing something in the spined dragon she didn't like. She was well aware that Honuth was in general a violent sort, but something about the flat-out hate she seemed to be directing at nearly anything that moved rubbed the snow wrong. She would remain here, where it was safer and she could survey the Weyr, and also protect Kisa if the need arose.

Llaina looked up sharply as b'ach pleaded for candidates, just as her dragon's voice entered her mind, as well as the Wraithrider's. I know a girl who you may have. She is in one of our Holds, but she will impress for you. To what I cannot say, but she will not disappoint.[/color] Llaina looked at B'ach, watching silently, though she listened when Kisa spoke. The small woman made points which most would know already, that D'myn and his ambver would not take this act of retibution quietly. Were her Daisyth a Magma, it was doubtful if Llaina would have been so docile about the matter, turning in on herself instead of raging through the Weyr. That the gold was offering a girl, and if Llaina was not mistaken it was a girl the Gold was exceptionally fond of, showed her intentions of making Black Sands pay, if not in an act directly from herslef than by cunning plans and through a sly mind which she rarely revealed.

The Gold was nowhere near the Weyr presently, having put a safe distance between herself and New Cove, settling onto a beach farther down for the duration of the conclave, but she had listened in on as much as possible, to the riders through Llaina, and to the dragons. "My Weyr will offer any candidates we do not have a pressing need for."

F'st raised a curious brow, and shrugged. He could assure no actions on Talune's behalf, instead acting only as a mediator, and listening in on everything, to relay the messages back to his Weyr and let D'ron decide what course of action should be taken. Knowing D'ron though, F'st had the feeling they'd be offering candidates as well. The man had a big heart, and seemed unable to refuse offering help when it was asked.

Ty settled himself down, rathre ashamed, and looked on curiously as the Wraith allowed herself to be walked all over by the Bromstone, after requesting to be held down. A very curious action, and he could not help but a soft rumble as she warned the Magma Honuth against ill-intended actions. He doubted the smaller dragon -considerably smaller as Magmas were roughly Bronze-sized- would heed the warning, she seemed in a particularly foul mood today, enough that dharth had attended to keep her in line even.

And indeed the Emerald was correct, for moments later, the Magma tilted her head at a curious angle, looking at nothing in particular. Her muscles seemed to spazm, and her body convulsed, her limbs giving out and tumbling her to the ground. Her eyes, still fixed on some unknown object, were glassy, vacant, as her body twitched and writhed uncontrollably.

Watching this, Sylvith shifted her weight from paw to paw anxiously, looking back over her shoulder in the direction of Kisa before turning her gaze back to the seizing Magma. This would not be good... She backed up, stretching her wings and taking up as much space as she could, her intent to barricade the easiest entrannce to the riders for any dragon.

In good time as well, for the Magma's body finally fell still, her sides heaving, her eyes wheeling slowly, reds, yellows, and oranges mostly, with flickers of white dancing through them. Slowly the white took over, and only pale hues of red swirled through the orbs.

With action which only swifter dragons could produce she was on her paws, and lunging at the nearest object which caught her attention, rom her maw a bellow of pure rage, followed by streams of flame. The objuect she had aimed ehrself for was the birthstone dangling from the necks of the Solainoti dragons, her mind unsure of what it was, but her body craving the stone to dangerous extents. she cared not which of the beasts she came to first, only that around their wretched necks hung what she wanted, what she needed.

It had been nearly a week since she'd been introduced to the substance, and a few days after that her supply had run short. Now... Now the Magma was suffering from something far worse than just Riosian withdrawls, now her mind was reeling as the need for not only the stone, but for Dragonspores was kicking in. Not only was she falling into the typical rage, but her body was producing mass amounts of adrenaline, her muscles quivering with the need to extert herself, the need to act on the impulses and the fury. Her mind had turned, spinning things out of proportion, and somehow now each of these beasts wer eher enemy, were out to get her, wanted to chain her down and torment her, wave the Riosian and the Dragonspores before her, just out of reach. Well, they'd never get to do that! Never! Another furious bellow tore form her chest and she swiped about with her wings, her tail swinging dangerously as the spines seemed to beg for even the slightest chance to sink into flesh.

[Dragonmage]

Mosyth looked curiously at the Wraith as Zenith fell into a seeming deep, almost coma-like sleep. The Spring tilted her head in a rather bird-like manner and nuzzled the far bigger dragon. This Wraith was far nicer than she had expected from a dragon so big and powerful. She started to babble to her rider.

My Nocia, I like this Wraith named Zenith. Can we help them? They want to keep Black Sands from hurting other Weyrs. They may have acted a bit precipitously but we should not lightly cast away an offer of help. Please can I help them with the King Wraith egg and any other eggs they have? Medeath takes care of her eggs and seems to not be making a clutch anyway, so I have nothing to do.

Nocia cleared her throat quietly. Why was she here again? Oh yeah, because Llaina needed her and her dragon as a witness to what had happened. Well, now that everyone was looking at her, she should say what she needed to say.

"As you know, Black Sands Weyr sterilized our Senior Queen Daisyth, but what you might not know is that this affects me in more ways than as the Weyrlingmaster. All Springs are very protective of eggs and hatchlings, but Mosyth is even more so than most. She is obsessed with eggs and hatchlings. This creates a problem because the only other queen in the Weyr is a Magma who, unusually, is actually highly protective of her eggs. Medeath has Flown but shown no signs of producing a clutch. This leaves Mosyth, not to mention myself at loose ends. My dragon encourages me to say that she would be happy to help with the eggs of Skrull Island Weyr or any other other with the permission of my Weyrwoman."

[Epic Squid of Legend]

N'nika remained silent for some time, watching as B'ach slid out his knife and made himself defensless. And while she believe what Vsaisi said, she wanted part of this war. She stood, at last, and looked glancingly at Kisa. Her eyes roamed the room, looking into every last person's eyes as if reading their soul. She waited for the Springrider to end her rant about eggs before she finally spoke.

Her voice was rough, her throat having been clogged by many nights of lonely tears. But she held it level and did not let it break, "New Cove will help, though we've our own Clutch to handle as well," she said, almost beleiving her own words, "We will send Candidates, as well as provide Dragons for a Search. We..." she continued, not betraying the 'we' as what it really was- an 'I', "will help you in any manner. Black Sands has hurt us, has hurt our future. We will do anything possible to bring them down!" she roared the last bit furiously before sitting propmtly in her chair, crossing her arms and glaring defiatnly at no one in particular.

Xyurith was perpelxed as Zenith asked to be held down. He half-way understood by listening through his Rider, but made no move to help. He, instead, would keep watch to keep the insane Honuth off of the Wraithqueen.
And then, speaking of Honuth, she rose with incredible speed and launched herself at one of the other Dragons. Xyurith roared his complaint, flaring his wings and slashing at the Magma. But, unfortunantly, those spines kept him away. He snarled, skirting around the spines and grabbing hold of her neck around where her Rider would sit. ~Foolish Hatchling!~ he berated her, bringing his muzzle to hover high above her, ~You will stop this nonsense immediatly!~

[Desert]

K'dran leaned forward with the rest to look at the sketches of Skrull's mutations, unable to suppress his curiosity at the heavily armored, oddly-proportioned dragons. He looked back up at B'ach, quirking an eyebrow as the man went on to explain about his late-night attack on one of Black Sands' Holds. A faint smirk tugged at his lips while Dharth chuckled sardonically. Well, the newcomer has stolen a march on us. If he has the chutzpa to be the one to start overt warfare, p'raps he should not be taken too lightly.[/i][/color] Ever the pragmatist, if suspicious and rather cynical, the big black now saw Skrull's Weyrleader as a major player, though that was as detrimental as advantageous in Dharth's book. If the man was bold enough to make the first open strike, rather than use subterfuge, then he was certainly someone to be reckoned with. Obviously, he believed that he could muster up the forces and supplies to support a conflict; though whether or not this belief was mirrored by reality was still up for grabs. If he could, all well and good, but that also meant that he could turn that capability back on his "allies" at some later date.

K'dran spoke up before his dragon could, cutting off whatever remark the big black was about to make. "Well, thanks for telling us," he snorted. "As it happens, we in Eden don't particularly mind anything unfortunate happening to Black Sands, considering the mess they made doing whatever it is they did to Honuth. Eden Weyr is fairly self-sufficient, but we don't have resources of our own to spare. However, you're welcome to Search among Eden Hold and Eastern Hold for candidates, and ask for whatever surplus goods they can give. Once you tell them who you are and what you're doing, they'll cooperate." The blackrider chuckled softly. The holders at Eastern and Eden Hold were accustomed to dragons like Dharth visiting when there was business to be done between Weyr and Hold, which meant they were quite wary of dragonkind. Seeing Zenith would intimidate them into going with whatever B'ach asked. And the two Holds would certainly have surplus to give: due to its unique organization, Eden could produce enough necessities to not need much in the way of tithes, so those beholden to the Weyr were quite prosperous. As the Eastern Continent was still quite less explored and populated than the other two continents, there was a smaller population in it and thus a more self-sufficient economy, in which the farming Hold Eden and the crafter-riddled Eastern could dominate their respective corners.

Dharth growled irritably to have been cut off by his own rider. How dare the man cut in and glibly promise these strangers full access to Eden's Holds? It didn't phase the black that B'ach had divested himself of all forms of offense and defense and that Zenith entered a state of immobility; it still didn't assuage his suspicion against the newcomers from Skrull Island. He mistrusted everything about them: the fact that they had been completely unknown for all this time, the fact that they had dragons the like of Zenith; and if B'ach was to be believed, they had long ago been a similar thorn in the sides of the Weyrs of Pern to Black Sands in modern times. None of this made Dharth eager to enter an alliance with them, and the big behemoth made his own opinion very clear to all the assembled riders: As K'dran says, you may appeal to Eden Hold and Eastern Hold for your material and personnel needs, but make no mistake about our needing your so-called 'protection'. Ask our holders for aid, but do not expect anything beyond the first rush of sympathy. Your overeager actions have not endeared us to you: we all will be targets now of Black Sands' wrath, for those such as D'myn do not differentiate between foes and bystanders. You might bring us to despise you, if you drag Eden into this ridiculous conflict. We are not fools who think that we can remain on the sidelines while everyone around us is pushing for us to fight. So, Weyrleader B'ach of Skrull Island Weyr, rider of wraithqueen Zenith, as far as Eden is concerned, you are walking a very fine line between ally and enemy. Tread carefully.[/color][/i] In the brief silence that followed Dharth's dark warning, K'dran could be heard muttering, "Melodramatic ijjit."

N'yx's lip twitched in an ill-suppressed smirk at the blackrider's disparaging comment, before falling back into the stern half-frown they had been before the Eden Wingleaders spoke. He was similarly upset about B'ach's preemptive strike, and followed his Weyrwoman's example in saying so. "Although I wouldn't put it as harshly as did Vsasi, K'dran or Dharth, I have to agree with all three of them. B'ach, it would have been wiser of you to wait until we had this Conclave and you could gather more information before you launched an attack on Black Sands as you did. The others already made the point that D'myn won't spare anyone who hasn't clearly come over to his side, no matter whether they claim neutrality. It's true that Black Sands has been responsible for many heinous crimes against the rest of Pern, but two wrongs do not make a right. The people in that Hold you attacked may have been in league with D'myn, or they could have been just as victimized by his tyranny as the rest of us: you had no way of knowing that, and if it was the latter case, you destroyed that Hold for no fault of their own, but for the wrongdoings of a person they had no control over." The tempestrider sighed heavily. "And as it is, we anticipate a clutch sometime soon in Solainoti, so we can spare no candidates. As for material goods... we shall see." He glanced at Vsasi to see what her opinion was on giving Skrull resources.

Xanntorith bit back a sullen grumble and twitched his tail as Isionyth made herself known. No one had made her come, she'd apparently chosen to attend of her own will; as it was, considering how close to Rising she was, she shouldn't have even left the Weyr! But the big tempest knew better than to point that out, and merely gritted his teeth together while his mate aimed a few threats his way. It is necessary for the Weyrleader of Solainoti to attend Conclave, especially considering the reasons for which it was called. Mine would be shirking his duty if he was not here, especially if the reason was nothing more pressing to Pern as a whole as the arrangement of lumps of Riosian. There is time yet before the clutch that can be used to organize the Grounds, but this meeting to discuss the raids that Black Sands has been making cannot wait,[/b][/color] Xann explained, trying his utmost not to snap, especially from the indignity of being scolded in the middle of a gathering of other Weyr- and Wingleaders' dragons.

Anything else Xann was about to say was forgotten when Honuth suddenly went into convulsions and collapsed. His eyes jolted with alarmed yellows and whites. Mine! The magma is seizing![/b][/color] None of Solainoti's mutants, even the first ones like Xann and Muuth, had been around or old enough to see the onset of serious withdrawal symptoms: but N'yx and Sh'kith both had. As the two dragons relayed the images to their rider's minds, both men widened their eyes in alarm. N'yx cleared his throat bleakly. "I hate to interrupt, but it just became clear where Black Sands took the Riosian." He glanced at Xai with face drawn. "They must have taken it straight to Eden and fed it to your magma, because Xann has just informed me that she is suffering a seizure. Some of the worse cases did seize, but not nearly this badly. I suspect they gave her something else along with the Riosian. Either way, I advise all of you to have your dragons move away from Honuth quickly, before she recovers from the seizure."

Xann didn't wait for his rider to say anything. He shoved his clutchsister out of her curled position and nipped sharply at the chrome's flanks. Away from here, Muuth! Try and take the spring with you -- you are the smallest of us here, and at the most risk. You have seen this before, you know how bad it is. Go![/b][/color]

Muuth needed no second instruction and lunged into the air, forgetting Isionyth's edict not to fly in her haste to remove herself from the maddened magma's vicinity. She called down to Mosyth urgently. Come! The magma is very dangerous in this state: far more than normal! If you value your life, little one, then flee back to your Weyr![/b][/color] With that, Muuth blinked between back to Solainoti, shaken and relieved to be out of the danger zone.

Meanwhile, Xann stood with wings flared, ready to fly, looking pleadingly at Isionyth in the hopes that she didn't get any ideas about taking out her temper on the magma. He glanced around at the other dragons. My friends, if you don't wish to flee, then be on your guard. Mine was in the Weyr during the peak of the addiction, and he has seen horrible things done by dragons in the grip of an addiction. I'm sure this magma has been acting worse of late, and if you think she was bad then, it is nothing like what is about to happen, especially if whatever else she was given exacerbates the reaction the way me and Mine think it will.[/b][/color]

Dharth too was on his feet, watching Honuth with a mixture of bemused mirth and wary suspicion staining his eyes with a clashing of seafoam and rusty orange. The black glanced up at Xann. What sort of 'horrible things?[/color][/i] he inquired.

Xanntorith's response was cut off when Honuth abruptly sprang back to life and lunged -- straight at the Birthstones dangling from his and Isionyth's necks. He squealed in alarm and leaped into the air, his paws barely avoiding the streams of emission leaping from the magma's jaws.

Dharth lunged forward as well; he left Honuth's forequarters to the slightly bigger amber, and set about immobilizing the magma's flailing tail and tensed haunches. He came down heavily on the small queen's hips, maw gaping open to send enough flame dancing across her scales to make her feel the intense heat, but not quite enough to do any damage. She will not heed us, Xyurith. She has been much like this since Black Sands visited, though still with some shred of sense, which she apparently just lost. Xanntorith, your rider mentioned a cure for the withdrawal, what was it?[/color] The black behemoth looked from the amber also standing over Honuth, over to the hovering tempest.

Xann stayed airborne, watching Honuth warily. It is nothing that can take effect immediately, I'm afraid. We must wait for her to Rise, and the hormones will counteract the addiction. Until then, there is not much to be done. The withdrawal will become worse unless she gets more Riosian, though until she Rises and dispels the addiction, even if she gets another dose she will remain in an unbalanced state.[/b][/color] He didn't dare touch back down again, knowing that with his Riosian Birthstone, he was a big fat target to the withdrawal-stricken magma.

ooc; i have an incredibly spaztastic Muse. >_O[/font][/size]

[Bacchante]

So perfect. But then again it had been a near-perfect plot. The destruction of an entire Hold and a war between Weyrs was a small price to pay for the return of Skrull to the glorious stature it deserved. But there was always one, wasn’t there? Always an idiot who failed to see how it worked. “Behind the scenes? Perhaps, but that is quite nullified now that I have told you what I did. You say I need you, that you must pick a side. This is wrong. You could just leave me and mine to our war, leave us to be destroyed by Black Sands. Then you would have plenty of time to prepare your offerings for the army that will inevitably come to your Weyr. Because no matter what I did, you only had to choices. Unite against Black Sands, or stay neutral and be crushed by them.”

Outside, the Wraithqueen lay still as the dragon that had apparently been hiding behind her crawled over top. –You said nothing, merely waiting to try and hurt me. If I could move right now, I would be sorely tempted to crush you. As it is, you cannot hurt me so I will abide you. For now.” Zenith’s eyes flashed red for a moment, then vanished as she closed her lids and sank a bit deeper into hibernation. Stupid dragons.

Kisa spoke next, and B’ach was saddened by her words. “He will be infuriated, yes, but all that will do is make him careless. He will attack without planning, without preparation. Just simple, reflexive, striking. An attack that will only serve to weaken him in the long run.” He was almost certainly right. At that moment a dragon spoke into his mind. His thought returned to her, “I thank you, Queen. She will be shown to the Wraithking before the others, if you have high hopes for her.” That finished he looked at the one called Llaina, who offered support but no opinion. Interesting.

Another woman spoke next. There seemed an awful lot of the around here. This one was… Nocia? Yes, that was it. She offered help with the eggs at Skrull. Useful. “I will happily grant her request. You can come to Skrull if you so wish, but I am afraid you must be restricted from some areas. I have been told that the Miseries of Black Sands can pull memories from somebody’s mind. Thus we must not allow you into spaces large enough to Between into that are inside our Weyr.” One by one things fell into place. N’nika was next. Perfect.

B’ach could almost feel the hatred emanating from her. It was easy, as his father had taught him well. Her voice was pained, and the end of her statement was akin to a dragon roaring. It was too good for words. “They will be brought to justice and I thank you for your help. Know this; You will always have an ally in Skrull, all of you. Black Sands will fall. I can ensure that much.”

Outside, Honuth the Magma was going quite insane. Zenith shivered internally, as she couldn’t mover. Her eyes, her wings. These were still slightly vulnerable. She let B’ach know what had happened and inside he shivered. He returned the message that she should wait just a moment longer. Just a moment, and all would be done. She began to stave off the hibernation, to tear herself from it. It would mean exhaustion later but right now it was necessary.

The Blackrider, K’dran, was next on the table. He promised what Skrull sorely needed, supplies. Thanks to the barren nature of Skrull’s mountain Weyr the Weyr itself could support no life. The help of the Holds was needed, and that was fading as the dragons did. “K’dran, my thanks. I was starting to think that nobody could offer enough surplus goods to help us survive. We are running low on food, island wide. Rest assured, that whatever we take will be repaid with interest once our ecology is stabilised.” Unfortunately, the dragon Dharth was not as easily swayed. He seemed to be suspicious of B’ach’ motives in this. “Well then, Dharth, I will leave the decision up to you. Pray tell me when you have decided on which side of the line we fall; but keep it to yourself until after the present conflict has been solved. Once Black Sands is dealt with I will be happy to indulge whatever notions of war you still hold at that time.”

N’yx, of the same Weyr as the one who disagreed first, spoke next with good points. “Perhaps you are right. Maybe I should have waited. But my attack took a whole week of watching, planning. If I had not launched it when I did the D’myn would have seen us as weak, taking two weeks to simply retaliate. As it is, those people may have been innocent. This I freely admit, as well as admitting that their lives are on my head alone. Despite this, they would have supplied goods to Black Sands. I could have simply destroyed their fields, but then what? D’myn would likely have had them killed himself in a very painful way. I will not try to justify myself, as there is no way I can. However, they went quickly and painlessly into the dark; the only thing I could give at the time.”

B’ach waited a time, allowing N’yx to explain what the Riosan will have done to the magma. He perked his head suddenly, as Zenith showed him the events outside. “There is one more thing I will say.” He smirked as he spoke. “I had it worked out carefully. My return of fire was somewhat lenient. I merely took one life for each dragon lost. I knew already how many had been hit, and how. I calculated how many clutches could have been lost from this. I only went forward by one generation, fortunately. The scales are balanced, but what is happening now makes me think I must add more weight.” He gestured outside, “They turn our dragons into monsters. How can you say that no punishment is deserved?”

Outside, Zenith tore out of her hibernating state. She rose up and tore forward, interceding between the Magma and the rest of the dragons, curling around her to hold her in place, pushing her down with her bone covered arms. She pulled up her tail from the outside and placed it on top of Honuth, who was trapped in the centre of her coils. –This should hold her…- The Wraith thought drowsily. Then, weighing down the beast with her thick armour, she fell into true sleep.

“Fortunately for you, Zenith can pull herself out of hibernation at a much faster than normal pace. She will simply require much rest and much food over the next week. Honuth is subdued for now. Since that is dealt with I ask you this: I returned fire to D’myn, but who will he strike at next?” B’ach let the question hover in the air, hanging it before the other leaders. Now all he had to do was steer.