Xanadu Weyr - Deep Forest Waterfall
"How could I have possibly missed this?" Anyone who frequently travels the deep woods between Xanadu Weyr and the mountains to the west might ask themselves that question upon stumbling onto this place for the first time. A waterfall, easily a hundred feet tall, dominates the immediate area, commanding attention. Like something from a storybook, it stands before you, flanked on either side by sentinel trees and mountain brush mired in stone-spotted soil. Water cascades over a beaten rock face at its peak, flowing down in a white-capped torrent to crash into a small, crystal clear pond below.
Not content to remain where it is, the pond appears to have carved a great trench into the earth, through which a stream now flows, traveling further west towards a massive rock wall in the distance. The stream bisects the area, and a narrow point some 30 feet away from the pond itself makes for an easy jump to the other side. The shore around the pond's immediate edge appears to be mostly soil and large slabs of rock, but that gives way to a grass field after only a few feet, a touch that gives the entire area an idyllic feel. The air is fresh and clean with the bite of cool mountain water and the tang of forest life. It is alive, this place.
Seryth's voice reaches out to the healer much the way a sudden downburst from a threatening storm will break; there is no warning, no greeting, the contact is frenetic, chaotic «Mine is…dark. I cannot get to her. You know this place? » There is a picture of trees, a rough trail, a pushing through bare branches and then a kaleidoscope of blurred white, brown earth, a tumbled mess of dizzying that leads down, jarring in successive impacts and then… blackness. A pause, then, « She does not answer me. »
The day recently finished, Tenebrous finds himself comfortably cradled inside of the waterfall's cave, taking a bite of breakfast with a small group. Phylicia and one of her flits, Estevan sit in a dry corner near the fire, and Tenebrous stands near the opening, Flop on his shoulder. he jerks suddenly, falling back against the wall, and one of his hands flies up to the side of his head. "Slow down," he stammers, his face paling…and then, without another word, he leaps towards the rock wall, and his makeshift entrance out. Even as he spidercrawls along the wall towards dry ground, his eyes veil. Again! Show me again! Slowly.
The same picture returns of the rough trail, the sound of rushing water; the curious impulse that brought her Rider to push through the bare branches to find it's source and then the confused swirl of the world in motion, pain then blackness. She can only show him what she has seen.
Tenebrous' eyes unveil as the last of the vision comes to him, and he changes course, making for the steep trail that leads to Stormhaven from the south. "I warned her," he mutters darkly. He stops just shy of the trail itself and closes his eyes. Come to the waterfall. You can land here. I'll do what I can to bring her to you. Then be pushes through the trees and makes his way up into the trail itself…
Seryth backwings to a landing beside the pond, her eyes whirling an anxious yellow. She's calm save for the tip of her tail lashing but cries a distressed 'hurry' croon to the healers.
Clear of the face, he leaps to the ground, starting towards the tree line at a dead sprint, running towards the regal gold, his breath steaming in the cold night air. The storm's aftermath has left patches of ice in certain places, forming in the wake of the frozen mountain gusts. "How long ago," he calls, coming to a halt at the dragon's foreleg.
It takes just a few long moments for Phylicia to appear in the warmest clothing she had available to her, huddled inside her new coat as well. Under the coat is strapped the long dagger she was carrying, the fireball-pouch and nothing else, though her boots are fully laced up this time, tightly. Can't do to trip. With care that might almost seem slow, she appears from behind the waterfall and makes her way to steadier ground before breaking into an ungraceful sprint, quickly coming up to where Tenebrous and Seryth are. As Phy nears Seryth Estevan - the brown she sent on Tene's errand - appears from *between* with a new note, surrendering it before twining himself tightly around her neck. "H-he's doing it. The infirmary should be awake soon, and trauma too." Her voice is quivering now. She really has /no/ clue what's going on!
The gold eyes Phylicia briefly as Tenebrous skids to a halt in front of her, but then she's lowering her head a little. Eyes fluctuate for a moment before Tenebrous nods once. Then he glances back at Phylicia for a moment. "My apprentice. She's capable." Then he turns back to the dragon. "I'll find her. I swear I will. Once I do, I'll need your help…" Then he turns back to Phylicia. "There's a deeper part of the forest than even this, and further to the north. Few have explored it because it's so dangerous. Someone is down there now." He reaches beneath his coat, pulling an impressive amount of climbing rope from it, along with a few clips. "I'm going down after them, but I need you to stay on top. Once M'nol has finished with his work at the Infirmary, I need him and his dragon here. I don't care how you do it, but get them here. And if you have another flit, I'd appreciate the loan of it so I can stay in contact with you."
Phylicia is looking mighty pale, though her eyes are starting to adjust to the dark. She forcefully swallows and nods. A few brief moments later, Ciaran - her midnight indigo blue - appears from *between* and lands straight on Tenebrous' shoulder. "Behave." She croaks to the blue. "Do what he tells you." And then she reaches around her neck, unwrapping Estevan as forcefully as she had to swallow. The brown does /not/ want to leave her. "One more time, Este." She manages to croon, projecting the need for M'nol /here/. /Now/, and a hopefully good enough image for Faraeth to go off of. With a subdued cheep, Estevan takes off once more, disappearing again. But the gold in the clearing has Phy thinking bad thoughts. "It's not Thea, is it?" Her voice may quiver, but there's real concern there too. "And start leading. Este can find me after he finds M'nol."
Tenebrous stares hard and long at the young woman. "Live ammo, apprentice," he growls. Which is a very lightly veiled way of saying, 'Don't screw up.' Then he starts for the tree line that leads to the incline, gesturing for her to follow.
Phylicia starts after Tenebrous without a word, other than another forceful swallow. Crap.
Xanadu Weyr - Deep Forest Trail
The trail that runs through the forest becomes more difficult to follow here, the ground more treacherous. Dead leaves and loosely packed earth make footing harder to find and the trail frequently doubles back on itself at sharp angles, often dropping downward at an alarming rate. Much of the path's borders are choked with tall, leafy vegetation, making further exploration a dangerous prospect at best and nearly suicidal at worst. At various intervals along the path, the ground along the upward slope appears to have been ripped away, carved out by some massive force of nature. Bare earth is visible in ugly patches of wet and dry, the gnarled roots of trees reaching out hungrily like the claws of some arboreal nightmare.
The farther down one travels, the louder the noises of the forest become, until they seem nearly deafening at the bottom of the gorge. Looking up the steep trail to the southeast, it becomes obvious that, if anyone were to fall down that slope, no one would ever be able to hear their cries for help.
Faraeth's keen sense of Phy's location through her flits brings the brown from /between/ above the pair, though initially they are nearly invisible in the gloom, the flare of Phy's fireball lights them briefly. Faraeth lands in the only spot large enough for a dragon of his bulk, forcing M'nol to dash towards the pair waving his arms above his head but not shouting, for better or for worse.
As M'nol comes into sight, Phylicia quickly squeezes the life out of the fireball, stowing it back in it's pouch before she can lose it. M'nol might be alarmed by the long dagger under her new long coat, but she can't think beyond quickly eveloping the rider in a /very/ quick hug, before pulling away and pressing a finger to her lips for as much silence as they can manage. "Te-Fetch went down." She whispers, her voice barely carrying.
Anything even remotely close to Tenebrous' mind as he goes over the side of the escarpment will feel him radiating fear. Not for himself, but for whatever he's searching for. But that fear is rapidly replaced by panic after a moment, and the sense that something has gone terribly wrong. «Slipping» comes Ciaran's whisper into Phy's mind. «Leg hurt»…
M'nol nods quietly and whispers back, "What should we do?" A bazillion more questions are rushing through his head… /especially/ since he knows that that has to be a blade since Phy's most definitely a girl. His eyes are open, scanning the darkness even as Faraeth blinks in the distance.
Phylicia hugs Estevan to her with her less dominant hand, who had returned with the arrival of M'nol this time. Even the gleeful brown is silent, pressed to his human's neck. Phy suddenly winces, not daring to get closer to the edge. They're high enough as is, and all she needs to do is find a loose patch of soil to join Thea over the edge. Concentrating hard - which M'nol could likely see as she shuts her eyes - she tries to ask Ciaran if everything is still alright, or if he /really/ needs her to go over too. "Stay here. Watch. Wait. It's what he said…" She returns before lapsing into silence again, her lower lip getting sucked into her mouth to be gnawed upon.
M'nol slips a hand into hers and squeezes gently as he nods in understanding… at least as best as he can understand. In response to a silent command Faraeth closes his bejeweled eyes, disappearing entirely into the darkness. Though M'nol's not privy to the communication from Ciaran, he can feel the fear and tension of the situation. Phy can be sure that he'll ask for an explanation later, but right now he's in the moment adn doing what needs to be done.
Phylicia stops gnawing at her lip, giving M'nol a brief and apologetic smile for the terseness of the situation, but her body is strung just as tightly as a guitar string at the moment, and almost vibrating as if someone plucked her. The 'communication' she receives from her blue isn't helping much either. But the concern and grief can't be entirely the 'lizards, so she scooches forward just a few steps, one hand death-gripping the tree Tenebrous' rope is tied to as she carefully starts to lean her weight over, trying to think if she should go down. But climbing in the dark is something she's never done, and she pulls her weight back after a few moments, retreating those few steps again before looking around the woods. They're not alone… but who else - what else - could be out there?
Xanadu Weyr - The Clutch
You stand in what looks like a massive, dried out stream bed, the sides easily taller than a man. The ground beneath you is covered with dead leaves and tree branches, and beneath that, rocks and hard earth. The noises from the rest of the forest are hushed here, somehow muted, and no light shines directly down. Any light that touches you is brilliant, eerie green and only the occasional breath of wind touches your face. The stillness here presses in upon you, like an invisible hand that's slowly closing. The barest hint of something tickles your nose if you breathe deeply, something sweet and sour at the same time. Something out of place. Something unpleasant.
The stream bed slopes gently downward, leading further into another area of the woods, but there is also the option of trying to walk upstream. Perhaps you'll come out somewhere you're familiar with?
There's an oddly crumpled form of a person at the bottom of the drop; someone has unwisely strayed too far from the trail. Cold and stormy though the weather has been with winter in it's first month, tonight finds it clear although a thin sheet of ice covers all - a remnant from last's night's rain. The woman there has dressed appropriately in a long, fur-lined hide coat and sturdy hide boots, which may have saved her from some of the impact. She lies facedown, dark hair splayed across her back, shoulders and face in an untidy tent that shields her face from view. One arm twisted under her body, the other thrown forward as if it had been trying to break the fall and is lodged between the two small boulders that have stopped her, the gloved hand visible, hangs limp.
With the chill from the ice and the slickness of the ground, Tenebrous' own descent isn't exactly controlled, but at least he's expecting it. He comes shooting into the canyon on his back, the hide of his coat acting like a natural sled on some of the smoother parts of ground. The only thing that stops his motion is a startled oath and a lucky stab in the ice with a strong spike of wood. Very slowly, he releases the wood, groaning loudly, and climbs shakily to his feet. "She's mocking me right now," he breaths to himself. "Take an apprentice, boy," he mutters, shaking his head to clear the dust. "Damn fine night to take a camping trip." Then he spies Thea’s form and the wooden spike drops nervelessly to the ground. He hurries over to the woman's side, kneeling down. "No, nonono," he breaths. "Nono, Thea…Thea,!" he calls, a little louder. He gently unbinds that hand of hers from the rocks, watching her form for movement. Gentle hands reach to her neck, checking her pulse. "Not you," he whispers. "Empty egg, not you…"
There's a pulse, slow perhaps a bit more faint than he would prefer there under his fingers although no answer to his call from under the dark curtain of hair, no movement in response his words. That arm is moved easily with no resistance whatsoever, the joints fluid, muscles flaccid. The dark place is silent save for the eerie creaks ice can make as temperature changes, and the clinks of ice falling on ice; pieces loosened from above that slide down the slope that skitter to a halt when the momentum is lost or the way blocked by some obstacle.
Tenebrous makes a little noise in the back of his throat, swallowing hard, and then scrunches his face up. Very gently, he begins parting the hair on Thea's head, checking for obvious bumps scrapes or lacerations before he moves onto her neck, hands burrowing beneath her coat to delicately palpate her flesh. "Please don't be broken," he whispers, his voice shaky. "Thea," he calls again. "Thea!" When his voice breaks, he stills himself, taking another few quick breaths and letting them out. "Not here," he hisses. "Not in this place." He shuffles on the ice slightly, moving into a better position to gently turn her body over onto a flat patch of ground.
Thea’s body offers no resistance whatsoever as he moves her. The arm underneath her flops as she is rolled and her head lolls, hair falling from her forehead to reveal a wound on her left forehead near her hairline. There's nothing else to find, for apparently the fur-lined hood that has fallen from her head, was there to protect at least the back of it as she fell. Nothing obviously broken to find, again the choice of coat may have helped here. She breathes. That is all.
Far below in the still maw of that area known as The Clutch, Tenebrous gently picks Thea up, cradling her still form in his arms like a child. His upper lip curls with residual pain, and he hisses, "You had to stop her before she could cover your whole back…" Then he snarls something under his breath. The rope has been wrapped around his chest, but it hangs slack on the ground. He turns to the blue firelizard that rests on a tree branch nearby. "I can't possibly walk her out of here, little one," he calls gravely. "And it's too dangerous for Phylicia to attempt a descent in the dark. Tell her to uncoil the rope from the tree. I need her and M'nol to begin pulling. Gently, but pulling."
M'nol's firelizards appear from /between/ as silent as the darkness around them, roused by their bonded's distress, their eyes pinpoints of red-orange against the darkness. M'nol reaches for Phy as she leans over the edge and relaxes some when she re-appears beside him.
Thea's limp as she's gathered up, her neck is pliant, allowing her head to tip back easily over his arm, her hair swings with each movement of the healer. A quiet moan is all that comes from her as Tenebrous walks.
Phylicia turns abruptly after a few moments, looking back to the ledge, and she gently places a hand on M'nol's shoulder. "We have to lift them up." She whispers, taking his hand and leading him closer to the tree the rope is tied around. Eyes now adjusted to the dark, she looks at the ledge and shakes her head. Dragging a rope over /that/ edge might fray and break it, but the tree is more than sturdy and there's a relatively low branch. She gives a few light tugs on the rope, to make sure there's no tension existing on it before she motions M'nol to untie it and … scuttles up the tree to the branch. Did they know she could climb trees like that? Easily - even in the dark - she squiggles out of the coat, and her pure-cotton sur-tunic, wrapping the latter around the base of branch before knotting it on the underside, of which there is /barely/ enough fabric to do that with. "Hand me the rope." She whispers down to M'nol, stretching an arm out as she lays on the tree branch extending out an arm.
Far below, Tenebrous has already begun the steep, nearly untraversable journey upwards, making a little noise of pain with every step that he plants on that right leg of his. "That's twice," he breaths into the night, "that I've…had to drag…" He pauses a moment to lean on a tree that has somehow managed to grow out of the ground at a 60 degree angle. "…your stubborn backside…" He starts moving again. "…out of…the woods!" He gags a little after planting his right foot awkwardly, but remains upright. "You should just…move in and…" His exhales look like smoke in the deep night. "…make it easier on yourself," he finishes. He wobbles a little again, and then forces himself to take another step, eyes gazing up the long trek ahead of him. "By the first dragon's balls, are they having tea or something? The rope already," he rasps, eyeing the blue flit that ghosts along in the air beside them.
M'nol doesn't try to toss the rope. He knows his limitations, instead Bloodstone is soon airborn, carrying the rope to Phy. M'nol nods when the bronze re-appears after making the pass, too focused on the now to question Phy's physical prowess, though he'd known she was flexible. As soon as he has the end of the rope in hand he applies gentle pressure, setting his feet firmly, but waits for Phy to signal before pulling all the way. It's certainly a good thing he doesn't know it's Thea on the other end of the line or he would be frantic.
Thea's eyes flutter open, "Kav?" She blinks, lifts her head peering in the dark at Tenebrous, "You… came… back?" Confusion flickers across her face, "Why did you leave m- Nono… you're…" Her eyes close again, the frown of concentration eases as she once again loses consciousness and her head flops backwards onto his arm.
Phylicia resists the temptation to just jump off of the branch with the rope in hand, not knowing exactly how much slack there is before she'll hit resistance, so she slips the end to M'nol, the rope now going over the branch like a pulley. "Here's hoping you'll hold." She says softly to the tree-branch, patting it before slipping back down the trunk of the tree on the side with more landing to it and joins M'nol. "Sorry, but you're stronger." And she puts him in the proper space, like it was a game of tug-of-war and takes her own spot. The coat is back on, and she takes a hold of the rope. Crap this is going to hurt if it slips… "Start pulling." Her voice is a little louder than intended as she starts quickly, but gently, pulling until the resistance does hit. That should give him enough warning to start bracing himself. "Wish we had more…" Upper arm strength is not entirely her forte.
Tenebrous sighs softly, his breath bouncing in his lungs as the rope goes taut. "Oh, good girl," he breaths. "Good girl." But soon, another problem makes itself apparent. The only portion of his back that doesn't ache like an anvil beneath the hammer is that narrow strip on either side of his spine, numbweed be praised. "Next time, let her do your whole back," he grates between his teeth, breath hissing out of his nose. "Your whole…damn…back…" Some few minutes later, when Thea speaks, he looks down, panting under the exertion. At first, he says nothing, forcing another step out of himself, and then another. "I'm afraid not, hon," he says quietly. "You've got the wrong guy again…" He's still and silent for several more minutes, continuing that slow, bizarre walk up something resembling a slanted wall. "I'm pretty sure that should irritate me," he says with dry mirth. But there's no irritation in his voice to speak of.
M'nol braces himself, glad for his wherhide gloves at this moment. At Phy's command he begins to pull, slowly and carefully, he had done his time on the pulleys as a child. He carefully wraps the rope around his hands on each pull, adding additional stability to each bracing pull. As M'nol works Bloodstone dips down, following the rope down to check progress.
Phylicia lets out a shaky breath as M'nol starts pulling. Somehow she's managing to stay fairly in unison with him, pulling when he does, and acting more as an anchor between pulls, her feet digging into the ground. M'nol knows what he's doing, she's just going with the flow now since she's never been on the pulling end of the system. Or the being pulled end either. Occasionally she hisses as the rope slips in her ungloved hands. "I swear…" She mutters under her breath, more to keep herself sane than anything else. She's worried, nearly to the point of being physically sick. "Let me know if I should be doing something differently.." She whispers to M'nol, hoping what she's doing is helping.
The firelizard's progress report comes back to M'nol about the time that the quiet noises of Tenebrous' passage can be heard from below, grunts of pain and heavy, hard breathing. As the journey up the incline begins to near the trail, the path becomes less and less steep, and the pull on the rope grows lighter. perhaps on some signal from Ciaran, Tenebrous' voice can be heard, thundering up to the two younger people above. "Almost there," he projects, though it's a voice tinged with pain and exhaustion. "She's slipping in and…" There's a painful sounding noise, and then, "…out of consciousness. Once…once we're up there, get the dragons ready!"
M'nol grins slightly, or perhaps grits his teeth… hard to say… but his words are simple enough, "You're doing fine. If you're going to keep getting yourself into situations like this you should start carrying wherhide gloves, too." Yeah, he's doing most of the work, but it's not bothering him. A silent command brings Faraeth closer, eyes open again. M'nol gasps and redoubles his efforts when Bloodstone sends back his images, and whispers softly, "It's Thea…"
Phylicia nods her head, her teeth most definitely gritted, because she's going to have rope burned hands. "I know." Her telling might have only prompted panic, which is unneeded. "And if I keep getting into situations like this, I'm either going to skin me a journeyman or a weyrwoman." Right now it's impossible to tell if she's joking or not, and Tenebrous can probably hear. But as she hears Tenebrous, she raises her voice a small notch. "Can you walk and carry her?" This time as the rope slips a fraction she whimpers, trying to think of Thea's frame. Tall, yes, but tall can be dealt with… how /heavy/? "D'you think.." She starts off quietly to M'nol "If he can't walk, you can take Thea?" And her voice raises that notch again. "/Honest/ answer, Tenebrous. Don't hurt her any further!" Like he'd want to anyway by the vague snippets she's able to pick up from Ciaran now that she's not concentrating on him.
Thea's head tosses back and forth while her eyes remain shut there's a faint groan and some illegible words before they open once more briefly reflecting starlight as she blinks at Tenebrous in an unfocused attempt to concentrate, "I sh- should have told- told you before. Love looks for ways to give." A hand lifts, palm up, "Your freedom." The last word is a gentle sigh, her lids sag shut once more and her hand drops.
The rope suddenly becomes substantially easier to pull, and a few seconds later, Tenebrous voice can be heard, clear and cold from only a few feet away. In his arms, Thea rests, her head cradled up against his shoulder now. "I would walk her to the moon without a space-suit if I have to," he rasps. Even in the darkness, a sheen of sweat stands out on his forehead and his legs tremble slightly. But the arms that are wrapped around Thea are firm and cradle her with a kind of security that hints at something…more. He tilts his head, looking at Phylicia. "Don't hurt her? What, you thought I was jumping rope down there?" Then he's moving, his breath wheezing with every plant of that right leg. "Leave the rope," he rumbles as he passes the two of them, making for the waterfall.
Xanadu Weyr - Deep Forest Waterfall
"How could I have possibly missed this?" Anyone who frequently travels the deep woods between Xanadu Weyr and the mountains to the west might ask themselves that question upon stumbling onto this place for the first time. A waterfall, easily a hundred feet tall, dominates the immediate area, commanding attention. Like something from a storybook, it stands before you, flanked on either side by sentinel trees and mountain brush mired in stone-spotted soil. Water cascades over a beaten rock face at its peak, flowing down in a white-capped torrent to crash into a small, crystal clear pond below.
Not content to remain where it is, the pond appears to have carved a great trench into the earth, through which a stream now flows, traveling further west towards a massive rock wall in the distance. The stream bisects the area, and a narrow point some 30 feet away from the pond itself makes for an easy jump to the other side. The shore around the pond's immediate edge appears to be mostly soil and large slabs of rock, but that gives way to a grass field after only a few feet, a touch that gives the entire area an idyllic feel. The air is fresh and clean with the bite of cool mountain water and the tang of forest life. It is alive, this place.
Phylicia is glaring at Tenebrous' back, be sure of that one. Though her own legs shake she trails after the journey man, shaking her head at M'nol and pulling her hand out of his. "Hurts." She says simply, minding her tender hands. "I didn't say would. Said /could/." She points out to the other healer's back. "Not that you'd hurt her a-purpose, but if your leg gives out…" Knocking Thea's head could be a very bad thing right now. Her tone is somewhere been worried sick and annoyed, though her face winces every time Tenebrous puts weight on his injured leg and she groans to herself. "You need common sense…" So does she for that matter, because she's not entirely sure this is enough to make her drop the mentorship.
Seryth's neck stretches, her head shoved near enough to the pair to whuffle at her Rider. The anxious yellow is still there in her eyes, but at least the queen is calm. The blast of warm air flutters Thea's dark hair, rousing her. This time her eyes stay open, roving the faces nearby with a silent question in them, briefly touching on M'nol, then Phylicia with growing confusion. They sharpen as they rest on Tenebrous and it is him she directs her query to, "What…happened?"
M'nol makes a silent command and Faraeth approaches beside Seryth. M'nol's voice is tense, "Will she be alright? Is there someone out here or did she fall?" Now that the worst seems to be over his truest concern can sneak into his eyes, "Thea?"
Tenebrous' eyes lurch between Seryth and Thea for a moment before he looks down at the woman in his arms. "You fell," he says quietly to her. "I'm not sure what you were doing on that trail, but…you fell." His eyes lift from her face to Phylicia's. "My apprentice and the rider helped me rappel down to you after I…found out." Those eyes of his move back to Seryth for a moment and he nods to the queen in thanks. He looks back down to Thea, a myriad of emotions flickering over his face before he abruptly looks back up, this time at M'nol. "I'd appreciate it if you gave her a ride to the Infirmary," he murmurs, nodding to Phylicia. "She'll need her hands looked at, I have little doubt, and then a good night's rest, if you can manage it. We'll meet you there." Then he turns back to Seryth. "Can you give us a smooth ride?" he asks her softly.
"Like I haven't figured that one out for myself." Phylicia grumbles sourly to herself in reference to her hands. But she looks at least partially relieved that Tene wasn't going to insist on mounting a dragon and taking Thea back himself. That one would have ended badly indeed. The healer apprentice is watching Tenebrous though until he approaches Seryth for a ride with a mostly unreadable expression because her emotions have been used up by the scare, at which point she turns to look at Faraeth's side and then her hands and makes another sour face. "Lets get her home." She says to M'nol, trying to put a smile back on her face. "And taken care of."
Thea's head turns towards the brownrider, "M'nol, I was alone! No need to worry D'had. The wing is not needed." The words from Tenebrous has her frowning slightly, "I…fell?" She gives up trying to remember after a brief effort. "Was looking for you," she admits sheepishly after a pause, flickering him a look that can only be chagrined, then changes to faint concern with a blink, "You're hurt?" The mention of Phylicia needing care has her turning her head, "And you too?" Seryth is meanwhile, crouching low and rolling to her side - offering an easy mount. Good thing she's still got her harness on.
M'nol nods solemnly to Tenebrous, "Faraeth will give her the smoothest straight flight he can manage. Easiest would be for Phy and I to mount, then to have you carefully lift Thea up, Phy keeping her head solid, and wedge her between us. I didn't bring a injured palatte." He looks a tad embarrassed about that, surely something he should have thought of." He casts a sad look to Thea, "I'm fine. Phy sent for me. The wing doesn't know. Is there anyone… anyone you want me to have Faraeth or Bloodstone bring to meet you there?" He gives Tene another quick nod, "I'll be sure she sleeps. It's just a touch of ropeburn, I think."
Tenebrous smiles slightly, looking at the two teenagers and shaking his head. "Yeah," he says quietly. "You be sure she sleeps." Without another word, he moves towards Seryth, rather than Faraeth, and begins strapping Thea in, as if he knew how. "At least we're not actually going to the moon," he mutters to himself, cinching Thea in with a little jerk. He holds her upright, nodding once to Seryth. "Straighten slowly. I'll climb up." The other two people don't even get a second glance. Mad? Oh yes. Quite mad.
Phylicia pauses, not having started to mount yet. But she thought- "What are you doing? I thought we were taking Thea?" She asks. She's not totally mad, just .. bewildered. The important thing is Thea /will/ be getting to the infirmary one way or another. But Phy lets it drop for the moment being, grumbling to M'nol very softly. "I'm tying /both/ of them to beds in the infirmary."
"No!" This word comes out clearly, firmly. "No, I'm-" Thea swallows, "I'm fine!" She lifts her head from the healer's shoulder, "Don't take me back there." Her head slowly lowers, with a grimace. "Just a headache." All this as she's being ignored and strapped in. M'nol's question has her looking faintly alarmed. "No! And… just forget to make a report of this please!" Seryth is rolling back, remaining crouched and waiting the journeyman to climb up. "Nooo!" Thea's weak attempt at stalling the inevitable.
M'nol nods, mounting Faraeth as he does so, "perhaps chains might be better." Faraeth extends his leg for Phy into something closely resembling a slide as M'nol reaches out to lend her a hand even though her raw palms might object. While he helps Phy mount he glances back at Thea, "The great process-mistress asking me not to make a report? Must be serious. And I thought those rumors about you and D'had were all talk." His grin is a tad evil now that he knows she's not in life-threatening danger.
Tenebrous climbs up the leads that bring him to his own harness on Seryth's back, and he begins strapping himself in. That done, he leans Thea's body back against his, wrapping his arms around her protectively and gripping bracing straps tight. "Live Ammo," Tenebrous calls to Phylicia. "Good work." He nods his head to M'nol with respect, and then closes his eyes. "Strength and courage override," he quotes in a whisper. Then he falls silent. Let's go… His thoughts range out wearily.
"Rumors about me and D’had, M'nol?" Thea's puzzled at this. Tenebrous climbs up, she is pulled back against him, too tired for the moment to fuss. "You ran for a reason," she mutters rebelliously as her head finds his shoulder once more, not really thinking of anything but easing herself out of this situation. The whisper has her tilting her head a bit further back to peer up at Tenebrous in concern, "You…shouldn't be riding." Seryth has a mind of her own tonight. Her wings lift and she's launching into the night sky bidden not by her Rider but by her own love. She's aloft and turning towards the Weyr…
Phylicia's cheeks color faintly under the praise of 'you didn't screw up' as she accepts M'nol's hand up. Accepting that is going to be less painful than dragging herself up. Apparently mounting a dragon is nothing like climbing a tree, because she still takes a little bit to settle, though with her palms, she'll let M'nol buckle her in again. "Buckle in?" She asks, her voice softly pleading. "I don't want to let the pair out of my sight." She doesn't know Tene, but she's heard of him running out of the infirm half-healed, and she /saw/ his torso.
M'nol nods, buckling both of them in, "Buckles for safety for us, following for safety for them." He's developed a new respect for this night, but he wasn't about to risk either the healer or Thea by not making sure they got proper care.
M'nol puts the final straps in place and whispers to Phylicia, "I'll have to tell Niva and D'son no matter what." Then Faraeth's in the air behind Seryth, following the distraught gold back to the Weyr and infirmary.
Thea groans and simply gives up, telling M'nol with an uncoordinated handflip, "Then report to your Wingleader as well, M’nol. Don't want you to get in trouble."
Phylicia braces herself for the launch, still not relaxing just yet. "Just tell them Thea's request. Keep it away from D'had, for whatever reason." Stressing out a possible head-injured person is not a cool idea at all. And now she tightens her hold, bracing for *between*. This is going to sting…
Seryth's croon is one of thankfulness, and a quiet reminder to Faraeth to be safe before strong wingbeats birth soon cyclonic winds. Then, with a powerful lunge that is somehow gentle for her riders, she soars upwards into the sky…and abruptly vanishes *between*. On top of the night and the wind, and the rush of the falls, a single, pure flute-note sighs into silence, the aftershock of Seryth's passing with her passengers…
Continues in I Can't Stop the Rain