Jaxom, sweat pouring from his face and body, had the distinct feeling that he was under surveillance. But when he leaned on the pick for an occasional breather, or lifted colonies of grubs safely to one side, he could see no one looking in his direction. The sensation bothered him.
The big one watches you, Ruth said suddenly.
Jaxom shot a glance under his arm at the mound where Toric and Master Fandarel were working and, sure enough, Toric was looking in his direction. Beside him, Lessa groaned suddenly, jamming her shovel blade into the rough rooted grass of the mound. She examined her hands, reddened and beginning to blister.
«It's a long time since these have worked so hard,» she said.
«Use your flying gloves?» Sharra suggested.
«A few moments in them and my hands would swim in sweat,» Lessa replied, grimacing. She glanced at the other work parties and, chuckling to herself, sank gracefully to the mound. «Much as I dislike revealing this site to more people than necessary, I think we shall have to recruit strong hands and backs.» She deftly captured a tangle of grubs and deposited them to one side, watching them tunnel back into the rich gray black soil. She rubbed particles between her thumbs and forefinger. «Like ash. Gritty. Never thought I'd be dealing in ashes again. Did I ever tell you, Jaxom, that I was cleaning the fireplace in Ruatha Hold the day your mother arrived?»
«No,» Jaxom said, surprised at this unexpected confidence. «But then, few people ever mention my parents to me.»
Lessa's expression became severe. «Now I wonder why I called Fax to mind…» she said, glancing in Toric's direction and adding, more to herself than to Jaxom and Sharra, «except he was ambitious, too. But Fax made mistakes.»
«Such as taking Ruatha Hold from its rightful Bloodline,» Jaxom said, grunting as he swung the pick.
«That was his worst mistake,» Lessa said with intense satisfaction. Then she noticed Sharra staring at her and smiled. «Which I rectified. Oh, Jaxom, leave off a moment. Your enthusiasm exhausts me.» She mopped at the perspiration on her forehead. «Yes, I think some strong backs will have to be drafted. At least for my mound!» She patted it, almost affectionately. «There's no telling how deep the covering goes. Perhaps,» the thought amused her, «the mounds aren't big at all, just so overloaded. We may end up with nothing larger than a wherhole for all our digging.» Jaxom, conscious of Toric's scrutiny, continued to dig, though his shoulders ached and his hands were hot and stiff with blister.
Just then, Sharra's two fire lizards popped into the air, chirruping at each other as if they didn't understand what their friend was doing. They dropped lightly to the spot where Sharra had just planted her shovel and, with tremendous energy, they began to dig, their strong forepaws lifting the dirt to either side, their hindquarters pushing it farther out of the way. They had tunneled almost an arm's length while Lessa, Sharra and Jaxom watched in amazement.
«Ruth? Would you lend us your aid?» Jaxom called.
The white dragon obediently rose from his sunny perch and glided over to his friend, his eyes beginning to whirl more quickly with curiosity.
«Would you mind digging holes for us, Ruth?»
Where? Here? Ruth indicated a spot to the left of the fire lizards who had not stopped their efforts.
«I don't think it matters where, we just want to see what the grass covers!»
No sooner had the other dragonriders seen what Ruth was doing than they called on theirs. Even Ramoth felt inclined to lend her aid, with Lessa giving her every encouragement.
«I wouldn't have believed it,» Sharra said to Jaxom. «Dragons digging?»
«Lessa wasn't too proud to dig, was she?»
«We're people, but they're dragons!»
Jaxom couldn't help laughing at her incredulity. «You've got a jaundiced view of dragons, living among the Oldtimers' lazy beasts.» He caught her about the waist, pulling her toward him before he felt her stiffen. He looked in Toric's direction. «He's not watching, if that's what you're worried about.»
«He might not have been,» she pointed skyward, «but his fire lizards are. I'd wondered where they were.»
A trio of fire lizards, a golden queen and two bronzes, were circling lazily above Jaxom and Sharra.
«So? I'll just speak to Master Robinton to mediate…»
«Toric has other plans for me…»
«Am I not included in your plans?» Jaxom asked, experiencing sudden shock.
«You know you are, which is why… we loved each other. I wanted you while I could.» Sharra's eyes were troubled.
«Why should he interfere then? My rank is…» Jaxom took both her hands in his and retained them when she tried to pull away.
«He doesn't think much of the young Northern men, Jaxom. Not after coping with fairs of younger sons in the past three Turns who are really,» Sharra sounded exasperated, «enough to try the patience of a harper. I know you're not like them, but Toric…»
«I'll prove myself to Toric, never fear.» Jaxom brought her hands to his lips, holding her eyes with his, determined by the force of his will to banish the unhappiness in her eyes. «And I'll do it properly, through Lytol and Master Robinton. You will be my lady, won't you, Sharra?»
«You know I will, Jaxom. For as long as I can…»
«For as long as we live…» he corrected her, gripping her hands tight enough to make her wince.
«Jaxom! Sharra!» cried Lessa, who had been far too engrossed in Ramoth's industry to notice their quiet exchange.
Jaxom felt Sharra's hands struggle but, having decided to confront Toric in all his arrogance, Jaxom was not about to defer before Lessa. He kept a tight hold on Sharra as they turned toward the Weyrwoman.
«Come and see. Ramoth has struck something solid. And it doesn't look like rock…»
Jaxom pulled Sharra up the slight incline to Lessa's side of the mound. Ramoth was sitting back on her haunches, peering over Lessa to look into the trench her forepaws had scored.
«Move your head slightly, Ramoth. You're in my light,» Lessa said. «Here, take my shovel, Jaxom, and see what you think. Clear out a bit more dirt.»
Jaxom jumped into a trench which reached to mid thigh. «Feels solid enough,» he said, pressing his weight down before he tapped with the shovel. «Sounds like stone?» But it didn't. The shovel thunked echoingly. Scrapping clear a long swath, Jaxom stepped aside for all to see.
«F'lar, come here! We've reached something!»
«So have we!» came the Weyrleader's triumphant reply.
There was a mutual inspection from one dragon dug trench to the other which exposed much the same material, except that in F'lar's case the rocklike substance had an amber panel set into the curve of the mound. Finally the Mastersmith raised his huge arms above his head and roared for silence.
«This is not efficient use of time and energy.» A loud guffaw, almost contemptuous in agreement, came from Toric. «It is not funny,» the Smith said at his most serious. «We will concentrate on Lessa's mound since it is smaller. Then we will work on Master Nicat's and then…"He pointed to his own choice as Toric interrupted.
«All in one day?» he asked, again with a tone of supercilious derision that irritated Jaxom.
«We will do as much as we can, certainly, so let us begin!»
Jaxom decided that the Smith chose to ignore Toric's attitude, an example for him to follow.
It also proved inefficient to have more than two dragons working on Lessa's small mound since it was scarcely longer than a dragon. So F'lar and N'ton urged their bronzes to help Master Nicat.
By midafternoon the curving sides of Lessa's mound had been unearthed to the original floor of the valley. Six panels, three on an arc of the curved roof, tantalized, but their surface, once undoubtedly transparent, was now badly scored and darkened. Attempts to see through to the interior were vain. Disappointing, but no openings were found on the long sides so one end was promptly dug out. The dragons, despite the gray black dust that now dulled their hides, showed no sign of fatigue and considerable interest in this unlikely task. And shortly the access was unearthed.