Riptide (1/3)
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: Halyonix
Date Posted: 13th May 2025
Characters: Hesbia, A'len, Hessand
Description: Hesbia's family tries to make it out of the flooding caves
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 5, day 5 of Turn 12
Notes:
~*~
“Up you go,” her father said as he hoisted another of the women up to the higher ledge. Above him, his daughter Hesbia helped as she could, grabbing on to an article of clothing to pull the person up. Not a dragonlength below them, water was rushing angrily. Hesbia suspected that one of the rockslides had broken up and now the caves were filling up from another way too. Great, just sharding great.
“Dad, we gotta go,” she said to him. She hated how pleading her tone sounded but she was getting worried. She didn’t like how close that water was. The ledge he was on was slick. Two people had already slipped. Her ledge wasn’t much better but at least it was higher. Her uncle should be here, helping. Where was he? Why couldn’t he ever be around when they needed him?
“I know, I know,” her father answered with the same even pleasantness that he always used. Hesbia grit her teeth. “Grab this sack. We’re going to need the supplies.” She reached down to haul it up. Who knew when they were going to be able to return, if at all.
“Dad! There’s dragonriders here!” Hesbia’s little sister Haseba cried. “Dragonriders!”
Hessand’s expression lost its pleasantness. Hesbia felt the same. Dragonriders were no allies to the Holdless. So why were they here? “Help me up,” he said quietly, darkly to his older daughter. Hesbia gladly pulled him up to her ledge. She internally braced herself for a fight.
“What are dragonriders doing here?” Hesbia whispered. That couldn’t be good. There was no way they were here to help! Dragonriders didn’t help Holdless, everyone knew that. Dragonriders hunted Holdless down. Maybe the dragonriders were here to drag her drunk uncle away. That would be a blessing but…it would bother her father immensely. “They’re not here to…”
“Don’t say a word,” Hessand said quickly as two riders in leathers approached, looming over the higher ledge. One began pulling the others up, the other descended to Hessand. He had flashing blue eyes, Hesbia noticed, the kind of demeanor that spoke of leadership, accentuated by his silvering hair. He didn’t look happy to be there. Hesbia instantly disliked him.
“How many more of you are down there?” he demanded. Hesbia bristled at his tone. Prick. They had been doing just fine evacuating the caves without dragonrider help so what gave him the right to come in, demanding answers of them like he was their leader?
“No one. Just some of our supplies,” Halend answered tightly. “If you stay up here, I’ll toss the sacks up--”
“Screw the supplies, criminal. You can get those later,” the dragonrider said.
Hesbia snarled, insulted. “He’s not a criminal! None of us are!” she shouted. Well, aside from her uncle getting into one too many drunken brawls. Maybe in some of the other parts of the cave there were some real criminals but she didn’t consider her family one!
Those flashing blue eyes focused on her. “I wasn’t talking to you, _girl_.” He looked back at her father. “Whatever your crime was, I don’t care. My Weyrwoman said to get you out of here, even though you don’t deserve it. I’m just obeying her.”
“Take your help elsewhere then!” Hesbia snapped, even though her father put a restraining hand on her. Typical dragonrider, thinking themselves so high and mighty and perfect! Her family didn’t need their help. They’d get out of the caves without it!
“We’ll handle it from here then, thank you,” Hessand said to the rider with forced politeness. “Hes, help me get those supplies. We’ll be quick.” Hessand moved to descend to the lower ledge again but the dragonrider was faster.
His fist grabbed Hessand’s tunic. “Did you hear me, you stupid man? You’ll get supplies from somewhere else. My orders are to get you out of here.”
Her father went to escape the dragonrider’s grip. “Take your hands off me! We don’t nee-” he started to say as he placed his hand flat on the man’s shoulder, intending to shrug off the other man’s hold.
“Don’t _touch_ me, filthy beast!” the dragonrider snapped. And he _pushed_. The force of it -- her father stumbled a step back but…
The ledge.
There was no ledge there.
“No!” Hesbia screamed, surging forward, clawing at whatever she could grab as she saw her father tip backward. She had to reach him! There was no way to stop him from falling, no way to escape the slippery ledge beneath them that was too hard for his head, no way to stop the angry, churning water rising below…
“NO!”
A hand wrapped around her arm painfully. “Leave him. He’s gone,” the hated dragonrider said. Hesbia screamed, and screamed, and kicked and screamed, but he was much stronger than her. Her father wasn’t gone! He wasn’t! She just had to get to him! “Take her out of here,” he shouted up to his comrade, who had returned to help.
“What happened?” the other rider asked, worried.
“The ledge was slippery. The father fell into the water. You’re more than welcome to go swimming for him but he’s already dead.”
Dead. The word rang and rang in her ears. Dead.
“Let me go let me golet megoletmegoletmego--”
It came out as an unending litany, a ragged scream that wouldn’t stop. The dragonriders dragged her out of the cave. Her little sister was crying, confused and scared. Hesbia knew that she should focus on her, protect her, run away, but she was being pulled, fighting, screaming. “She’s hysterical,” the hated dragonrider lied to someone. “Doesn’t want our help. Keeps going on about how terrible we are.”
“Just calm down, you’re safe!” someone tried to tell her. She wasn’t safe! She’d never be safe! Not with these dragonriders! Not with him! Hesbia kicked with all of her might, rewarded with a grunt as her foot connected. Hopefully she had kicked _him_. She’d tear his eyes out if she could get to them!
“There’s no way we can take her on a dragon like this. She’ll hurt someone or herself.” How could his voice sound so reasonable after he had just pushed her father like that?!
Someone answered, “I’ll get the fellis.” Hesbia thrashed more against the hands holding her down. She wasn’t going anywhere with this monster! She had to get away! Where did they take her sister? Where was her uncle? Why was no one stopping him?!
Someone painfully gripped her jaw, was holding her mouth open and pouring terrible fellis down her throat. She tried to spit. She couldn’t spit out enough. “You did it!” she screamed, trying to kick at the men holding her down. “You kil-” A hand covered her mouth, silencing her. His hand.
“Shells, they’re feisty,” someone muttered. “You’d think they’d be more grateful for our help.”
“You’d think,” the hated dragonrider said. “Ungrateful _and_ a waste of our time if you ask me. But the Weyrwoman commands.”
Fury filled her as she was forced to listen to his insults, forced to submit, all the while knowing it was him it was him it was _him_, it was _him_. Hot tears spilled down Hesbia’s cheeks as darkness began gathering at the edge of her vision. All she could see were those flashing blue eyes and she hated him with all of her might as the fellis took hold.
Last updated on the May 19th 2025