The hiss of surprise came from every mouth.
“It’s time,” Fiona said. She turned to Xhinna and smiled. “While we all know that blues aren’t supposed to lead wings, we’ve seen too many bad examples of the results of following Tradition too closely.” She looked toward M’gel as she added, “This is not to say that the current leadership is wanting in any way. But I’m sure it comes as no surprise to any of you when I say that the Weyrwoman and I were willing to let this wing continue in its present form because we recognized that most of its leadership came not from those riding bronzes but—”
“A blue!” Danirry cried exultantly, patting Xhinna’s shoulder hard.
“Indeed,” K’dan agreed, giving the wingsecond a quelling look.
“But you said last night that the queens—,” M’gel protested, looking at Fiona.
“The queens can continue with Xhinna,” K’dan said, cutting the bronze rider’s protest short. He grinned at M’gel. “But we need you—” He waved a hand at the collected bronze riders. “—to take charge of your own wings.”
“They need you to learn to flame,” Xhinna said, raising her voice to carry over the growing sounds of protest.
“Flaming?” J’sarte asked, intrigued.
“Thread will come soon,” K’dan said. “And we’re going to need wings prepared to fight it.”
“But … what about Xhinna?” M’gel asked, turning a troubled glance toward the blue rider.
“And R’ney, and Danirry!” J’sarte added.
“We’ve got a special task for them,” K’dan said. “They’ll be training with firestone, too, but for the moment we’re going to keep that much of the Sky wing intact.” He smiled at Xhinna, R’ney, and Danirry before turning back to the bronzes. “In the meantime, wingleaders, perhaps you’d care to join me in council?”
“Except Xhinna, of course,” Fiona said, as the bronze riders eagerly filed through the doorway after K’dan.
K’dan paused in the doorway and turned back, smiling. “Of course, Wingleader Xhinna will need to plan the details of her wing.”
Xhinna opened her mouth to protest. She’d given up the position once already and had no desire to add to her duties, but Fiona caught her eye and waggled a finger at her.
“No good deed goes unrewarded,” Danirry remarked in an aside to Xhinna.
“Don’t think about trying to wiggle out of it,” R’ney added just as firmly.
Xhinna nodded in resignation, but her eyes sought out Taria’s. The green rider met them with her own dark eyes and held her gaze for a long moment before her lips curved up in a smile.
Coranth says that Taria won’t let you out of doing diapers, Tazith relayed. Xhinna’s blue eyes danced and she returned Taria’s grin with a small smile.
Wingleader.
“You’re going to be getting some help in this,” Fiona said. Above them the sky darkened as a group of dragons burst overhead from between.
Xhinna glanced up in surprise to see Talenth, Fiona’s queen. Lorana was astride her, and behind her were the six green queens as well as two distinct wings of blues, greens, and browns. The queens landed first, as was their right, and Jirana came bounding over, followed by the five other young girls who had Impressed the green queens. They were all fit and tan, as was to be expected from their days spent lying under the sun guarding the Hatching Grounds against tunnel snakes. The girls were all near Jirana’s age—much younger than normal for a Candidate—but they had all formed the strange connection with their queens before the Hatching. It was their ability to hear the unhatched queens that protected the sands from the depradations of tunnel snakes, aided by the growing population of Meeyus and older Mrreows.
“But what about the eggs?” Danirry asked as she noticed Jirana.
“We’ve got that covered,” Jirana assured her.
Xhinna turned thoughtfully to Fiona. How had the Weyrwoman known how many were needed?
“You were talking with Terin, weren’t you?” Xhinna asked.
“Danirry’s not the only one good with sums,” Fiona said, smiling in acknowledgment.
Lorana was trailed by someone whom Xhinna couldn’t immediately identify and then—“Seban!”
“I thought having an old hand around to advise you wouldn’t be amiss,” Fiona said as the ex-dragonrider waved in reply.
“I know we’ve blues and greens to spare, but I’m still surprised that we don’t have more browns or bronzes,” said Avarra, the blue rider sent from X’lerin’s Midriver Weyr, who was leading their twenty-four blues and greens.
“Well, as you say, we have them to spare,” R’ney, one of the few brown riders in their wing, allowed a little smugly.
“I try never to argue with Weyrleaders,” Xhinna said.
Jerilli, the blue leader of the Northern contingent sent by H’nez, nodded vigorously.
The three wingleaders and their nine wingseconds were all gathered under one of the outside awnings hung off the stone hall, the rest of the dragonriders having gone to the beach to help with the egg guard.
Jirana and the other young queen riders were seated cross-legged in a ring away from the table, while Lorana and the Sky queen riders were seated behind Xhinna.
“Anyway,” Xhinna said, “what I think we should do first is set up the watch order. After that, we’ll make a quick visit to the Dawn Sisters so that we can instruct the riders of our wings.”
“I pity the wing that’s got the night shift,” Avarra said.
“Oh, let me guess,” R’ney muttered under his breath even as Xhinna said, “That would be mine.”
Danirry, who’d heard the brown rider’s quiet words, smirked at him and shook her head, looking at her wingleader resignedly. “Like you could bet differently.”
“That’s all very nice, but what are we to do?” Jepara demanded.
“No one knows how long a dragon can stay up by the Dawn Sisters,” Lorana said. “I’ve an idea, as Minith and I tried first, but we’re not certain.”
“I see,” Jepara said, apparently unable to unleash her usually biting tongue on the older, revered ex-dragonrider.
“We’re going to need you and your queens to keep an eye on us,” Xhinna said.
“That’s it?” Jepara exclaimed, clearly expecting more.
“And rescue us, if need be,” Danirry added, looking glum.
“Rescue—” Jepara began, but she stopped as understanding blossomed on her face. She turned to Xhinna. “So this is dangerous?”
“Very,” Lorana said. “We need the queens to keep watch, to guard the greens and blues on watch.”
“It’s like guarding the eggs, only harder,” little Devon piped up. She was just a sevenday younger than Jirana—much to the other’s disgust at losing her position as the youngest queen rider on Pern. Even so, she had been the first to be picked by Jirana when she and Xhinna had gone on Search for riders for the green queens. Now, nearly three Turns later, she and Jirana were nearing adolescence, while Kiminy, the eldest by two Turns, was beginning to giggle at the looks given her by the younger bronze riders.
Xhinna had had little chance to see any of them since their Impression, but they’d all seemed pleasant, sweet, and just a little different—marked, as it were, by their strange queens with whom they could communicate before they were Hatched.
“They don’t have the Sight, too, do they?” Xhinna had asked Jirana after the five had all Impressed exactly as the young trader girl had predicted.