Hold Our Own - Fires at Golden Flight! [C]

[Shoki]

R’le’s run to drop water had gone pretty well. Others? Not so much. He spun in his seat to spy T’kar when he was dealing with Bamath and Picosith. Get ‘em back to the Weyr, got it. D’gan’s Wing was moving in at the moment as well, so better get that done before anyone got lost and crashed in the smoke.

Quiorith, get the others focused on getting in position and back to the Bowl for a refill. The Cloud nodded before focusing on the other dragons. R’le observed as they rose up to where the smoke would not hinder sight, and the other dragons of the wing did as well. The hand went up and when it fell, the dragons were back over RMW, getting ready to land. It would take time to get all of the dragons landed, refilled, and then back in the air. For the time being R’le took off his scarf to speak more clearly.

“How we doing, everyone okay?” The Cloudrider’s voice wasn’t as raspy as some, but he hadn’t gotten out of the fires scot-free. He got some thumbs up in response, a few shouts, and a nod or two. “Alright, let’s get ready to punch this fire right out!” He got a bit more enthusiasm from that one. He grinned as the wing got settled and everyone started to get ready for the next wave. R’le, per usual got off and switched scarves, before helping out with refueling. This was going to take a while, and hopefully by then T’kar would be back to lead. Soon enough it came to pass and R’le looked a little more at ease. Good.

---

Lan had gotten pulled off his running around to help clear plants and dig up earth. The Wherhandlers needed help with the firebreak and that meant he was a Wherhandler, one way or the other. He noted, as always that not all of them were as comfortable doing it as others. Mostly those who were used to farming had no issues. Which had got a few confused looks as to why he was so easily handling it all. His crazy farming family was not the debate here, mostly it was just getting things done. Currently he was dealing with turning over earth, the grass and leaves being hidden quickly so that it wouldn’t burn when the fire came this way. It was rough work, but the main bulk had been done already. The axes were away, bushes were clear, and they were expanding what was already there.

“We still got time, wider lads!” Lan looked up from his work to look at what had been done already. It looked good to him, but he had been told that fires could jump pretty far, and had taken their words for it. So they started clearing more, breaking up the earth more and ensuring that whatever didn’t get washed out, burned itself out along the break. Probably.

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

Talira expertly took the handles of the small cart and pulled, dragging it through the halls behind her. The cart was full of just completed barrels, which were tied down with rope, since all the leather available in the Weyr was going towards making either leather bags for holding water once the barrels ran out (which they were bound to do eventually, since each water-run destroyed several days worth of them) or leather straps for holding bags and barrels to the dragon’s sides.

The WeyrBowl was already crowded, the simple pumps used to help load the larger barrels once they were strapped to dragonback were being worked furiously, the dragons stepping in and out of place at the pump stations with the a precision of movement that somehow underscored the deadly seriousness of this job more than panic and confusion would have. Sky Jumpers Wing was getting refills now; Talira recognized the Cloud Wingsecond, R’le and Quiorith, as she dropped off the empty barrels and went back for more. The Wingleader arrived then, his RR Flame looking decided grey as he landed and stood while T’kar slid off and started helping fit barrels under the RR Flame’s wings.

[summerrain]

Picosith's lungs were clear, and the pair rejoined the Wing and started tying down the barrels. The automatically fit back into formation, and the others gratefully allowed the younger pair to pick up their slack. Tera quickly tied one barrel on, and directed the people helping tie the other side at the same time. However, she did need a little help getting the barrels up to the proper height.

"Here ya go kid," said a voice behind her. It was a burly man, with the calloused hands of a Smithcrafter. So he was used to picking up heavy things. She nodded her thanks and tied the barrel into place. "Let me get the rest for ya," he offered. She accepted, and the pair quickly got the six barrels tied down, three on each side. One pair of barrels sat under Picosth's wings, one pair right next to Tera, and the third pair at the base of the Wood's tail. Tera strapped herself in and waited for the signal to take off.
______

I don't see anyone, Wynah said to Alzdith. The pair landed at the crossroads, where the groups of refugees were dividing. Wynah dismounted quickly and looked around. Then she spied groups of people coming from the smaller streets. Alzdith, I have to go.

Just be careful, the Sunlace replied. Much has already been lost this day.

I promise. And I promise to come back. With that, Wynah darted into the middle of the Hold, directing refugees as she did so.

[shapeshifter]

R'niaan groaned as the healers sat him up, bandaged and shirtless he stood. His upper arm, shoulder and rib cage were wrapped. "Is Bamath looking okay? Can he fly? We must go back to one of the Weyrs!" He breathed, wanting to get back to Yuki...but would she still see him after she sees his new wounds? He stood up fast against the healer's will, only for pain to force him back down.

He eased upwards, Is Ayleneth okay? Can you between? he inquired of his dragon.

Yes I can R'niaan...I think so at least! Then he in turn asked Ayeleneth, Ayleneth mine, can you between with us?

[Kaya]

They had been making some good progress, Holt decided. The bad news was that now it was distinctly getting dark. It was going to complicate things, at best. His was to follow orders until D'gan called stop. He could see the after images of fires, the real ones that lingered in his sight, and the flames that existed only in his mind. The dancing destruction. The fear. If he'd had breath to spare the thought of it all would take it from him. But there was only smoke and pain. Holt shrugged it off. Nothing he felt was anything compared to the loss of the Holdfolk below.

Pay attention. We move now. Korith ordered. With the smoke induced pain between the two, the Blue kept contact with Holt tentative at best. They needed to communicate yes, but if they hurt so that they could not do their duty, then it was all a loss. Silence then. The Wing swooped low. Holt and Korith felt the heat flying into their faces. The water fell. Holt couldn't tell if it helped at all. Yet he did what was asked of him. Defying the hungry flames they pulled back up into the sky. On the heat they hung in the air. Then blackness, cold absence.

Holt gasped in the higher air. Was it better or worse? He couldn't tell.

You are not well. All business. Korith had his way of handling the stress. It was thus. He descended rapidly, breaking out of the wing. He would be on the ground before something worse happened to his Rider.

Holt slid to the ground and looked around. The frequent trips between, the fatigue, disorientation. He knew where they were supposed to be. It didn't feel right.

"You don't look so good," he said, taking a step. He saw T'kar flagging ahead. They were all spent. Surely.

Sit.

But in the middle of the shaking cough it was unwise to navigate to the ground. Or so Holt thought. Then someone was there, moving him. He didn't see who. He felt hands. He felt his burning lugs and the sensation of something being ripped from them not long later.

I know what you are thinking and I don't like it. I can feel from here it hurts. Stay awake. Get better. ...you must. The final words were vulnerable. They hurt together.

[summerrain]

Wynah was running through the streets, yelling to be heard above the crowd, directing them to the healers, to the safe zone, when she tripped over a bit of rubble. She fell, landing on her hands, but ended up falling sideways as she felt something in her wrist snap. She let out a cry of pain, holding her wrist tight to her body. A nearby building burst into flame, and a shriek escaped her lips.

Wynah! WynahMine, get out of there! Alzdith pleaded, roaring loudly. Wynah did her best to crawl away, unable to quickly get to her feet with her broken wrist, but was just not fast enough. All of the residents on that street had already been evacuated. Wynah realized she was on her own this time. She just couldn't move fast enough with only one hand, and there was too much rubble to try to get to her feet. She felt a piece of wood scrape her leg, wincing as blood began to flow from the wound. But she had to get away from the fire.

There! It wasn't much, but it was enough to get her away from the flames. The smoke was starting to get to her too. She crawled into a smaller home, a stone building amid the wood, a storage shed of some kind, judging by the items within and the small size of the building. She crawled into the corner, hiding from the smoke, and then did a quick self-exam. The wound on her leg wasn't nearly as bad as it felt, thankfully. She tore off the remaining fabric and used the ruined leg of her trousers to bandage the wound. Other than that, it looked like her ankle was swollen from the fall as well. But it wasn't bruised like her wrist, which was definitely broken. Perhaps she'd just sprained her ankle when she tripped over the rubble.

A sudden coughing fit overwhelmed her, and her head felt light. She turned and looked behind her. No... Smoke was seeping in through the cracks. She had to get to the healers... Maybe someone would notice that she was gone and come looking for her. She had to get out... It just wasn't safe any more, even in this stone shed, there were still items within that could easily burn. She had to get out. She crawled back out the door and started down the street. It took her a while, but she finally got clear of the more dangerous parts of the fire.

She stopped next to a building that was undamaged and tried to get to her feet. She was only able to use her one arm for balance, as she kept her broken wrist, her right hand, close to her body to avoid further damage. She coughed again, almost falling back to the ground as she wobbled on one foot. She tested her other foot, and found that she'd been right. She must've sprained it; it wasn't going to hold her weight at all. She sighed and started hopping along the buildings to get back to the healers.

Someone, someone needs to go find her! Alzdith insisted, almost frantic now. Oh, she never should have gone in there!

Wynah finally managed to get close to the healers, but she was also closer to the fire as well. She stumbled, falling again, unable to catch herself. The pain was just too much. Her wrist, her ankle, and now the smoke in her lungs, she just couldn't continue.

Alzdith roared loudly, pacing back and forth worriedly. She could feel Wynah's life force fading. Please, not Hers! No! Please, Aiheu... Don't take her! Alzdith prayed. Her eyes whirled grey as she finally pinpointed Wynah's location, or at least direction. But what good would it do if no one would go look for the girl?
______

Ayleneth nodded. I am not as hurt as you, she told him. She could easily between back to the Weyr.

[shapeshifter]

R'niaan pushed at a healer, "I have to get back to the Weyr and continue to fight these fires!" He grabbed his half burnt jacket and raced out to Bamath, who even badly burned knew that as Riders they fought whatever came their way to the death.

"Don't be some hero, R'niaan!" Shouted a much older healer, who was ill with the brash CrimsonRider's choices.

R'niaan ignored the comment and mounted his Crimson, crying out in agony as he fastened the tight jacket around his body. Bamath rose up, roaring from burned hide stretching as he flared out his wings, which the flames had caused to become slightly tattered. They looked like a pair whom rose out of hell, as R'niaan shouted for Bamath to fly and his dragon leapt into the air, strongly and proudly beating his wings as best. He then faulted, leveling out and betweening before another mishap could occur.

Black, blacker, blackest...

It felt like a lifetime before they erupted over Rainbow Mists. Bamath touched down after gliding to the ground, R'niaan leaping from his dragon's back.

Can you do one last round?

Can you handle the smoke?

You have a point. R'niaan replied as she shouted aloud for the barrels to be re-strapped to Bamath. He was acting rather ridiculous with this injuries, but he wouldn't be known as the Rider who "got hurt first fly and whimpered out". He had too big of pride issues.

[Shoki]

Cr’wean had seen the girl off a while ago, and had been busy with a nonstop string of injuries, some more major then others. He had to be quick on his feet, and sometimes had no time to ask, just jumping toward where Kiyosh was singing. The healers were bound to be exhausted, but there was always more to do, and no time to focus on oneself. Being short with people was forgiven, for the most part, since there was fifty things to do, and not enough people for them all at once. So when two men came toward him, one supporting the other, he was forgiven to not seeing to them directly. So the two men waited for a moment before speaking to each other.

“I should be okay for now Lan, got out of the worst of it.” He gave a half smile to the other manwho was supporting him.

“You sure Daver? I don’t want to leave you until you at least have a spot to sit.” Lan looked worried, but the other man shrugged it off.

“It’s not that bad, and at the fires aren’t too close. I should-“

Someone, someone needs to go find her! The two men looked startled, unused to a mind imposing itself on them. At least not like this. The healers seemed to have heard it too, and Cr’wean frowned. It was impossible for them to leave, there were so many people to treat, and more and more of them were in a bad way. The two men looked at each other, and Daver let go, while Lan gave a brief salute. He spotted where the Sunlance was looking, and he guessed that whoever they were they were in that direction. The dragon’s mood was unmistakable so he started running flat out, hoping he could get there quick enough.

The smoke was thick and Lan was having a hard time seeing where he was going, so he had to slow down. The heat radiated from the fire, even though he felt like he was still safe himself, though he was heading into danger. Where were they?

“ARE YOU THERE?” He bellowed out, before coughing quietly. He continued forward, listening. No, it didn’t seem like there was a response. He looked worried, before he spotted someone on the ground and booked it. He seemed to vaguely recognize the girl but there wasn’t any time to care about where he might recognize her. She was collapsed on the ground so he picked her up, grateful that her slender build made it a bit easier to hold her. Still he didn’t think he was going to have a problem carrying her back. Then he nearly jumped as a nearby building lit up. Best get out of here.

He headed back, or at least away from the fire. It was hard to figure out where the way he came was, it was something of a miracle he’d stayed straight before, things were getting more and more obstructed. But soon enough the smoke cleared and he looked around, trying to figure out what was what. They were out of it. He didn’t think to check up on her until then and looked down at the person he was carrying.

“Hey, are y-y-you ok-k-kay?” He continued trotting back toward the healers, and only mentally cursed his stuttering. There would be healers there, soon she would be swept up in a bunch of people who would fix whatever was broken.

[summerrain]

Finally someone was moving! Alzdith paced around impatiently as she waited for the man to return.

Wynah was barely conscious, but she felt a strong pair of arms pick her up. She could still feel the heat from the fire, but she also felt safe in the stranger's arms. He ran, holding her, and she suddenly smelled fresh air.

Wynah! Oh, WyhanMine! Alzdith came over and gently brushed the girl with her nose. Relief washed through the dragoness when she discovered that Hers was still breathing. Wynah coughed up a bit of smoke, then opened her eyes slowly.

"You... You saved me..." she muttered, her voice raspy from the smoke. She pulled her right arm to her body again, doing her best to keep the wrist immobile. "I... I think I sprained my ankle when I fell the first time... And I'm... Almost certain that... That my wrist is broken..." She stopped to cough again. She was having trouble staying awake, even though she felt Alzdith nearby. Her breathing was shallow, but she was alive. A small smile broke onto her face. "I'll be okay now Alzdith... I'll be alright..." Alzdith brushed her cheek against Wynah's once more before stepping back and allowing the healers to do their work.

[Shoki]

Lan looked relieved when she cleared her lungs and started to talk. That was a good sign. He paused as the Sunlance came to check on her rider and Lan looked a little happier. But he looked a bit more embarrassed at the idea he saved someone, he just knew riders had to be defended, Wherhandler after all.

“You’ll be ok-kay n-n-now.” He was soon in a flurry of activity, and he didn’t really have time to do much more then help her to where the Healers wanted her before the bustle of activity pushed him out of the way and he was alone. Good enough. He moved, spotting Daver and heading there.

“You’re in trouble Lan.” Daver looked wry, but Lan looked puzzled. Daver pointed and Lan turned and blanched. It had gotten dark enough, not just from smoke but from the day itself winding to a close. So a little ways away stood a Black-Gray Wher, staring at him with her multi-faceted eyes.

“Shards.”

“That’s what I said.”

Land trotted over and Ethilask let out a displeased purr before Lan started reassuring her that he was okay, he hadn’t gotten in trouble. He was quietly panicking at how she had gotten out of the weyr and made it here, he was going to be in trouble for this. Still, his angry girlfriend would probably be able to help a lot, since together they could carry quite a bit. Just had to get through the scolding.

---

Cr'wean helped out with this case as much as he could, getting her patched up physically, while leaving the smoke to others. They would fix her up very well. It would just take time.

[summerrain]

Wynah was overwhelmed by a flurry of healers as she was lowered onto a workspace. The pain on her ankle wasn't so bad as the sprain healed, but the damage to her wrist must've been worse than she had first thought. She shrieked in pain as the bones moved back into place, and then began to heal. The pain had made her vision go fuzzy, and the voices around her began to fade into the background. She was panting hard, her chest rising and falling rapidly as her body attempted to compensate for the smoke that filled her lungs. But that just made her vision worse, and she felt something go wrong. She couldn't say anything, though, as she began to pass out. Though she did register a few words as she lost consciousness.

"Make sure she gets to the Weyr as soon as her lungs are cleared!" someone yelled. She closed her eyes and blacked out, the entirety of the ordeal taking its toll on her body. However, her breathing returned to normal once her lungs were cleared of the smoke. It was determined now that all she needed was a good night's rest, and that she would be fine with time. They assisted in strapping the girl to her dragon, and the pair betweened back to the Weyr so Wynah could get some uninterrupted rest.

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

Go between, drop water barrels, return for full water barrels, repeat. The sun had set, darkness was falling. It hadn’t been more than half an hour since the flights started, and yet that simple formula had already been repeated more times than T’kar could even begin to recall. The flames were fading, but not fast enough. Flights would be continuing through the night. In fact, it would not surprise T’kar if flights had to continue until the morrow’s dawn. Once more, airborn, barrels and now huge leather sacks full and tied in place. Once more, between. Once more, emerging over an inferno, the raging flames visible even through the smoke that they sent forth into the air. Once more, the tightly controlled dives, swooping low enough to target, barrels and leather sacks getting pushed, released, and drop-kicked to fall upon the flames below. Once more the upward swoop, and…

What in Threadfall’s mercy is that?

A shadow, seeming at first in the dusk like a wisp of darker smoke, swept downward, racing towards the already distant ground. No sooner had T’kar asked himself the question, both he and Ancalanath realized what they were seeing. A small dragon, diving at the ground and…

A tongue of flame rushed up. The dragon attempted to swerve away from it, but misgauged the effect of sweeping fresh air onto the tongue by doing so. The flame spurted upwards, enveloping one of the dragon’s wings and the rider’s right side. The dragon screamed, crashing into the ground just barely on the safe side of the fire lines.

Use barrel and rescue straps!

Ancalanath dove after the other dragon, landing sharply at the scene of the crash. The injured dragon hardly looked old enough to have left training, being thin and almost gangly looking. The rider was pretty much the same, possessing the not-quite-finished look of youth.

With the help of somewhere around half a dozen others, T’kar got the dragon suspended between the two largest dragons on the ground, and they flew him and his rider back to the healers. Along with the small child that he’d been diving to rescue.