Devastation (4): No Time For Grief
Dragonsfall Weyr
Amber Hills Hold
Vintner Hall
Healer Hall
Hidden Meadows
Dolphin Cove Weyr
Dolphin Hall
Emerald Falls Hold
Harper Hall
Printer Hall
Green Valley Hold
Leeward Lagoon Hold
Barrier Lake Weyr
Sunstone Seahold
Citrus Bay Hold
Writers: Bree, Eimi
Date Posted: 8th March 2006
Characters: Daigoro, Fielton
Description: Daigoro tells Fielton just how bad the damage to the Vintner Hall really is.
Location: Vintner Hall
Date: month 11, day 2 of Turn 3
Daigoro took a deep breath and wiped wearily at his face, smearing it with black ash and red blood. What a terrible day this was turning out to be.
The fire was quickly controlled thanks to the effort of many men and even ladies. Once the fire had been snuffed out, the gruesome task of searching for bodies had begun. They found a couple alive, and a couple who had not survived. One in particular, he knew, would be hard for the Hallmaster to take. "Fielton?" he asked as he opened the door to the Hallmaster's office.
The Hallmaster looked more than a little dazed, but he handed the mug in his hands to Jielta and braced his hands on his desk. "Daigoro? How bad is it?"
"But papa--" Jielta put the mug back down in front of him, her eyes worried.
"The healer said you had to drink all of this..."
Fielton didn't take his eyes away from his Hallsecond. "How bad is it?" he asked again.
"Well, perhaps you and I should speak alone," Daigoro said with an apologetic smile directed towards his daughter.
Jielta glanced at Daigoro and then back at her father, her dirt smudged face filled with worry. "I--I'll be right outside, papa." Fielton was still staring at his Hallsecond, the knot of worry in his stomach growing with every moment. "Well?" he asked the moment the door had swung shut behind his daughter. "Tell me."
"The press is completely ruined, and a landslide took out a large section of the vineyard," Daigoro said, stalling. Shards, how could he tell him. "But the most damage was the northeast corner of the building. The second floor caved into the kitchens and both your and my suites were lost." He stepped forward and put a hand on the Hallmaster's shoulder. "Fielton,"
he whispered, "Badia was in your suites at the time. She... didn't survive the quake."
"Oh." His voice sounded dull and exhausted as he digested this. Then he glanced up at Daigoro. "The kitchens? Is that where the fire came from?"
The Hallsecond's large hand tightened on his shoulder. "Yes. That's where we found Badia's body. In the rubble there."
Fielton winced again, closing his eyes. "How many more?" "We're still looking. There are a few kitchen girls still missing." Daigoro was silent a moment. Shards, he wished he could just give the man time to grieve without all the bad news, but he was the Hallmaster and things needed to be done. "We received word, a large part of the Hold collapsed along with part of the cliffside. Fielton, I need your permission to send most of the men to the Hold to help." For a long moment the Hallmaster was silent. Then he opened his eyes, finding Daigoro's with some trouble. "Send as many as we can spare. Send Talrian to me with two or three men... we'll turn the classrooms into an infirmary. They can send the wounded from the Hold back here. And any wounded we have..." Thinking about the logistics of so many injured was far easier than thinking about everything he'd lost.
"Yes sir," Daigoro nodded. Though he wished the man could have time to grieve his wife as was only proper, he was relieved that he was holding it together. This was just the start of a very long day. "Is there anything you need me to do?"
"Didn't someone say that Miryene was in labor?" Fielton asked after another moment, his eyes closing again. "She can't stay in her rooms... I want everyone shifted to the classrooms or the main hall. Let people into the journeymen's studies as well... but no one can stay on the second floor, no matter how sturdy they think their rooms are." "Right away," Daigoro nodded. He wouldn't want Cinale up there either. Not if there was the slightest possibility it could collapse. "I will have the healers move her, just in case. And we will clear the floor before I go to the Hold."
"Good..." He picked up the mug from his desk without opening his eyes, taking a long swallow. "Is there anything I'm forgetting?" Nothing that the Hallmaster would want to remember, at least, Daigoro thought to himself. "No sir. I'll send Master Manjar to assist you while I'm gone. Shall I send your daughter back in to you?"
Fielton shook his head absently. "I think I'd like a little time alone.
Could you ask Jielta to help the healers in the infirmary, please? Tell her I'll see her as soon as I can." "Yes of course. I'd best round up the men." Daigoro wished he knew what to say. Fielton had been so happy with his young wife, and now... "Well, there is work to be done. I'd best be off. Please send word to me if you have need of me."
Last updated on the March 8th 2006