Let's Get To Work

Writers: Bree, Eimi, Roxanne, Yvonne
Date Posted: 15th April 2006

Characters: Shadux, Benaroy, D'wrayt, Fielton, Cyrek, J'nus
Description: A meeting is held at Amber Hills to determine their next step after the Earthquake
Location: Amber Hills Hold
Date: month 11, day 2 of Turn 3

Fielton

"There they are, sir," Shadux said, his finger pointed skyward.
"There's one... and now there's another. It looks as though they have arrived."

"Thank Faranth for your younger eyes, Shadux," the Lord Holder
smiled, putting a hand on the young man's shoulder. "Let's go down to meet them, shall we."

The Stewards Assistant fell into step with Lord Benaroy. He couldn't help but notice that it seemed to be much shorter than it had once been. "The small reception room has been prepared for your guests, milord."

"Good, good." He knew he was lucky to have such a competent young man to step up after the Stewards unexpected health problems. "How is your father doing?"

"The healers still have him on bed rest, sir. They think he will recover fully, but no more excitement for a while."

Benaroy nodded. "No. No excitement. Your father has earned a rest. And he has all confidence in you."

"I do my best, sir."

They stopped at the foot of the stairs and waited for the guests to come to land. The smaller, darker bronze dragon was the first to land, and he left the larger centre of the courtyard for the Weyrleader'sdragon, who was carrying two passengers instead of one. The smaller bronze'srider saluted the waiting party on the steps before unfastening his straps and turning to help his passengerunbuckle himself and descend.

Treadoryth landed near the other dragons and glanced around
interested. D'wrayt was sure that his invitation to this meeting was simply a mere courtesy of hold politics as the Weyr had no bearings on what happened to the hold other than the relationship of protection from Thread. He was still trying to get the hang of Hold relationships andmissed the help thathe had often gotten from Jaela. He waited for the others to dismount and looked about curiously. He didn't often get to see a Hold from the ground.

Lord Benaroy, Shadux in-tow, walked down to meet his guests.
"Welcome Weyrleader, D'wrayt to Amber Hills. And to you Steward
Cyrek and your daughter." He turned to include the two other guest approaching from where the other bronze dragon sat waiting. "And welcome to you Master Fielton, and Wingleader."

"Thank you, Lord Benaroy." Cyrek managed a small smile for courtesy's sake. "I must- apologize for our appearance. Unfortunately clean water is at a premium at the moment." Both he and Mariss were mud stained and bandaged, and Mariss' long hair hung down her back in a tangled, muddy braid.

Fielton had a bandage wrapped around his head and looked worsefor the wear, with grief making his face look older.

"Of course," Lord Benaroy nodded. "Perhaps you would like to clean up a little before we begin our discussion?"

"That would be very appreciated, my Lord," Cyrek said gratefully.

"Of course," he nodded. "Shadux, why don't you show our guests to the guest bathing chambers in the Family Wing and get them fresh clothing. The Weryleader and bronzerider and I will meet you in the reception room. Iwill have soemthing to eat brought there for us."

"If you would follow me," the assistant steward said to the weary trio. Fielton nodded absently, seeming to be more than a little dazed. Still, he gathered himself and followed Shadux down the corridor, determined to prove that he was up to handling this task in spite of the healer's protests that he needed rest.

~*~

A little less than half a candlemark later the refugees from Amethyst Cliff, their hosts, and the dragonriders who had brought them there had reconvened in the Lord Holder's study. Cyrek stood a little awkwardly in a tunic whose sleeves were slightly too short and tapped the mapspread out on the desk between them. "About three quarters of the cots are still standing, as are the outer buildings, but the Hold itself is uninhabitable. While the Woodcraft Hold has agreed to take in some of our people, they can't handle that many people. We will need somewhere to house them until Amethyst Cliff can be rebuilt."

Fielton stared numbly at the map, eyes tracing the place where his prized vineyards had stood. Many of the farther vineyards still stood, those that bordered on Amber Hill's territory. Some of it could besalvaged, but it would be months before he knew how much, or if it would be worth the effort at all. "The Vintner Hall is in no shape to house anyone... I have no idea how stable the rest of the building is, but I'm not confident
enough to leave people there for any extended period."

Lord Benaroy nodded. "And there is yet no sign of the Lord Holder or any of his family?" He sighed as he looked from the map to the faces gathered around it. "Gentlemen, forgive my boldness at this time of crisis, but from you have told me it seems that we will have to come to terms with the fact that Amethyst Cliff is _lost_."

Cyrek stiffened. "Absolutely not. We are still pulling people from the rubble, and there is every possibility that the Lord Holder and his family will still be found. It may take a turn or two to rebuild, but there are still functioning orchards and vineyards, as well as the majority of cots, still standing to earn the marks to do so. Suggesting the abandonment of Amethyst Cliff is- _premature_."

The Lord Holder regarded Cyrek a moment. "The cliff is collapsing, there have been landslides that have taken out orchards and vineyards, probably sink holes and cracks in the fields as well. It will take more than a couple turns to rebuild, Steward, and your holders need a home. People with families to support need stability and a job to put food into their children's mouths. Rebuilding takes time, and it takes energy, and it takes courage to face the unknown that many men just do not have." He sighed as he straightened up. "I want Lord Alalir and his family to be found safe as well. He is a good man. An honest man. And a good Lord Holder. ButI doubt even _he_ could make Amethyst Cliff as it once was."

Cyrek shook his head. "With all due respect, Lord Benaroy, Amethyst Cliff is our _home_. We lived through the Plague and we lived through the beginning of a new Pass, and my people are stronger than you'd think. We'll rebuild, but we'll need your help."

D'wrayt listened to the conversation and knew that he should offer the help of his Weyr in anyway possible as it was only right. He hoped that the Lord Holder and his family would be found safe and relatively uninjured. His riders were already helping with the excavation and he could offer help in transporting the holders to wherever they decide to go while
their home is being rebuilt.

"Well, until that time, Steward Cyrek, your Holders will need a home, and so will the Vintners and Woodsmiths." Lord Benaroy could understand the stewards desire to rebuild, to try to make things the way they once were. But reality had long since wiped away all his ambitious dreams. Only time would tell. "I have half a Hold. Amethyst Cliff also has half a Hold. Between the two of us, that would make one full Hold. We have the space for all of you, if you would so desire."

"Until Amethyst Cliff is rebuilt, I'll humbly accept your offer of sanctuary," Cyrek said. Until Amethyst Cliff Hold was rebuilt. Lord Benaroy's own Hold was half-empty and abandoned, and the Steward was well aware that he coveted Amethyst Cliff's population for his own gain. It wasn't an ideal situation, but there was no where else for them to go.

Fielton looked up finally. "The buildings that border on the edge of Amethyst Cliff territory... where our vineyards border your lands. I seem to remember that before the plague, you'd hoped to start producing wines of your own. Would those buildings house a full Vintner Hall?"

Lord Benaroy nodded. "Perhaps. To tell you the truth, Master
Fielton, we _have_ been producing our own wines. But not on the
borderlands. Those are being used for grazing. Our vineyards are further south, at the mouth of the canyon. That location would be even better for your Vintner Hall. There is an old technicians complex that is no longer inuse that can be modified for your needs. Its near our vineyards and our ownpress. It's
small, but it would allow you to start pressing wines this season. And it is downriver from your vineyards, and the grapes can be easily brought to you, as versus trying to move our grapes _up_ river."

"But that still requires abandoning the vineyards at Amethyst Cliff," Cyrek said. Those vineyards had been refined for generations to produce the delicate and distinctive wines under the Vintner Hall's label. Abandoning them now meant abandoning generations of hard work and tradition.

"Gentlemen," Lord Benaroy interrupted, "I believe we are straying from the topic at hand. We can plan for the future later. Right now we have much more immediate and pressing needs - namely, when and how shall we start bringing the people of Amethyst Cliff here. Preparations have already begun. Our staff has already begun preparing empty cots and rooms to be filled with refugees. We just need to know _when_ we can expect the first to arrive."

J'nus cleared his throat and glanced at D'wrayt before speaking. "My Wing is at your disposal today, although tomorrow we fly Thread."

Cyrek frowned; he'd forgotten about Threadfall. "Then I need to get as many under stone as possible. I have roughly three hundred needing shelter, about half of whom are injured in some way."

A Wing flew about fifty dragons, and most of them could take multiple passengers. "And you want them all flown here?"
The Steward hesitated, then shook his head. "No; just the women,
children, and those with injuries.. that will be about two hundred and fifty people. We have livestock that needs to be cared for and will needto be driven over the Pass."

"I won't take anyone badly hurt /between/." J'nus crossed his arms. "They'll go into shock, or their hearts will stop. Or the very young. I can have the bronzes and some of the bigger browns fly them over the mountains, but the dragons can't make more than two trips that way - again depending on their size. I won't have them exhausting themselves the day before Thread." In a choice between two evils, Thread would always win. He turned to Fielton. "What about the Vintner Hall?"

"We can keep our people there overnight if we have to, but I wouldn't want too many there," Fielton replied, rubbing at the side of his head absently. The healer had reluctantly admitted that he probably didn't have a concussion, but his head still ached. "I'm not allowing anyone into the west side of the Hall. I have no idea how stable it is, though it _seems_ safe enough now that the aftershocks have stopped. But if we can get those who can be moved out, it will at least be adequate shelter from Thread."

"Dragonsfall will do whatever it takes to ensure that your people have adequate shelter from threadfall. Does Amber Hills have enough supplies on hand to accommodate the refugees today?" D'wrayt said extending the offer of help from the Cyan wingleader to encompass the entire Weyr. They had an obligation to the hold to help them however they might need it and he intended to uphold that to the best of his abilities.

"Yes, we have already begun preparations, Weyrleader. We are of
course grateful for any assistance your Weyr can provide us," Lord Benaroy nodded appreciatively. "Gentlemen, if I may make a suggestion, I believe we are giving rise to a bit more panic than is necessary. Let us all just catch our breaths a moment. I don't believe the situation is so dire as of yet that this all must be done today. The Vintner Hall is still standing, and so is the Woodsmith Hall. No one will be without shelter tomorrow when Threadfalls. Amethyst Cliff's residents should be our first priority. Let's begin bringing those refugees who can be
safely be flown /between/ today, if the Weyr will oblige. Those
unable to fly /between/ can begin their journey the day after
tomorrow when it is safe to travel. It will hardly be a two day
journey for them over land, and we can send some of our own carts to help transport people. We can also resume flying those who can at that time - first Amethyst Cliff, then the Vintner Hall, and finally the Woodsmith Hall."

Cyrek sighed, then nodded. It embarrassed him that Lord Benaroy was right. "In that case, I ought to go back and start organizing the Holders back at the Hold for transport. My daughter can assist you with receiving them at this end; she knows what to do and what toexpect."

"They will be well taken care of," the Lord Holder nodded.
"Weyrleader, we appreciate you and your Weyr's continual assistance. Now, let's get to work."

Last updated on the April 18th 2006

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