Day 3

/snip from Arlene's post)

<< Bohoc screamed, turning in mid flight.  He threw his body into the 
stampede,
 crushing some, but blocking the rest from trampling his rider.
 <*Andahar!!!*> The link was not broken, but his rider did not answer.
 Roaring in anger and fear, Bohoc thrashed out at the animals around him,
 searching for Andahar.  In the wake that was created around him, he saw the
 still and bleeding form of his rider.  He nuzzled him, but he did not
 respond.
 
 <*TRISS!!!  Go home!  Get your rider!  Get help!!*>
/end snip/

     Trissana was almost in a panic as she circled overhead, and was at the 
same time horrified that she'd caused this to happen to Bohoc's rider, who'd 
always been so good to her.  [But what if the wraiths come back while you're 
on the ground?] she fretted.

     [My rider needs help, Triss!] Bohoc told her.  [You have to go and get 
help!]

     [I'll be right back!] she reluctantly agreed, and teleported back to the 
warren.

* * * * * * * *

     "Well, it's in pretty bad shape, isn't it?" Yarik asked, looking at the 
remains of Cynthia's ball.  

     "Pretty bad," Trevor agreed.  "I really don't think it was made for 
dragons to play tug of war with.  Can you fix it?"

     "Yes, I imagine I can," said Yarik.  "But if you're going to let 
Trissana play with it, the same thing will probably just happen again.  Look, 
why don't I make a new ball that's a little better suited for this sort of 
thing?"

     "You can do that?" Trevor asked, surprised.

     "No problem," the older man assured him.  "Just take a small wooden 
ball, and wind it round and round with rubber strips until it's the right 
size, and then cover it with leather...about twice the thickness of this 
other one, I'd think.  Won't bounce worth a darn, but it'll survive almost 
anything."

     Trevor chuckled.  "It'll have to," he said.  "Thanks, Yarik!"

     "Anytime," Yarik told him.

     Trevor had just left the leather shop and was walking out onto the green 
when his dragon appeared in the sky above.  She sideslipped to lose altitude 
quickly, landing so abruptly that Trevor felt the ground shake when she 
alighted.  

     [My rider, my rider!!] she cried frantically.  [There's trouble...you 
have to come!!]

     *Trouble?* he asked.  *What kind of trouble?*

     [Bohoc...his rider's hurt...it was my fault...you have to come now!!]

     Trevor realized that this must be serious, and he got the dragon saddled 
as quickly as he could.  Moments later they were airborne.  Triss was so 
agitated that Trevor then had to take a moment to try and calm her before 
he'd risk a teleport.

     They appeared in the exact spot from which Triss had teleported away a 
few moments earlier.  He saw Bohoc below, curled protectively around the 
still form of Andahar.  And above them...wraiths!

     [They came back!] Triss cried, watching as one by one the wraiths swept 
earthward to attack the stationary dragon.  Bohoc released a jet of flame, 
incinerating one of the gray shrouds and momentarily scattering the others, 
but they quickly circled in to attack again.

     *We've got to drive those wraiths off!* Trevor told Triss.

     [I...I don't know how...!] she said fearfully.

     Trevor was about to tell her that he'd guide her, but realized that he 
knew no more about wraith-fighting tactics than she did.  *Well...we'll just 
have to do our best,* he told her.  

     Triss dove on the swarming wraiths, flaming two of them at point-blank 
range as she swept through their formation.  They scattered yet again, but 
the dragon let out a loud yelp as one of them just grazed her tail.  *Now, 
turn!!!* Trevor cried.

     Triss looped up into a climbing turn, coming out onto the tail of 
another wraith.  The pearl dragon flamed again, but the blast went wide and 
the wraith escaped.  She hadn't, Trevor belatedly realized, factored in the 
wind direction or their own movement relative to it.    She got a second 
chance, however, when the wraith changed direction and shot right underneath 
her.  At such a close range she couldn't miss, and didn't.

     Fortunately, there weren't many of the terrible creatures, and Bohoc had 
meanwhile taken out two more as they dove in to attack him.  As Triss turned 
to make another pass, the few remaining wraiths turned and flew off to seek 
easier targets among the nearby herds of grazing animals.

     Triss quickly landed, and Trevor leaped off to check on Andahar.  He 
knew they needed to get out of here as quickly as possible, before the 
wraiths decided to return.  *Keep an eye out, and tell me if you see them 
coming back!* he told her.

     Andahar was unconscious when Trevor reached him.  He saw that the young 
Nomad's hair and clothing were singed as if from being close to a fire...and 
the charred treetrunk next to them gave him a good idea of how that had 
happened.  As Bohoc looked on in concern, Trevor knelt down next to him and 
poured some water from his canteen onto Andahar's face.  

     "Andahar...Andahar!" he called.  "Can you hear me?"  He didn't want to 
risk moving him until he had some idea of the extent of the Nomad's injuries. 
 If his back or neck were injured, then only S'lomon would know how to move 
him without injuring him further.  "Andahar, can you hear me?"

     Andahar's eyes fluttered open.  "Water would be...better in mouth 
than...on face," he said groggily.  Well, if he was conscious, that in itself 
was a good sign, Trevor decided.  He handed the canteen to Andahar, who took 
it with a shaky hand.

     After taking a long sip, he looked up at Trevor.  "Your dragon 
cannot...hit broadside...of barn," he said ruefully, but still managed a bit 
of a smile.

     "So I see," the mapmaker reluctantly agreed.  "Listen, we need to get 
you out of here.  Those wraiths might be back any time.  Can you move?  How 
bad are you hurt?"

(Tag Arlene)

* * * * * * * *
(Later, back at the warren)

     *Hold still,* Trevor told his dragon, as he smeared a numbing salve onto 
the burn on her tail.  

     [Sorry,] she told him.  [It hurts!]

     *I know, Cupcake, I know,* Trevor said soothingly.  *I'm not very good 
at this.  It would have been better to let S'lomon do it.*

     [No!] she asserted.  [Not until he has done whatever he can for Bohoc's 
rider!  This is not a bad burn...it just hurts.]

     *Well, tell Leis to have his rider come over and check what I've done as 
soon as he finishes with Andahar,* Trevor reminded her.  

     [I will,] she told him.  [It is all my fault that this happened, my 
rider.  I was trying to flame a wraith, but ended up setting the tree on 
fire...with Bohoc's rider in it!]

     *No, it isn't your fault!* Trevor told her sternly.  He walked up to her 
head and let her rest her cheek against him, something she always did when 
she was troubled.  *It's mine...this wouldn't have happened if I'd argued 
more strongly with J'errid that day.*  He'd let J'errid talk him out of 
joining the wing because it might have interfered with his mapping 
duties...which he hadn't been performing anyway, for various reasons.  But 
that was an error he intended to correct.  *Are Shinner and his rider in the 
warren?* he asked.

     [Yes, Shinner is here.  He says his rider is in the dining hall, if you 
want to talk to him.]

     *Tell Shinner I'm on my way,* he told her.  *And do NOT forget to talk 
to Leis!*  

* * * * * * * *
(A short time later, dining hall)

     Dan'yar listened intently as Trevor related what had happened out in the 
Nomadlands, or at least what he'd been able to piece together from what his 
dragon had told him.  To say the least, she'd been reluctant to talk about it.

     "...and that's pretty much it," he concluded.  "She's about as fast as 
any other dragon I've seen, and isn't afraid to fight...but her marksmanship 
is awful!  If that last wraith had come up underneath her instead of trying 
to get away, she'd have...well, she could have ended up like Kracken did.  
She can't hit them unless they're right in front of her nose."

     Dan'yar drummed his fingers on the table.  "Has she had any training at 
all in wraith-fighting?" the wingleader asked.  "Or, for that matter, have 
either of you?"

     Trevor shook his head.  "None at all," he said.  "We went through 
Qedhar's basic training course...how to fly, flame, and teleport, basically.  
But when Reain and the others went on to the more advanced stuff they teach 
the wingriders, J'errid took us out."

     "Why?" Dan'yar asked.

     "He felt it would interfere with our other duties," Trevor said.  "I 
really thought we could do both...the mapping flights and the regular 
patrols...but J'errid didn't agree with me."

     "Did you talk to Cynthia about it?" Dan'yar asked.  "She could have 
overruled J'errid, you know.  Assuming she agreed with you, of course."

     Trevor shook his head.  "No...I didn't do that because I didn't want 
everyone in the warren thinking I'd 'pulled strings' to get my way.  And, 
frankly, I couldn't think of a real reason to fight him over it...at that 
time, at least.  Today I learned differently.  If Trissana and I are going to 
do the job we came here to do, she...and I, I suppose...need to have some 
idea of what to do if we run into wraiths and wilders.  Look...the dragons 
and riders of Syren's last clutch are ready to start wing training.  I'd like 
to put in a request...that Triss and I be allowed to join them."

(Tag Barb)

Submitted by:

John

Trevor & Trissana
Cleft Warren     

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