Threats and counter-threats Part 1

Writers: Devin, Paula, Suzee
Date Posted: 26th March 2015

Characters: Corowal, N'vanik, Cyradis
Description: Corowal comes to see the Weyrleaders for explanation and it doesn't go smoothl
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 11, day 1 of Turn 7
Notes: Mentioned: J'ackt

Notes: Yet another follow up for "Unchained Rage"

Notes: part 1 of 2

N'vanik

Cyradis

Corowal thanked the elderly dragonrider pair who had offered him a

ride to the Weyr. He took off his jacket and strode purposefully

towards the Weyrleader's office. His face betrayed no emotions. He

knew N'vanik was expecting him.

The Weyrleader was waiting by the open door. "Lord Corowal." He

stepped aside. "Please have a seat." Ugh, what a sharding mess.

"Weyrleader N'vanik. Thank you for receiving me and on such a short

notice," Corowal replied, keeping his tone respectful. "My duty to

you, Loseth," he gave the bronze a half-bow before taking the offered

seat.

There was no need to start with hostility, not when he didn't have all

the facts. The news that had reached Emerald Falls had been worrisome,

and too vague.

"I wish we were meeting under better circumstances." N'vanik sat

behind his desk. "Would you like anything to drink?" The Lord wasn't

fuming yet, so he took that as a good sign and played the polite

Weyrleader.

"I wish so too. No thanks," Corowal sighed and declined the

refreshements. "What exactly happend here? I only know that one of my

holders was injured, by your dragonrider?"

"An Emerald Falls man challenged one of my weyrlings to a match with

wooden swords. Poor judgement on both their parts. Then the man drew a

real knife on my weyrling and J'ackt defended himself." N'vanik chose

to frame it that way rather than acknowledging that J'ackt could have

walked away. "We're lucky no one died."

Corowal frowned a bit. "Yes, luck indeed. That name does crop up often

when something bad happens. How badly my man was injured?"

Cyradis walked purposefully into N'vanik's office without invitation

and without smile. "My Lord," she nodded at Corowal. "Panitath told me

you were visiting." **At least Loseth thought to inform me** She had

not a single doubt as to why he was here.

"Weyrwoman." N'vanik gestured toward the other chair. "I hope we

didn't interrupt you, but the Lord Holder wanted to discuss this

matter urgently." N'vanik turned to Corowal. "The guard has a

concussion, a broken jaw, and considerable damage to the left side of

his face. You can at least rest assured that he's being given the best

medical care."

She took the seat that had been offered. She hadn't missed the

question from the Lord Holder as she'd come in though she had missed

N'vanik's statement of events. "Of course," she nodded. "We assumed

you would. The young dragon rider was also injured with a steel blade

your guard pulled on him when they'd been sparing with wooden practice

swords. Or at least that is what the witnesses say." Her gaze was

leveled at Corowal though it wasn't challenging. She simply wanted him

to know that the damage to the two had been mutual. "Do you have any

idea why he chose to goad J'ackt into a fight?"

Corowal had stood up as soon as she entered and remainded standing

until she was seated. "My duty to you, Weyrwoman." A gentleman didn't

sit if woman was standing. He found it curious that she hadn't been

present right from the start.

"For revenge, I presume. The man's father was the guard injured by

Jenackt...J'ackt when he escaped the prison," Corowal saw no reason

not to tell it to them. They would found it out anyway. "He was acting

on his own, his actions were not sanctioned by me," Corowal wanted to

make that clear. "It was stupid of him and he paid for it. He does

have a wife and three young children, who just want their dad back."

He looked from Weyrleader to Weyrwoman. "Meanwhile, the word that

reached us about the fight, has caused concern and fear among my

people. You do know how news get twisted when the travel from mouth to

mouth. I would like to have Cronfur transported to Emerald Falls Hold

as soon as the healers judge it safe and some sort of public gesture

from Weyr to assure the people that we are not just going to sweep

this incident under the rug."

"We will discipline our rider," N'vanik said with a slight edge to his
voice.

"And do you honestly think we would sweep anything under the rug

Corowal? Have your people somehow forgotten that we put our bodies and

our dragons between them and Thread every single time it falls? Do

they perhaps think they can be judge and jury without so much as

hearing the case then?" She didn't quite sneer but her eyes were as

black as night without the moons. "As my Weyrleader has said. We will

discipline our rider. But your people will not decree the form of that

discipline."

"Yes, they do tend to forget things like that when between the Falls.

There are people in Emerald Falls hold who still feel animosity

towards dragonriders. They're not just going to take my word for it

that the culprit has been punished," Corowal replied with cool and

calm voice. "They are afraid. Fear does not listen to reason. I hope

you do. I've worked very hard to repair damages my cousin did

hold/weyr relations. Do you really think I would just throw all that

work away? The problem is Jenackt...J'ackt. He's a thief and

escapee...he broke out of jail and escaped justice. Then he went and

Impressed the bronze. That grid wrong way to many people's sense of

justice. Instead of justice, he got rewarded for his misdeeds. They

don't care that he had wretched childhood and was stealing to avoid

starving to death."

Cyradis shook her head. She'd have thought all the turns of protecting

the holds from Thread would give them a glimmer of understanding. "I

know you have, but that thief and escapee, as you call him, could one

day be Weyrleader. Did you think of that? Or did you want to punish

him with his dragon so young that the emotion will make him /between/

in terror. There are so few bronzes hatched that I'm not going to

sacrifice this one for the fears of your holders. We have to find

another way to resolve this."

"I don't want to lose a dragon any more than you do but holders need

to be appeased or I'll have mutiny at my hands...or tithe blockade,"

Corowal's voice was getting colder word by word. What he really wanted

to say to her was: shut up and don't meddle in affairs you have no

understanding in. But he swallowed those words and pushed such thoughts

away. They would totally ruin his image as an open-minded, progressive

Lord Holder. "We need some sort of public gesture to bring people
peace of mind."

***continues***

Last updated on the May 9th 2015

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

Threats and counter-threats Part 1