Fight! Fight!

Writers: Miriah, Suzee
Date Posted: 10th January 2014

Characters: J'ackt, Pierka, R'enh
Description: There is a breakout of violence in the weyrbowl
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 5, day 1 of Turn 7
Notes: Mentioned: N'vanik, Cyradis

J'ackt

Pierka

R'enh

Jenackt felt more than heard the eyes on him as he walked across the
weyrbowl. Unlike when he worked in the kitchens, the gazes he felt
didn't feel curious; these felt predatory and caused all of his
instincts to go on edge.

He glanced behind him, pale brow furrowing deeply as his gaze found
three boys staring at him and murmuring amongst themselves. He had
seen them before in the candidate barracks, but had little to do with
them. He stiffened as one, then the others rose and headed his way.

Pierka was washing Liddith though she'd noticed Jenackt across the
bowl a ways. He wasn't easy to get to know so she'd given him his
space, but that didn't mean she didn't watch him from time to time.
So, she noticed when he turned to look and then followed his gaze to
see them rise one after the other to approach him.

She froze in her washing enough that Liddith nudged her. }:What is it mine?:{

**Not sure, but something stinks.**

Liddith's nose twitched. }:I don't smell anything.:{

The first, a large, burly candidate, approached with a smug smile.
"Hey there. You're that boy, right? The one who keeps changing his
name?"

Jenackt's eyes narrowed and his muscles tensed, but he kept his voice
soft. "It's none of your business."

The larger boy, more heavily muscled and taller than Jenackt, lifted
his chin and snorted with a rough laugh. "Aw, come on, pretty boy.
It's everyone's business. We're wanting to know. Why'd you change your
name?" He grinned back at his compatriots. "Afraid of what mum will
say when you Impress that green?" Jenackt went still as he stared at
the boy and a flush of temper filled his cheeks, but the larger youth
took the reddened face as a flush of embarrassment, not seeing the
clenched fists at Jenackt's side. Mocking laughter followed.
"Awww...look at him, guys. He's even prettier when he's blushing. Just
think, when we Impress _our_ dragons we'll get to show him what a man
can do when we catch his sweet little green."

That wasn't supposed to happen and if any of those Candidates had been
in her charge she would have ripped them a new one. Her eyes darted
around the bowl looking for Qorri for she knew the Headwoman would do
much the same. But she found neither the Headwoman nor the
Weyrlingmaster.

She turned her attention back to the three circling Jenackt and then
to the expression on his face. In that moment she knew. She knew like
she knew she was pregnant. If those fools attacked what they thought a
soft target they'd get a deadly surprise. As a former Weyrling
Assistant, she knew the lessons they'd be learning about dragons and
their relationships with other riders.

'No Fighting' was a major rule for so many reasons. Losing a rider in
a stupid knife fight meant not only the rider but his dragon would
also be lost to Pern and that was why they practically beat that into
both Candidates and riders. But these three were bent on some bullying
that wasn't going to go the way they expected, at least not if she
read Jenackt's body language correctly. She'd seen him fight, and
beat, the Weyrleader. But that had been sparring and this wasn't, not
by a long shot.

Jenackt didn't see Pierka or anyone else that may have been witnessing
his situation; all of his attention was focused on the three around
him. They circled him like predators and he was in no mood to be their
prey. N'vanik had made him promise not to hurt his people, and he had,
as long as he wasn't hurt first. His eyes narrowed. "Back off." His
voice was soft, but there was no mistaking the snarl in it.

"Oh, and what are you gonna do 'bout it if I don't, huh, pretty boy?"
There was a low rumble of laughter from around him as the bigger boy's
companions snickered. The larger boy suddenly reached forward and
shoved at Jenackt's shoulder.

That was all the excuse Jenackt needed. The other boy may have been
bigger, but Jenackt had experience coupled with lean speed; plus,
Jenackt had never been taught the virtues of a fair fight. With a
flick of his foot, he booted the other boy in the groin and the moment
the boy started to fold in horrified pain, Jenackt reached, grabbed
the boy's head and slammed it down on his knee, hearing the nose break
with a satisfying crunch.

The other two stood in shock only for a moment before howling and
piling on Jenackt with a fury.

"No," yelled Pierka and broadcast her distress to Liddith and started
loping across the sands of the bowl. "Stop it," she yelled and grabbed
the collar of one of the candidates intending to pull him off.

Fists flailed and feet struck out. While Jenackt could very well
defend himself against one person, he was inexperienced in trying to
fight off two. The fists that struck at his face caused pain to bloom
over in radiating waves and he felt the warmth of blood trickle from
his nose, brow and then his mouth as a glancing blow split his lip.
With a snarl, he fought back, landing blows as good as he was given,
but unlike the other two boys, he was silent as he fought, his own
intensity focusing on the simple act of surviving.

One of the boys felt a tug on his collar and instinctively turned,
shoving Pierka roughly away from him. "Get off o'me!" Jenackt saw her
being shoved and his mind suddenly latched on to the sight of her
swollen abdomen; a flash of memory took him of his own mother, in the
pain and anguish of the birthing that killed her, and suddenly he gave
a roar and leapt at the boy, kicking the other viciously aside. The
other boy may have been bulkier, but Jenackt leapt upon his back and
clung, one arm wrapping around his neck and locking behind his other
arm. The boy choked and clawed at Jenackt's arm, digging blunt nails
in and drawing blood, he whirled trying to throw him off while the
other who was still not on the ground rained blows into Jenackt's ribs
in an effort to make him loosen his grip.

Pierka didn't expect the boy to turn on her and was a bit off balance
when he did. Pushed off back, she stumbled and much as she tried, her
rounded abdomen threw her center of gravity off and she finally fell
heavily to one side. "Shardit," she growled. It hadn't hurt very much
but her pride and by now other riders were coming in to break up the
fight. But when she turned back to look the one Jenackt had hold of
was turning an alarming shade of red. "Stop it, all of you," she
yelled.

The boys were so involved with their struggles, that Pierka's words
didn't get a response. Jenackt grunted as another blow landed in his
ribs, but he responded by tightening his grip, the face of the boy
becoming purple as he weakly slapped at Jenackt's head. The burly
candidate who had initially started the confrontation finally pulled
himself off of the ground and painfully lumbered forward, pulled back
and plowed a fist into Jenackt's cheek. The blow stunned Jenackt into
releasing his grip before he fell off of the other boy with a grunt of
pain. Falling to the ground, he shook his head blearily, but couldn't
avoid the kick to his abdomen that followed.

Liddith was confused at first and then the bad boys pushed _hers_!
}:Mine!:{ she called and swept her tail protectively around her rider.
Pierka levered herself awkwardly to her feet but the green tail
blocked her return to the fray.

However another Weyr resident wasn't pleased at all and when a giant
bronze landed next to the boys with a spray of flying sand the bronze
head knocked the boy who'd thrown the last kick at their victim to the
ground next to him and opened wide jaws to bellow in all their faces.

R'enh slid down the side of the bronze who continued to rumble at the
boys. "Of all the wherry headed fools I've ever seen you lot are the
worst." He proceeded to pick the boys up by their collars and fling
them up against the side of a big bronze leg. He shook his head
plainly livid. "Who started it?"

"Him," Pierka yelled from her green circle of protection. She pointed
directly at the biggest one of the lot who'd both flung her to the
ground and let go the final kick.

Jenackt grunted softly as he landed against the bronze's leg. He was
half-bent, one arm holding close to his side as he spat out a mouthful
of blood. One of his eyes was swollen, but he glared at the other boys
with a grimace. The one he had half-strangled wheezed painfully and
shook his head at R'enh and pointed at Jenackt, who sneered at him.
The first shot a hateful glance at Pierka and wiped gingerly at his
bloody broken nose. "Tha's a lie." His voice was garbled and slurred
through the broken nose. "We wab jus talkin to 'ib. 'E started i."

R'enh shot a concerned look at the pregnant greenrider. "And which one
of you knocked a very pregnant woman on her backside?"

Pierka's accusing finger didn't waiver.

Jenackt finally spoke up, his eyes following Pierka's finger to the
wheezing boy. "That bastard did." His snarl was harsh. He was far less
angry about the injuries to himself than the fact that they had laid a
hand on a pregnant woman. "Should never touch a woman with child.
Ever." He tried to stand straighter and winced, but managed.

The boy suddenly looked away and mumbled. "Was an accident."

"Right," R'enh said in obvious disbelief. "Well, it looks like you're
going to have to explain this mess to the Weyrleaders boys." He maed
the last word sound like a negative epithet.

Last updated on the January 19th 2014

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

Fight! Fight!