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((This is a crappy map of the area. Thread is falling in the gray region, as you can see it passes direction over Fort Weyr and brushes Fort Hold))

Quiet orderly chaos. Riders rushed here and there, filling bags of firestone. Slowly, the chaos seemed to disappear as dragons and riders cleared the weyrbowl. Already seated upon Zorith, V’tos gave an exaggerated wave. One by one the rest of the wing fell into position, V’tos at the head of the large V shape.

Zorith began to speak to the dragons, passing along the information his rider had given him. All right, Threadfall’s over our Weyr today and the leading front will hit in about an hour. We need to be ready to meet it, so lets go. The bronze waited a moment for the other dragons to confirm and then spoke irritably to V’tos. What are you waiting for!?

The weyrleader chucked and raised his arm. As it fell the entire wing took off. The entire day before, the weyrlings had been drilled in what to expect with this thread. It was over a fairly mountainous area so they didn’t need to worry if some thread reached the ground. The weather was fairly calm and sunny, so the thread should fall in straight patches. Unfortunately the same nice weather that would keep the thread from bunching up also meant that the riders would bear the brunt of the threadfall.

The wing had barely gotten off the ground before the next group of dragonriders swarmed the bowl. K’vok took the point position, with R’ign to the back and side of him. Again the weyrlings were scattered into the wing, each one surrounded by experienced riders.

For the entire threadfall there would be three wings flying. Wing 1 would fly on the highest level, Wing 2, and then finally Wing 3. They would meet the threadfall head on before Fort Weyr and fly until it reached the oceans, about a two hour threadfall in all. Each weyrling had explicit instructions to let the thread fall if there was anyway they could get harmed going after it. As R’ign had told them sternly, “No heroics!”

As the first wing disappeared between, Wing 2 rose up in the air. As Zorith relayed the actual scene, over the mountains with a faint cloudlike mass on the horizon, K’vok raised his arm. Another beat and he signaled the wing to follow him between.

Eventually all three wings were facing the threadfall arranged in a tier. A gentle wind tugged at the riders’ straps as the first thread began to approach them. It went as well as threadfall ever does, until the wind picked up sharply.

The gentle breeze became fitful gusts of wind, tossing the thread into each other and creating large tangles that changed directions suddenly. The entire mood changed, a desperate edge of tension filling the air.

Without warning a large tangle of thread dropped in front of the weyrleader. V’tos and Zorith, experienced with such a phenomenon, skipped easily avoiding it. The weyrling pair behind him dove forward and let loose a searing tongue of flame.

Back at the hold, a trumpet of surprise sounded modulated into the keening of a dragon in mourning. Milliseconds later Tolara dropped the sack of firestone she was lugging and stared off into space in shock. The sudden hush of everyone in the weyr made Glith’s cries resound throughout the weyr. Slowly those around the weyrwoman made sympathetic noises as they began to return to work. Mechanically she joined them; there was no time to mourn during threadfall.

The resultant chaos caused the severe injuries of several more riders and weyrlings as Wing 1 seemed to dissolve. Taking charge of the decimated wing, T’rin directed those injured to return to Fort while Wing 1 dropped to join Wing 2. Morkth sent oua call t to all the dragons, Fort needs your help! Threadfall at Fort!

PROMPT:

T’rin dropped down near R’ign as a two smaller clumps fell in front of them. One fell quickly to the right as the other, by a gust of wind, was pushed higher.


PROMPT:

Gail managed to find a spot by G’dor, searing a clump above the bronze rider. It wasn’t the last clump though, as another followed just behind it. The wind caught it in a downdraft, speeding the deadly thread towards the two.


PROMPT:

The strong winds buffeted Garanth and K’elt. A sudden gust caught the bronze unprepared pushing towards a stray clump of thread.

PROMPT:

Out of the corner of her eyes Aoki catches a glance of a clump of thread under Garanth. The wind that had been teasing them suddenly gusted upwards, carrying the thread with it. At the same time, another nearby clump gets spun towards the back of Tarnith. Unfortunatly there’s only time to flame one of the clumps.


((All right, you still have nearly an hour and a half (IC) of threadfall to go through! There’s no time to mourn V’tos’ death. A dragonrider must fight thread. There are several prompts that you, the players, must respond to. Any incoming help from Benden will have a prompt written up for them. After you respond, a new prompt may come up so keep on your toes!))

R'ign dodged various dragons and riders as she ran to Kerth's side, a firestone bag in her hands. The blue bent down as his rider drew near and R'ign leapt to her lifemate's back. Strapping the firestone bag in with the special knot that only took a tug to undo, R'ign began stoking Kerth with the phosphorus-bearing rock. She watched him as he carefully chewed the stone, knowing that a cut tongue would keep them on the ground during Threadfall.

Once Kerth was almost ready, he paused to get instructions from both Zorith and K'vok's dragon. ((You never said his name... sweatdrop )) The blue then passed on these instructions to his rider as well as the sweep rider's report on the weather. R'ign nodded, then watched as V'tos's Wing took to the air. In only a few moments, they were in formation and then, together, disappeared between. That was their cue to get into formation. She took her spot behind and to the right of K'vok as the dragons swarmed into formation. She waited until Kerth got the location from K'vok's bronze, setting that firmly into her mind. Then they were given the signal and the Wing went between.

The Weyrlingmaster smiled at where they were to meet Threadfall. The mountainous region would be good for the Weyrlings- no new riders, she must stop thinking of them as Weyrlings- to get accustomed to the Threadfall routine. Every dragon turned to face the east, watching the grey smudge on the horizon.

She followed roughly half a dragonlenght behind and to the side of K'vok and his bronze. Kerth and R'ign kept the distance to prevent flaming their own Wingleader.

They were to be flying the middle layer, so the Thread would be somewhat clumped from where the above Wing would miss the Thread. The last Wing were to be cleaning up the mess, chasing stray Threads. Due to this, the last Wing was mostly blues and greens with only a few browns and one bronze. Most Weyrs flew a Queen's Wing as well, but as Glith was Fort's only gold and had a clutch, well, that Wing was nonexistant.

Suddenly Thread began to fall and Kerth was busy flaming the silvery fibers from the sky and keeping R'ign updated with news of the riders. She liked to be kept up-to-date on what was happening with all the Wings.

The blue turned to flame a small clump of Thread as it fell near them, informing his rider of the ongoings. Everyone is doing well. It's an easy Threadfall. Wait, the wind's changing! Thread is starting to clump! More firestone! Panic started to tinge the blue's mental tone as he turned his head to accept some firestone from R'ign.

The blue chewed carefully, but quickly, restoking his flame. He turned just in time to release a burst at a nearby clump. The blue spotted a clump starting to fall towards them. Mechanically, R'ign pictured the spot a dragonlength ahead and the pair darted between.

Kerth remerged, flaming at another clump. He picked back up his running commentary. The Weyrlings are having a bit of trouble with the wind and so are the greens. But I am strong enough to fly straight! Here Kerth boasted just a bit.

No! The blue's mental tone turns to one of disbelief and sadness. What!? Zorith darts between to avoid a clump and is flamed upon return. Badly. They return to between, but with no picture and don't return. R'ign sits in shock. The Weyrleader's dead? She wondered how Tolara was taking that.

Kerth suddenly veers to the right, snapping R'ign out of her thoughts, but with a sharp pain in her left shoulder. Mine? It's probably just dislocated, love. Keep going. R'ign pats the blue neck with her right hand, gripping the riding straps tighter.

V'tos's Wing is breaking up and joining ours. Several injured are returning to Fort. Kerth adds to his rider before turning to flame several clumps of Thread. Now they would have harder work as they were now the first Wing to meet Thread. Morkth calls for help.

Morkth dropped down beside Kerth, the two blues flaming several clumps. Two fairly small clumps fell before them. One dropped to the right and the other was pushed upwards by the wind.

Morkth, take the upper one! Kerth told the nearby blue as he and R'ign dove after the other clump. Kerth released a neat flame, charring the small clump to ashes. He flew back up to rejoin the Wing.

Morkth soared upwards to deal with the clump caught by the wind. The light blue was also carried upwards, but managed to char the Thread before trying to get back to Kerth. He was carried upwards even more, charring his way as he drifted closer to the Thread.

Morkth, here! R'ign had Kerth send an image of their area to the blue, placing the two half a dragonlength to her left. The two disappeared and remerged in place.

T'rin thanks you, Mine.

A flash of flame seared a single thread as it fell hungrily towards the ground. A green flit had come to fight alongside it's larger cousins. Agile, Kilra was able to get closer to the dragons than the riders could, and took advantage of this. She hovered next to K'elt's solid bronze keeping him between herself and the wind.

Every now and then the green darted out to scour small threads from the sky freeing up the riders to go after the larger clumps.

Netesath's Bugle peirced the air as she and Benden's Weyrwoman arived. We come to help! Beden to Fort!
Beriardi quickly worked the pump handle of her flame thrower searing what she could. A brown flit, Paz, flaming single threads the would score Benden's Sr. Queen.

((More help has arrived!!))

Appearing from between, Weith immediately set to work helping Garanth, whom she'd appeared near to. With a roar, she flamed a patch of Thread near the bronze's right wingtip before it could injure him, then swerved and pointed herself strait up (startling her rider), appearing to balance on her two tails as she burned a particularly long strand right overhead.

Off on their own mission, Shimmer and Twilight darted off to help sear those patches on the lower levels that managed to get through the higher wings...

Beriardi kept up a steady flame as she swung the nozzel in the direction of the thread clump, ignighting it and wooping in triumph as it turned to char.

K'makin guided Nakoreth around the outside of the line of fighting, wondering if they should just join in, or if they should recieve instructions.

It looked like sheer chaos out there; not the organized chaos of a normal Fall, but as though ... well, as though the Weyrleader had just died. Kya regretted that he hadn't met the former Weyrleader here, but ... well ... it couldn't be helped.

He shook his head, wishing he'd had time to do more than jam a helmet on his head and snatch his normal riding jacket. A flamethrower would be a great help in guarding Nakoreth's back... It can't be helped, he kept telling himself.

Let's just go in, and see where we can do some good, K'makin finally told Nakoreth. Do you see any spots where it looks like there isn't good coverage?

Yes. Without another comment, the brown traded some height for forward momentum, carrying the pair underneath a small patch of Thread, which Nakoreth promptly charred before moving on.