Feysal
(Day 3)

P'ker stepped over and looked at it, "He's right.  It isn't completely tight."

"I didn't expect it to be," M'yer answered as he hopped down from the dike 
with a muddy splash.  "We should go help evacuating the Nomads from their 
village.  We should get them to the upper green first."

M'yer turned to Feysal, "Get the others and the hatchlings.  Go to the
upper green.  Help if you can up there."

Feysal nodded his understanding and trotted over to where the other
riders were clustered awaiting more instructions. Having grown up in the dry 
Nomadlands, he could never have imagined so much water in one place at the 
same time.  Fires, raids by other tribes, these were threats he could 
understand; but the concept of a "flood" was entirely new to him, and he was 
frankly at a loss as to how to handle it.  If only Khazeen were here...

He mentally slapped himself for that thought.  He had finally accepted that 
Khazeen had been only a man, not a god, but in times of stress he still found 
himself subconsciously calling on him for assistance.  He had to put that 
part of his life behind him as a bad experience and nothing more.  Now he had 
other things to worry about, such as Saleh.  He had been more than willing to 
do his duty in trying to shore up the wall that held the worst of the water 
back from the warren, but his thoughts kept straying to her.  Was she all 
right?  All he'd been able to do was hope.  Now he would, hopefully, be able 
to come to her assistance himself.

      He saw Ankara standing there, and hurried over to her.  He could 
communicate with her more readily than some of the others, since he could 
speak the language of the Nomads to her.  His command of the tongue they 
spoke in this place was halting and uncertain, at best.  "P'ker says we are 
to go to upper green," he told her.  "Take hatchlings up there, and be of any 
help we can."

     She nodded her understanding.  "This is good idea," she agreed.  "I was 
concerned for Ivee and Eness.  Let us go."

     Together, they got the other trainees and hatchlings moving up toward 
the greater safety of the upper green.  It was a slow process, since the 
young dragons still couldn't do much more than glide, and certainly weren't 
up such a steep ascent by air; and at least two, Ivee and Nikol's Azarbull, 
couldn't seem to manage flight at all.

     Finally, though, they made it.  He wasn't sure they were entirely safe 
even here, since the terrain above the green continued to slope upward.  He 
could well imagine the possibility that more water could come rushing down at 
them from the hills above; but for all that, they were probably much safer up 
here than they were down in the canyon below, which seemed to be the water's 
natural path.

     He couldn't stay here, though.  He might be safe, but Saleh was down 
below...and if the wall of sandbags they'd abandoned were to give out, she 
and the tribe would be in great danger.  He knew that M'yer and P'ker had 
gone off to help, but he couldn't rest till he knew that Saleh was safe.

     *Falorin!* he called, and a moment later the blue dragon was standing at 
his side.

     [You called, my rider?]  he asked.

     *We must go and help Saleh!* he told him, vaulting up between the 
dragon's shoulders and strapping himself in.

     [Verdanth said we were to stay here...]

     *I do not care what Verdanth says!  I care only about saving Saleh!*

     [Very well,] said Falorin, who clearly wasn't very happy with his 
rider's decision.  He turned and began to move as quickly as he could toward 
the edge of the green.

     With a push of his hindlegs, Falorin launched himself off and was then 
gliding downward toward the Nomad encampments.  [Getting back up there won't 
be as easy, you know,] he said.

     *Yes, I know this, do not need dragon to tell me this!* Feysal huffed.  
*You just get me there, I will do rest!*

     [I don't suppose that will include carrying me back up to the green, 
will it?] Falorin grumped as he made an ungainly touchdown and came to a 
running stop.  Feysal unstrapped himself and leaped to the ground.

     "Saleh!" he called, making his way through the confusion of the 
evacuation.  "Saleh!"

     "Feysal!"

     He turned at hearing his name, and saw her sprinting towards him.   
"Feysal, why have you come?" she asked, coming to a stop before him.  "We are 
leaving this place!"

     "I have come to take you to safety!" he told her.  "Falorin will take us 
up high in warren, where water has not come!"

(Tag Arlene - will she go with Feysal?  Considering Falorin's flying 
experience, it might be an interesting ride if she does...)

* * * * * * * *
Renata

     "But if no one stays at the wall of sandbags to shore it up, the water 
will break right through!" she told P'ker, as the rider mounted his dragon.

     "It'll hold for now," he told her.  "It can't keep all the water out 
anyway.  Our priority now is to get the Nomads out of the path of the flood!"

     "But if it *does* go..." she said worriedly.

     "Then the trainees would be swept away by the water," P'ker told her.  
"If you want to help, go and stand by the wall and shore it up if it does 
begin to sag."

     She watched in dismay as Verdanth and Dotarth took to the sky, then 
turned her attention back toward the barrier that spanned the upper end of 
the Cleft.  P'ker was right, of course...it would probably hold for awhile by 
itself...and it would be suicide for anyone to be up there when it eventually 
gave out. 

     She hurried up to the wall and climbed up to where she could see over 
it.  Vega sat down behind her and peered out over the barrier as well.  
Together, they watched the water rise by tiny increments.

     *Well, it seems to be holding,* Renata told her dragon.

     [Yes, it does...Renata, look!!] Vega cried, the tone of her mindvoice 
suddenly rising in alarm.

     Renata looked up and watched in horror as the river on the other side of 
the barrier suddenly surged alarmingly.  *Something else upstream must have 
been holding part of the water back, and now it's given way!* she told Vega.  
Now the water was rising perceptibly, creeping inch by inch up the protective 
wall.  Without additional shoring, it couldn't hope to hold!

     [Shall I call back Verdanth and Dotarth?] Vega asked nervously.

     *No, they're needed where they are,* Renata told the dragon.  *But tell 
Ayesha that the barrier's in danger!*  

    It was clear now that the barrier wouldn't hold indefinitely, no matter 
what she and Vega did.  Still...the longer it held the more time the two 
riders would have to get the Nomads clear of the flood; and, of no small 
importance, the more time Madyllin and the others would have to clear out the 
lower levels of the warren itself.

    Only a crazy person would stay at that wall, she knew.  Then again, she'd 
been crazy enough to go to Geode for the sole purpose of dying heroically 
there...not to mention being crazy enough to accompany C'aranth into a 
cave-full of wild dragons.  She supposed she qualified for the job as well as 
anyone.  *Vega!* she called.  *Brace the wall, quickly...and tell Jeratko to 
have his rider come up here too!"  C'aranth would, no doubt, have gotten the 
little dragon to safety now, and could come and help her.  She'd need all the 
help she could get.

     Already, rivulets of water were pouring from the cracks between the 
sandbags, and in one place the stacked bags were beginning to push inwards 
from the weight of water behind them.  If they toppled, all was lost.

     [I think I can stop it!] Vega told her, rushing past Renata and laying 
herself down against the wall of sandbags.  Using her weight to 
counterbalance the pressure from the other side, she scooted herself sideways 
against the wall, pushing the sandbags back into place.

     *Good girl!* Renata cried.

     [I can't hold this for too long by myself!] Vega warned her, extending 
all four legs outward from the wall and using them to brace herself, while 
using her tail to hold another section in place.

     *Hold on as long as you can!* Renata told her, picking up a sandbag and 
tossing it onto the pile.  She could use some help at this, and hoped 
C'aranth wasn't long in arriving.

     "Renata!"

     She whirled at the sound of his voice, and breathed a sigh of relief as 
she saw C'aranth hurrying toward her.  With his great strength and endurance 
to aid the repair work, they'd be able to hold out longer...or so she hoped.

     Her relief was short lived, though, as she saw the small, four-legged 
form that accompanied him.  "C'aranth, what's Jeratko doing here?" she 
demanded.  "He's in danger!"

     C'aranth looked down at the small dragon, then back at Renata.  "He is 
here to help," he told her matter-of-factly.  "His duty lies in saving the 
warren, as does mine."

     Renata blinked in astonishment.  "You''ve got to be kidding!" she cried. 
 "C'aranth, he can barely walk!  He's less than a day old, for the gods' 
sake!  He can't help here!  And when that water breaks, he's the least able 
of us to escape!"

    C'aranth shook his head stoutly.  "Then you and Vega must leave too!  If 
you stay, then we stay!"

     "What is the matter with you?" she demanded.  "Did you mother hand you a 
sword when you were one day old and tell you to go out and fight for the 
honor of the warren?  That's what you're expecting this little one to do!"

     "You are talking nonsense!" he told her.

     "So are you!" she retorted hotly.  She didn't have time to argue with 
him; Vega couldn't hold up the wall much longer without help, so she decided 
on something more drastic.  "All right, help me pick Jeratko up."

     C'aranth blinked.  "Pick him up?  Why?"

     "Because the only way he can help here is to function as another 
sandbag!" she shouted.  "Help me toss him up there!"

(Tag Darren - I figured that C'aranth's sense of honor is a lot more solid 
than that wall of sandbags, and that Renata would have to apply a little 
reverse psychology to get him to save his hatchling.  Does it work? :)

* * * * * * * *
Trevor
(at the lake)

>Cynthia followed his gaze toward where three dragons were flying toward
them.  The three landed and one rider dismounted. Trevor rose from the grass 
and helped Cynthia to her feet.  "Lonnie?" she asked as they approached him.

>"I'm so glad I found you," he said quickly, "You won't believe what's
happening back at the Warren."

>"And that would be?" Cynthia prompted him.

     "Cynthia, you've got to come back!" Lonnie said urgently.  "Cleft is 
flooding!"

     "Flooding?" Cynthia and Trevor demanded together.

     "Yes, flooding!" Lonnie told them.  "We've looked all over for you two!  
Why weren't you where you said you'd be?"

     "I left a map to show where we were!" said Trevor.  "I had this very 
place marked!"

     "Let's worry about that later," said Cynthia, her face tight with worry. 
 "Come on, let's go!"

     They decided to leave the tent and their other belongings where they 
were for the moment, and took time only to saddle Syren and Trissana before 
departing.  With Meritanth leading, they took off and immediately teleported 
back to Cleft.

     When they appeared above the warren, Trevor's eyes widened in shock.  
The river which had always flowed so placidly through the middle of the 
warren was now a raging torrent!  The river had overflowed its banks, the 
water covering the lower green and invading the lowermost levels of the 
warren itself.  He could see water going into his and Cynthia's quarters, and 
wondered what sort of damage had already been done.

     [Oh, my rider...] Triss said, her mindvoice filled with fear.  [Our 
home...!]

     *Set us down on the upper green,* he told the pearl dragon, "and ask 
Syren to do the same.  Don't worry, Cupcake, we'll deal with this somehow.*

     Triss immediately banked over toward the upper green, and the other 
dragons did likewise.  He and Cynthia quickly dismounted, and the Warrenlady 
rushed to the edge of the green to stare in horror at what had become of her 
beloved warren.  

     "Oh, Trevor...we shouldn't have left," she said softly, as he came up to 
stand behind her and place his hands on her shoulders.

     "This would have come whether you were here or not," he told her firmly. 
 "Triss says that no dragons have been hurt, at least not yet."

     "Madyllin has taken charge of clearing the lower levels of the warren," 
Lonnie told them.  "The first priority has been to get the warrenfolk up out 
of the water's way, and  after that to try and save anything else that's 
movable.  But there's going to be quite a bit of damage, I'm afraid."

     "To the furnishings and fixtures, yes," Trevor agreed.  "But even this 
much water can't sweep the warren itself away."

     Cynthia pointed to the upper end of the Cleft.  "But if that wall of 
sandbags goes, it'll be much worse," she said.

      "Vega's down there," said Trevor.  "I don't see any other 
dragons...looks like she and Renata must be holding it alone."

     "The river's started rising faster!" Lonnie said worriedly.  "If the 
wall breaks before the lower levels are cleared...!"

     "If those two stay, they'll be washed away when it breaks!" Cynthia said.

     "The more help they have, the longer it may hold," he told her.  "Your 
warren needs you, Cynthia.  I'll help them buy you the time you need!"

     "That's crazy!" she said, whirling around to face him.  "It's bad enough 
to lose them...I *won't* lose you!"

     "You won't, I promise you!" he told her, drawing her to him for just a 
moment.  "We'll get out before it goes, believe me!"

     He kissed her quickly, then dashed over to Triss.  Mounting the pearl 
dragon, he directed her to take off before Cynthia could protest further.

     *Take us down there, Cupcake!* he told the dragon.  Triss sailed out 
over the edge of the green and dove down, throwing up a spray of water as she 
backwinged in to land in the shallow water below the dike.  Up close, the 
situation looked even worse than it had from up above, as Renata and Vega 
fought a losing battle against the rising water.

     Triss quickly moved herself against the wall of sandbags, taking some of 
the pressure off of Vega and allowing them together to hold a wider front.  
The real danger, Trevor saw, was on either side of the dragons; there, 
without their weight to support the sandbags, the barrier was in imminent 
danger of crumbling.  Even with Renata, C'aranth, and himself working to 
shore up the ends, the situation was desperate.

      *Triss, call Varie!" he cried, as he grabbed a sandbag and tossed it up 
onto the wall.  *Have her bring my mother and Turner!*  If there was one 
person at Cleft who'd know how to save the wall, it would be Turner.

(Tag Barb - gee, how's *that* for a vote-of-confidence? :)

NRPG:  Sorry for the long delay in posting...this last month has been 
completely crazy, RL-wise, and it's been very difficult to find time to sit 
down and write.  Hopefully the worst of it is behind me, though. :)

Submitted by:

John

Trevor & Trissana
Renata & Vega
Feysal & Falorin
Kellie & Varie

Cleft Warren

Warrenlady Tara & Queen Varaenna, Jasra Warren
T'rell & Flerrion, Daere Warren
Martyn & Havelok, Marrid Warren



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