Missing [Plot/Event] 73.12.28

[Shoki]

R'le was getting ready for the day, just getting around to combing his hair. He knew it was kinda getting long, but he wasn't really in the mood to get it cut today. As he mused over this he caught a restless feeling from his Cloud dragon. He turned to look, and realized that Quiorith was starting to wake up. Weird, he rarely wanted to be up at this hour. He thought he had plenty of time to eat and socialize. He watched as the dragon, within a minute went from asleep to awake and sitting up, during which R'le didn't bug him. Only got his gear on for the day.

"Still tired?"

Ancalanth wants us. Quiorith loosened up a little bit, shaking off the last bit of sleep in his mind. It sounds urgent.

R'le frowned a little bit then checked his pouch. Looks like he had everything, might as well be off. The pair headed off, wanting to see what was so pressing that Quiorith had to be up at this hour.

They pair was at the right place quick enough and R'le slid off Quiorith's back and went to talk to T'kar. He actually looked rather well put together at this hour, mostly because he wasn't all windblown and he didn't have mud and dirt from tromping about in the jungle.

"Yo, what's up?" R'le glanced around, spying wingriders everywhere. It didn't look like practice to him. This looked most certainly not like that. A weird feeling tickled his brain as he looked at the Wingleader, but he just waited to hear what was what.

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

It seemed that with the sun, the majority of the remaining wingriders had decided to go ahead and show up. There were still three missing, but N’kio would be busy over at Cliffside anyway, and that just left Yuki and B’jun. T’kar looked around, mentally checking off each of the seven riders present against the list in his head. He successfully stopped his headshake in response to R’le’s casual greeting, but couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his face.

“The long and short of it is, Headwoman Lindalyn is missing, and her office is trashed,” T’kar paused, looking around and catching the others’ eyes. “That’s been found so far, we have no indication of where she might be, or any indication as to whether she left voluntarily or through force.”

He opened his mouth to continue when a small child came running out, eyes wide. The child didn’t even pause, just hurtled into T’kar and started babbling. “Blood, blood, it was even on the sheets, and on the wall, and…” the child’s voice trailed off into sobs, leaving T’kar with a sinking feeling in his gut. He almost didn’t have to ask, he knew where the blood was at, and had a good idea whose it was, too. On the other hand, it wasn’t like he was going to do much good with a hysterical child attached.

A flapping sound attracted his attention briefly, and he glanced over to see that his Black flitt, Shadow, had come over to investigate what was going on. Quickly, he snagged the flitt and handed him to the child.

“Can you tell me whose bed?” he asked softly, crouching down in front of the kid so their faces were level, when the child had stopped actively crying, momentarily distracted by the flitt.

The child stared at him, brown eyes far too wide. There was a pause, then the kid nodded. “It was Aunt Lindalyn’s bed. I was looking for her ‘cuz my tooth was hurting, only she wasn’t there and…” the child dissolved into tears once more.

T’kar looked up at the wingriders. “Ok, scratch the last part of that, it appears we do have evidence ,” he observed. Signalling to roughly half of the group, he told them to start searching the Lower Caverns, getting everyone down there to help. He told the other half to start looking through those areas of jungle near the Weyr, including the fields, then to come back and help search the Weyr if they didn’t find anything obvious. Looking up, he realized he’d missed R’le in the directions.

“R’le, you can pick which group you go with,” he stated, picking up the child. “I’m going to find where the kid should be, and then… well, hopefully by then we should have something.” He nodded to the other man and went back inside, heading towards the Lower Caverns.

Ancalanath, tell Yuki and B’jun what is happening, would you?

The RR Flame sighed, his eyes whirling with a mix of yellow, orange, and blue-green, with a good tint of agitated red. Turning his head skyward, he sent the message, then settled down to watch the doorway, hoping that His would emerge from it soon.

[Shoki]

R'le got a feeling in the pit of his stomach when T'kar mentioned the headwoman was missing. Well that couldn't be good. It got worse of course, when a small child ran up to T'kar, crying their eyes out. Now R'le found kids alright in the grand scheme of things but a crying child made him a little awkward. Even more disconcerting was the whole bit when they mentioned blood. This, this was not going to be good. He could tell.

As the conversation continued R'le started thinking about all of this. Well, part of it was that he wasn't exactly happy to hear about another murder. He didn't want to jump to a conclusion, but his mind naturally went that direction. Was it the same people from the jungle? Not having long to think he listened for T'kar's directions intently, and found no assignment for him. As it turned out he had been somewhat forgotten about, R'le smirked and waved as T'kar went to get the kid back to where they needed to be. Once he was out of hearing range he spun and spoke to Quiorith quietly.

"Okay, looks like we got some more searching to do. I'll head off the Lower Caverns, you make a sweep over the nearby jungle. If you see Elraisha, see if you can't get her to help, but otherwise, message the other dragons in the wing if you see something. Might as well cover the most ground we can."

Got it. Think we'll find anything out there? We've been checking the jungle for ages.

R'le gave the dragon a pat before saying softly, "Maybe, maybe not, but if we are gonna find anything, figure send out the most practiced pair, right?" Quiorith nodded and took off the moment R'le bolted for the Lower Caverns. He best get going, the other riders had a big head start.

[Terayne]

Ylara had heard the hysterical crying, her trained ear picking up the sound instantly, and she came trotting out in time to hear the mention of blood and Lindalyn in the same place. Her face drained of all color, and she wobbled, causing her Wood to immediately shift her head so she could lean against her for support. Lindalyn couldn't be.... She refused to even think it, although she was fairly sure this was a foolish thing, given all the evidence.

Mine, are you alright? Orylth asked, creening softly in concern, and Ylara quickly stroked her soft nose. She'd be fine, she told her. She just needed time to adjust to the news was all. As much as the dragoness disliked hearing that one of the Weyr had been slain in their own bed, her concern was all for her Mine, who shook off her distress, knowing it was only bothering her dragon.

As T'kar gave his directions, she listened closely, nodding to herself. At least her Wingleader had the sense to keep his head, she thought admiringly, even WITH the situation he'd been presented with. Drawing a deep breath, she cocked her head slightly, a frown crossing her lips. Love? she inquired gently, and Orylth shook her head sharply, only once, meaning she agreed with her Mine's thoughts. They would speak to the children, who tended to be overlooked by adults, and therefore saw FAR more than people initially thought they did. Having decided that, she turned to tell T'kar what she was going to do, to see if he agreed, only to see him walking off. Rolling her eyes, with amusement, she followed him, making sure Orylth could trace her where she went.

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

T’kar tensed. He could hear someone following him, but Ancalanath wasn’t concerned, and he knew he was still within his dragon’s line of sight. He shifted the child slightly though, freeing his right hand just in case.

It is only Ylara, Ancalanath said. She intends to talk with the children.

Now that’s a good idea, T’kar commented. He hadn’t thought of that, but now that it had been brought up, no one saw more than children did. He paused so that Ylara could catch up, glancing over his shoulder at her as he did so.

“Would you mind taking this little guy back to the others?” T’kar asked, indicating the child that he was carrying. “That way I can go check on the organization of the kitchen area searching.”


The sun had continued to rise, though it had still to clear the horizon. Ancalanath decided that it had risen far enough. He’d tried not making a big deal out of this, and now His was off into the danger alone. Archith! he called. Headwoman Lindalyn has yet to be found. A child reports blood upon her her sheets.

[Lark]

Emilia barely had time to start helping look through things, and she did that with extreme caution as if it could hurt her at any moment, before the young child came barging into the rooms. Instantly the blonde cringed away from the frightened thing, her mind pulling away from the fear and uncertainty on the boy's face and in his tone. She couldn't get involved like the others could, she just couldn't. Nyneveth was already bad enough as it was, the grey-green almost hissing as she watched the child and finally spoke her two cents to whoever would listen.

The child speaks truths, all innocent ones speak nothing but truth....blood, blood soaks the walls and sheets, there was been death, there will only be doom left for us all. Skye and Leaf chittered at the Grey, the two flits scolding the larger dragoness and only receiving a snort and look of bewilderment from the creature. Giving up however, the two flew through the open door and started to pull on Emilia's clothes, getting the girl to finally move and follow the others out.

[Terayne]

She managed not to start when her Wingleader slowed down, coming up beside him. Cocking her head, she nodded, taking the frightened little one and gently soothing him, fingers running lightly through his hair. "I can do that. I wanted to speak with them as it was," she replied quietly, not wishing to upset the child any further. She then continued on, not waiting to see what he did, heading unerringly for the section of the Kitchens and Lower Caverns reserved for the youngest unfamilied members of the Weyr.

Once there, she set him down and gently urged him into one of the rooms, where several others were playing, and seated herself among them, encouraging them to keep doing so. She needed to wait until they were at ease before she could question them.

[Moo]

My D'gan,

I apologize for leaving without telling you... I knew if I told you, you would insist on following, and this is something I needed to do alone. I really am sorry, but I'm sure you'll understand...

(There appears to be some sort of tear in the parchment.)

Sorry about the torn spots. Ayleneth wants me to tell you to tell Mosiliath that she hopes he is well.

(There are small rips and tears all along the edges of the parchment, and the handwriting appears unsteady.)

I am writing this as we fly toward Ista. I have heard the herbs there are incredibly potent, and will collect some to send to Sanshe later. Which reminds me. Will you ask the healers to send some of the herbs to Ice Stone Weyr for me? Hedara requested them. Sanshe has fallen ill, and the meager amount of herbs they have are not enough.

I miss you. I'll travel around Pern for a sevenday or two, then return to your side. I promise. And, to help Mosiliath, Ayleneth Rises at most once every other Turn. She'll not Rise before we return.

We are both well. I will return within two sevendays. If I do not, you can look forward to another letter from me.

Also, I'm planning on having one of the healers at Ista look at me. I've been feeling strange, so I don't risk trying to go between. I will write to you with the results later.

Only yours,
Yuki of many travels.

It was his third time re-reading the letter he had received from Yuki. Placing it down on the table in front of him, D’gan sighed and covered his face with his hands. He wasn’t sure what to make of this at all. He liked getting letters as much as the next person, but this…this one was more heartfelt. Personal.

Reading it made him feel strange and out of sorts. He liked Yuki, he really did, but this was unexpected. He hadn’t intended to make such an impression on her – he was much better off alone with Mosiliath, anyway – so why did it seem like such a shock to read? Well, he knew that she had left, yet certain parts of the letter surprised him.

He frowned. What was wrong with her that made her avoid going Between? Surely she would have stayed at the Weyr if she wasn’t feeling well? And to travel such a long distance on dragonback…He took a deep breath and removed his hands, eyeing the letter once more. There must have been something he missed. It just didn’t settle right with him.

Meanwhile, Mosiliath had been watching the sunrise from his perch, glad to have found a prime spot lying in wait for him. Here, he could see all the goings-on in the Weyr, and that suited him just fine. All the better to keep an eye on his weyrlings. However, a flurry of commotion caught his attention. He peered down at the dragons and his eyes began to spin with distress. They were clearly not in a good mood.

He recognized the Flame from Ayleneth’s Flight as Ancalanath, and the remaining dragons as those in his wing. Was it practice time already? He watched carefully. No, no…this was something different. He reached out to the Flame. Ancalanath, is something wrong? Can D’gan and I be of assistance in any way?[/b][/color] He wasn’t sure what was happening, but it didn’t feel right at all. It felt like the jungle.

D’gan, be at the ready. Something is happening down below. I do not like it…[/b][/color]

One step ahead of you, he replied, already in the majority of his riding gear. Truth be told, I need a bit of a distraction right now.

Mosiliath flew down from his perch and settled near Ancalanath, if only to make easier conversation with the other dragon. I think a distraction is an understatement for what is happening now. Come and find me. Hurry, but remain calm.[/b][/color]

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

Ancalanath snapped his head around, startled by the communication. He’d been expecting, if anything, a reply from Archith, not from one of his fellow Kings.

Something is indeed wrong, Mosiliath, Ancalanath began. The Headwoman, Lindalyn, is missing. There was blood on her sheets. T’kar organizes a search.

T’kar ducked into the main kitchens. He was about to catch the eye of the perpetually grumpy she-wher that served as head cook when his gaze fell upon a brown-haired youth, a Weyrling by the knots, who was occupied in snitching a bubbly pie off one of the counters. Two quick strides later, and he was between the kid and the exit. The youth looked familiar… ah yes, the boy from the Hatching feast, the one with a reputation for trouble. K’tar, that was the kid’s name.

T’kar slipped around so that he was blocking the line of sight between the head cook and the Weyrling. “Seems you might owe me a favor,” he said, glancing over his shoulder briefly to confirm that everything was running smoothly.

“Really?” K’tar asked. He wasn’t particularly happy about this newest development; he hadn’t seen the Kingrider, or he would have waited to take the pie. However, the man hadn’t informed the head cook yet, and, since K’tar didn’t particularly care to be reported, he decided to find out what was on the man’s mind. “What might you be thinking about?” he quipped.

“The Headwoman’s missing and we’re trying to find her, or some indication of where she might have gone. It’s going to take a lot of looking around, apparently there was a fight.” T’kar neglected to mention that the fight, if fight it had been in truth, had probably ended badly.

K’tar sighed. He’d planned on meeting up with Holt to go over their Recent History notes, but well… Viarth, can you tell Korith to tell Holt that I’ll be a little delayed? he asked.

Viarth’s response was a feeling of confidence.

Friend-Blue-Brother-Korith? K’tarMine says to ask you to tell H’rarn-Holt-Yours that he will be delayed.

[Kaya]

Archith had heard Ancalanth's message clearly, or so she thought. Rilora was getting over a bit of a cold, nothing serious, and was in need of some extra rest. So it was that the Gold was reluctant to wake her so early. I'm sure it's nothing... she thought to herself. Ancalanath's tone had been level and he seemed to have a handle on the situation. So Archith didn't keep the thought in her only barely awake mind long enough to worry and soon found herself dozing off again.

It wasn't until a loud and insistent call of Archith! that the Gold was jolted back into wakefullness, and still only just. The words that followed set her heart to pounding and she felt Rilora stir. This was serious, and Ancalanath had hid his initial reservations from her. It displeased the Gold, but how was the Flame to know? And what had started this search and panic in the first place? Archith got the sinking feeling she was missing something.

RiloraMine, wake. It's urgent. I hate to wake you at sunrise but there is a calamity brewing and you must be up. the intoned gentleness in her request startled her. She was never this soft with her Rider. They were leaders, and they were strong. Oh, but, her Riloralove had been sick and...well, send all this bother between! UP! The Gold demanded, and Rilora started getting up a little faster, the urgency starting to get through her groggy head.

What is it, Archith? Rilora asked, rubbing her eyes, trying to get them to work right.

That's just it! Archith announced angrily with a snort. I don't know! Ancalanath reports that Headwoman Lindalyn is missing and they've found blood in her sleeping quarters. So UP WITH YOU. We're missing this and as leaders, sick or not - I love you Rilora, but you must get up faster! - we must be there.

It still took Archith longer than she liked for Rilora to get ready. So while the woman was still preparing (far too slowly) for the day, Archith took off from her weyr and circled down into the Bowl and sped over to the scene of bustle outside the entrance to the kitchens and lower caverns. Now tell me quick, Ancalanath, and leave nothing out, just what blazing mess of scorching Thread has descended upon us today? -- And Rilora will be along shortly, she added. She stood, intimidating with all four feet planted on the stone ground, her wings tense and back and her gaze stern. A snort of irritation left her wrinkled nose.

[Moo]

That is grave news, Ancalanath. D’gan and I shall do everything that we can to help you in this search,[/b][/color] he volunteered. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the swiftly approaching Queen – and she did not look pleased at all. Quickly shuffling to a spot further from Ancalanath, he ducked his head and curled his tail as Archith landed, practically billowing with irritation. He decided, right then and there, that he would keep quiet unless she spoke to him first.

Though his age technically gave him superiority over her, Mosiliath couldn’t help but feel slightly intimated by Archith’s formidable appearance. And despite the fact that they had both conversed and worked together in the past, she was still an impressive sight to behold. She had to be, as the Queen and face of the Weyr – and as such, he made sure to mind his distance from her as he stood by Ancalanath. No telling how she would react to the further details (which he was also interested in hearing), and he was not about to push his luck on treading too close.

Luckily, D’gan joined him not long after Archith arrived. Headwoman Lindalyn is missing, Mine, and there was blood found. We are now waiting for Weyrwoman Rilora, but T’kar is in charge of a search,[/b][/color] whispered Mosiliath, eyes whirring an anxious jonquil. Wasn’t Yuki worried of an attack in this Weyr? Do you think what happened at Ice Stone and here are related?[/b][/color]

He placed a hand on the Tiger’s foreleg and stood quietly, calmly, and composed. Now was not the time to lose your head. How horrible for Lindalyn, he agreed, then moved on. No time for sentimentality when a life was in danger. Let us consider what we know. The bodies in the jungle were no accident; that has already been established. A while later, our Headwoman goes missing, and there is proof of a struggle. These crimes happened in the same area, in the same Weyr. We can't consider that a coincidence. D’gan looked up at Archith, then over to Ancalanath, and considered the last question his dragon had posed.

Yuki told me that story right after the Hatching...She said that she was worried it would happen again. Now the Headwoman disappears. He hated thinking the two events were connected, but rationally, who else knew about what had happened at Ice Stone Weyr? And why was that story brought up now -- and why to him? I also wonder why the Headwoman was taken. If it was a power struggle, then why the Headwoman? He did not even want to think that it should have been the Weyrwoman instead; he did'nt want anything to happen to her. Things were rapidly becoming more and more complicated.

I do not know if these crimes are one in the same, Mosiliath. Why would a man from Ice Stone Weyr travel south to cause trouble here? And what sort of man would he be? He would have had to have planned this out a long time in advance, and have more than a few Marks saved up for the trip.

Mosiliath sighed. These are questions to ask the Weyrwoman. But first, we need to locate Headwoman Lindalyn.[/b][/color]

D’gan could do nothing but agree and wait.

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

Ancalanath stepped back a little, raising his head a little in surprise. T’kar went to ask Headwoman Lindalyn if she wanted us to hunt for dinner tonight, he explained. When he arrived, her office was destroyed. T’kar called the Wing in to search. A kid came out and said that there was blood on the sheets. That is when I called you.

——
The kids had relaxed, at least enough to start volunteering information to Ylara.

“They told her not to say,” one of the youngest kids, a little girl of no more than 5 Turns, confessed shakily.

“They said something about, ‘for your own good’,” a little boy supplied. He tried to deepen his voice to match that of a grown man, but failed.

——
T’kar looked over at K’tar. Without a word, he pointed towards one of the storage closets. K’tar grumbled, but he walked over to it and started searching for anything out of place. Viarth, can you ask Korith if Holt can help with this, otherwise it will take all day.

Blue-brother-friend-Korith, can Holt-H'rarnYours come help K'tarMine with searching for strange-out-of-place-things in bad-smell-not-used-much-storage?

[Kaya]

((Plot prompts, next steps: For all searching characters, have them search in a specific location in your next post (or one later, as appropriate to the story) and you will get a PM from me about what is found there. Hurry folks, we have to find out what's going on here quick.))

The still further shock of the whole event - the destroyed office, the mention again of blood - left Archith still on her feet in silence for a pair of seconds. Then the urgency of the situation and her irritation at not being informed earlier surfaced again.

You started this search because her office was in ruins and you did not think to tell me about this? she shouted, arching her neck and looking down angrily at the Flame. You did not think it was something worth mentioning? That it's importance was inconsequential?! She was grateful he had started a search for Lindalyn already, but her anger and displeasure with his negligence in informing her took priority and she could not praise him at this time. He needed to understand that it was vital to always tell her these things. She stood, shoulders raised and tense, tail flicking in a small circle.

And you left out what you've done about this mess so far. Get on with your report, Ancalanath. Quick sharp. Where is being searched? Where not so we can assign them there? Any clues? Has anyone besides this reporter of the blood even seen the scene? If Lindalyn has been injured and Faranth providing is still a breathing member of our Weyr we cannot be slow about this!

A rather disheveled looking Weyrwoman made her way down the steps outside her weyr just then. Her hair was just as it had been when she awoke and her attire was not that of formality but rather the nearest pair of pants and light shirt she could find. Her eyes still hung heavily with sleep and she rubbed at them, and her receding cold caused her to sniffle and fight with her sinuses. She made it down to the Bowl and then took one wrong step and stumbled forward in the new dawn light. She caught herself and kept walking, cheeks starting to redden. She did not feel one bit a Weyrwoman that morning like Archith confidently did.

"What news?" she asked upon arriving, looking at the nearest person, which was D'gan.

[Kaya]

Korith had heard Viarth's first message, though it woke him up, and decided not to also wake Holt since Viarth was saying that K'tar would be along later and that meant that Holt did not need to be up. It was early, why were the two of them even up?

So, not at all bothered by the antics of the Purple and his Rider, Korith drifted back to sleep.

He was woken a second time when Viarth contacted him again. It seemed that the Purple had not taken the hint at his non-reply meaning he was still asleep and wished to be left that way. With a flick of his tail he considered what to do. Korith decided since the invitation was for Holt and since the sun was up (so Holt wouldn't sleep too much longer) he would ask his Rider directly.

HoltMine, Korith started and waited for the light mental nudge to wake his Rider. Holt stirred and the Blue continued, Via Viarth, the Blue chuckled at the similar words, K'tarHis has invited you to come speed his search in the storage area for things out of place.

Holt considered the message. He was trying to get up and ready for the day, since it seemed that Korith had decided it was time to be up. The most likely was that K'tar had gotten in trouble again and he was hoping that he would come along and help out so that the punishment would be over sooner. K'tar was his friend, he'd gotten him out of other scrapes, but their scuffle a month and a half ago still left him feeling without obligation to help K'tar out of his own problems. Still, it was too early to be handling heavier thoughts, so he trusted the good judgement of his Blue and finished getting ready. Korith wouldn't have woken him for nothing, and maybe his dragon had a bit more forgiving and forgetting wisdom than he himself possessed.

Holt emerged from the Barracks entrance into the Bowl to see not one, not two, but three large dragons in the new day's light. It was very early by normal standards, though only a bit early by his own. What would cause Archith and two of the Kings to be about at this time? And the Queen didn't look very happy.

Holt skirted around the group, clinging against the wall of the Bowl and made it into the kitchens, where the storage areas started. "K'tar?"

[Terayne]

Ylara had left contact open with Orylth so the Wood could also hear and see what was going on, and as the children relaxed, she gently probed into what they knew, what they had heard while running around doing their errands. What she found didn't please her, in fact frightened her quite a bit...

“They told her not to say,”

“They said something about, ‘for your own good’,”

Hiding her shudder, she continued to very gently press, and once she'd obtained what she could, she took a deep breath and left them, heading for Lindalyn's room. SOMEONE had to go there, to see the scene the child had described, so an accurate report could be given to Archith and her Mine, who Orylth had informed her were outside. She told the Wood to tell them what had been heard and shakily set her hand to the Headwoman's door, pushing it gingerly open and going inside....

If I may interrupt? Orylth said gently, not wishing to anger her Queen, but knowing she needed to pass along the information Her's had discovered.