Devastation (3): The Grim Task Ahead

Writers: Dana, Eimi
Date Posted: 4th March 2006

Characters: Daigoro, Cinale
Description: Daigoro finds Cinale and rallies the men of the Hall to fight the fire
Location: Vintner Hall
Date: month 11, day 2 of Turn 3

Cinale

The shrill screams echoing off the falling stones and crumbling walls were deafening. The whole kitchen seemed to be ablaze with a roaring, crimson light. Dark smoke filled the air, stinging at Cinale's eyes, filling her lungs as she fought to breathe, making her retch. "Run, run! Get _out_!"
she screamed hoarsely, pulling at the arm of one of the younger girls who stood rooted to the spot, her eyes wide as tears streamed down her cheeks.
Cinale realized that she was staring at an arm.

It was the only part of the body that was visible beneath the slab of dark, dark stone.

Again, she jerked at the girl. "_Move_!" Coughing, she shoved the girl forward and, nearly toppling over on top of her as the ground beneath them groaned and shook.

Minutes after the shaking had stopped, above the sound of the frightened and injured, the Hallsecond's deep booming voice could be heard through the Hall. "Men! I need men! All men and boys uninjured to the kitchens! To the kitchens!"

When Daigoro had left the Hallmaster office he had run outside looking for the source of the smoke smell. He had found it, when he saw that the entire northeast corner of the building had collapsed in on itself. The Hallmaster's suits, along with his own, and fallen into to Master's Dining area, Cinale's Head Cook Suite, some of the kitchen girls quarters and the kitchens.

His first thought had been for Cinale as he had run back into the building rousing help. Now he almost collapsed in front of her in his relief as he saw her huddled together with some of the staff outside the kitchens.

"Cinale," he whispered, falling to his knees and pulling her into his arms.
"Are you all right? Are all of you all right?"

Her shaking hands grasped at his tunic, her cracked lips pressing against the side of his neck as she buried herself against him. "I'm fine - we're fine. But not all of us...oh, shards, Daigoro!" she whispered, her voice thick from the affects of the smoke as she remembered seeing bodies fall and not rising again.

"Thank the Egg you're all right," he breathed. He closed his eyes as his arms tightened around her. The Hallsecond took several deep breaths, calming his heart and reassuring himself that his love was still with him.
"What happened in there?"

She ran her hands down his back as she pulled away slightly so she could meet his eyes. Thank Faranth he wasn't hurt... Her hands drifted to his sides. Thank Faranth he was all right... "The floor above came down on us." She coughed. "And the walls...they all collapsed, Daigoro. And then...fire..."

Daigoro nodded as he pulled her to him once more, almost crushing her in his arms. He knew as much from what he had seen from outside the Hall. The Hallsecond knew the extent of the damage, knew just how lucky he was that his precious Cinale had not been in that part of the kitchen at that moment.
The men and apprentices were beginning to gather, fear and uncertainty written on their faces.

"All right you men," the Hallsecond said as he reluctantly pulled back from her. "Apprentices, start forming two lines. There is a fire in the kitchen. It must be controlled or the whole building will go. Masters and journeymen to the front of the lines. Master Gershal, your line will be handing buckets towards the fire. Master Anzel, yours will be running the buckets back to be refilled. Now men!"

Turning back to Cinale he whispered, "Get your girls together, love. Check who is missing. I will be back soon." He looked at the kitchen door.
He wasn't sure what they would find in there... "And best do it in the front Hall. Go now."

Her hands found his as they rose to their feet. "Be careful, hon," she told him softly before her lips whispered across his. Then, after she squeezed his hands, her fingers slid away and she turned to her girls, gathering them to her. "Follow me, and I want all of you to _stay together_."

Daigoro watched her go a moment before turning to Master Anzel and Gershal.
"All right men. Let's see what we're dealing with." Looking at the rest of them he said, "Let's get those lines formed! Start filling the buckets!
Journeyman Felatin, get a couple boys together and look for more buckets!
Try Ariavin's worshop! Let's get to it!"

He motioned the others to stand back as he felt the door. It wasn't nearly as hot as he thought it would be. That was a good sign. He lightly touched the knob. It was warm, but not unbearable. Carefully he opened the door and stood back as black smoke poured into the hall. Much to his surprise it quickly cleared. Ducking into the room, followed closely by the two masters, he could still see the fire burning, but most of the smoke escaped through a hole where part of the ceiling had once been.
The fire could have been much worse. It seemed to have been partially smothered by the second floor when it collapsed. That didn't mean it couldn't erupt again.

"We need to put that out," he called to his companions, pointing to the substantial, but not unmanageable fire that still burned. "We need to pull any loose wood off to the side carefully and try to rob it of some of its fuel. Then we need to start pouring water over the pile! Be careful. It could still be smoldering under there!" The Master's nodded their understanding. "I'm going to gather more men and check the rest of the Hall. I'll be back!"

As the two master set to work, the Hallsecond ran back out. He run down the halls calling to all able bodied men who were not attending to the injured to report to the main entrance immediately. As he ran passed one door, a head poked out of it.

"Daigoro!" Jio called.

The Hallsecond stopped and turned around. "We need your help, Jio. Get down to the main entrance!"

"But Miryene! She's in labor since this morning! I can't leave her alone."

The Hallsecond frowned. He needed every man to help. "I'll be back."

He finished his rounds headed back to the main entrance. There he found Cinale offering comfort to the woman. The men were gathering, just waiting for instructions. Many of them still looked dazed and frightened. He beckoned the Head Cook to him.

"What is it?" There were lines on her face that hadn't been there before -
lines of sadness, worry, anxiety. Fear. "What happened?"

Daigoro sighed as he looked down into her eyes. "The second floor collapsed as you said. Luckily, it seems to have covered most the fire. It still might be burning down there, but we can handle it, I think.
How are your girls?"

"Shaken. Bruised. A few are even burned, but nothing...life-threatening."
She folded her arms together, trying to hide their trembling. She would stay strong.

The Hallsecond nodded, running his fingers through his grey hair. "Fielton's been hurt on the head. I've sent a healer to him. The rest of the building seems intact. I have no idea how many casualties there are. But we need all the men." He reached for her hand. "I need you to do something for me.
Miryene is in labor. Jio is with her now. The healers are attenting the wounded. We can't leave her alone. She knows you and she trusts you. I need Jio to help. Can you get your girls to work tending the wounded and then get up to her room and send Jio to me?"

Her fingers linked tightly with his, her eyes stark. "Miryene's in _labor_?" she breathed.

He nodded. "Since this morning apparently. I need someone with a cool head with her. And I need men for when we start searching... through the rubble." It was a process Daigoro didn't want Cinale to see. He had a feeling there would be a couple of her girls found somewhere in the pile.

She swallowed hard, then nodded, blinking quickly. "I'll go to her, love.
And I'll send Jio to you."

"Thank you love," he whispered, giving her hand a squeeze. Daigoro didn't want to leave her side, but he knew she would be safe tending Miryene, and he had enough other problems to worry about. "I have to get this group moving and get back to the kitchen."

She nodded, then gave him a soft smile - an encouraging smile, a smile to tell him that she was proud of him, a smile to let him know she loved him. He squeezed her hand one more time, whispered that he loved her, and turned back to the grim task ahead.

Last updated on the March 5th 2006

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Devastation (3): The Grim Task Ahead