Was it Him? (1/2)

Writers: Estelle, Paula
Date Posted: 30th May 2019

Characters: Zandan, Alyena
Description: Alyena asks Zandan about the attack at the Weyr
Location: Emerald Falls Hold
Date: month 10, day 4 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: L'cor, Grevan (NPC)
Follows EFH: A Rumor from the Weyr

In all her Turns as the daughter and the wife of guards, Alyena had
rarely been inside the barracks itself. She remembered spending long
hours as a young girl, watching from the outside as the men went through
their repetitive sequences of drills, until she felt she knew every
step, every slice and thrust by heart. That had been before she'd grown
old enough to join in with the endless round of scrubbing and
laundering, peeling and cooking, stitching and mending and child-minding
that had occupied most of her waking moments ever since.

She could feel the eyes on her as she followed Perric across the
practice ground. They must all know. If one guard knew, then they all
would. Unsure as she was whether they were looking at her with pity or
revulsion, she was relieved when they reached the building and went inside.

The guard with her straightened visibly as he approached one particular
door. He stood almost to attention as he knocked, then entered the
office when called.

"Captain, this is Cronfur's wife. I've told her about what happened at
the Weyr, and she asked to see you."

"Come in please," Zandan replied, keeping his voice neutral. He wasn't
sure what this was about or how to react to it, so he was staying
cautious. He had no reason to be impolite to her

Alyena followed the guard into the office and made a respectful curtsy,
trying to hide her apprehension. Her husband had always spoken well of
the captain, but she had never actually talked to him before now and
knew he had a reputation for toughness.

"Thank you for seeing me, sir. I know you must be busy." She smoothed
down her skirt, nervously. "Guardsman Perric told me there was a rumor
from the Weyr that someone attacked a dragonrider. He said people were
saying it was a young man from this Hold. That it might be Grevan...my
son. Do you know if it's true?" Her voice rose slightly, in hope that
perhaps it was all a mistake, that he had gone hunting like he'd said,
after all.

"I heard the same," Zandan replied, "I saw L'cor bring the official
confirmation. The Weyr's been otherwise quiet about it." Last time
there had been incident involving Cronfur and J'ackt, Corowal had gone
to Weyr to meet the Weyrleaders too.

She closed her eyes, fighting the terror that threatened to overwhelm
her. So it was Grevan. Just like his father before him, he had gone to
the Weyr. She'd even dreamed about it sometimes, of him hurting the
dragonrider who'd ruined her life and those of her children, making him
feel for one moment the pain they endured, every day. But not like this.
Where was her boy now? Would he come back broken, like Cronfur? Was he
even still alive?

"Is there any way we can find out what happened to him?" she asked, a
tremor in her voice. "After the injuries my husband suffered...I'm so
worried."

"Well, you can try to ask Lord Corowal, but I'm not sure how much
details he got," Zandan said. Corowal didn't always confine with him.
Especially in this matter, because he knew Zandan's opinion. "Or try
to find it out directly from the Weyr." He did have his own contacts
to dragonriders. Mostly male greenriders who liked what he could offer
them.

Both alternatives seemed impossible. How could the likes of her speak to
the Lord Holder? He had brought her husband back from the Weyr and seen
to it that restitution was made, for which she was grateful. But it
hadn't lasted long, not with Cronfur unable to work, and the children
still so young. Soon enough, her family had been forgotten.

But even worse was the idea of asking a dragonrider for help. Alyena
knew that they fought Thread, she was reminded of it every time the
warning came and she and her children huddled in the cot. Mostly, she
tried not to think about them. Whatever they might do in Fall, she knew
all too well that they could be cruel and violent.

"If you have any way of finding out what condition my son is in,
Captain, I would be grateful," she said softly. "But also, I would wish
to petition Lord Corowal for help to bring Grevan home."

"I do what I can to help you," Zandan replied.

"Thank you." She let out a breath, loosened her tight grip on her
skirts. The Captain would help her, at least for now. But if her son had
done what they said...could anyone do anything for him?

**I can.** If no-one else would, then she could. She gathered her
courage. Lord Corowal would help. He had seen to it that Cronfur was
brought back to the Hold, he could do the same again. "Would it be
possible to see the Lord Holder?"

"Yes, I can help you schedule a appointment with him."

"Thank you, Captain. I'm grateful for your help." She curtseyed. "I can
wait at the Hold until he has time to see me." Perhaps she ought to go
back to the cot, but there was no way she could concentrate on the day's
chores now, not with her mind racing as it was.

***

Alyena did not dare to wait inside the grand entrance hall of the Hold,
nor to find a place in the kitchens where she might get in the way of
the bustling cooks. Instead, she found a bench to sit on in the Gather
Square, across from the barracks. She watched the drudges come and go
from the well, a stableboy leading a runnerbeast out for a prosperous
holder, a wagon bringing a load of logs down from the steep path that
led to the south. The time seemed to stretch out endlessly.

When she saw the captain emerge from the hold and stride across the
courtyard towards her, her heart began to beat fast. She would have to
speak to the Lord Holder himself. He might know how Grevan was, how to
help him. But she also knew he favored the dragonriders. Everyone did.

"He'll see us now," Zandan said when he reached. her. "He's not in a
good mood," he warned.

He had just received reprimands from Corowal for not noticing what
Grevan was up to. After Cronfur returned, they had the family under
surveillance, but after awhile, when things seemed calm, those men
were pulled out and put to other jobs. The guard force was stretched
thin as it was without spying what Zandan saw as innocent family.

Alyena's throat tightened in fear. Should she have waited, rather than
troubling the Lord Holder so soon after his return? But she had to know,
and it was too late to go back now. Silently, she followed the tall
guardsman into the Hold.

Last updated on the June 15th 2019

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Was it Him? (1/2)