Dragon Quest

by Anne McCaffrey

  She gathered her skirt so she could move more rapidly over the sandy floor.

  "Can I come, too?" asked the Harper.

  "You? Sober enough to walk that far?"

  Robinton chuckled, smoothing his rumpled hair back into place at his neck. "Lytol couldn't drink me drunk, my dear Lady Lessa. Only the Smith has the, ah, capacity."

  There was no doubt that he was steady on his feet as the three walked toward the glow-marked entrance to the Rooms. The stars were brilliant in the soft black spring sky, and the glows on the lower levels threw bright circles of light on the sands. Above, on weyr ledges, dragons watched with gleaming opalescent eyes, occasionally humming with pleasure. High up, Lessa saw three dragon silhouettes by the Star Stones: Ramoth and Mnementh were perched to the right of the watch-dragon, their wings overlapping. They were both smug tonight; she'd heard Ramoth's tenor often that evening. It was such a relief to have her in an agreeable mood for a while. Lessa rather hoped there'd be a long interval before the queen felt the urge to mate again.

  When they entered the Rooms, the spare figure of the Masterfarmer was bending over the largest of the tubs, turning the leaves of the fellis sapling. F'lar watched him with a wary expression while N'ton was grinning, unable to observe the solemnity of the moment.

  As soon as F'lar caught sight of F'nor, he smiled broadly and quickly crossed the room to clasp his half-brother's arm.

  "Manora said Brekke had snapped out of shock. It's twice a relief, believe me. I'd have been happier still if she'd brought herself to re-Impress."

  "That would have served no purpose," F'nor said, so flatly contradictory that F'lar's grin faded a little.

  He recovered and drew F'nor to the tubs.

  "N'ton was able to get Thread and we infected three of the big tubs," F'lar told him, speaking in a low undertone as if he didn't wish to disturb the Masterfarmer's investigations. "The grubs devoured every filament. And where the Thread pierced the leaves of that fellis tree, the char marks are already healing. I'm hoping Master Andemon can tell us how or why."

  Andemon straightened his body but his lantern jaw remained sunk to his chest as he frowned at the tub. He blinked rapidly and pursed his thin lips, his heavy, thick-knuckled hands twitching slightly in the folds of a dirt-stained tunic. He had come as he was when the Weyr messenger summoned him from the fields.

  "I don't know how or why, Good Weyrleader. And if what you have told me is the truth," he paused, finally raising his eyes to F'lar, "I am scared."

  "Why, man?" And F'lar spoke on the end of a surprised laugh. "Don't you realize what this means? If the grubs can adapt to northern soil and climate, and perform as we, all of us here," his gesture took in the Harper and his Wing-second as well as Lessa, "have seen them, Pern does not need to fear Thread ever again."

  Andemon took a deep breath, throwing his shoulders back, but whether resisting the revolutionary concept or preparing to espouse it was not apparent. He looked toward the Harper as if he could trust this man's opinion above the others.

  "You saw the Thread devoured by these grubs?"

  The Harper nodded.

  "And that was five days ago?"

  The Harper confirmed this.

  A shudder rippled the cloth of the Masterfarmers tunic. He looked down at the tub with the reluctance of fear. Stepping forward resolutely, he peered again at the young fellis tree. Inhaling and holding that deep breath, he poised one gnarled hand for a moment before plunging it into the dirt. His eyes were closed. He brought up a moist handful of earth and, opening his eyes, turned the glob over, exposing a cluster of wriggling grubs. His eyes widened and, with an exclamation of disgust, he flung the dirt from him as if he'd been burned. The grubs writhed impotently against the stone floor.

  "What's the matter? There can't be Thread!"

  "Those are parasites!" Andemon replied, glaring at F'lar, badly disillusioned and angry. "We've been trying to rid the southern parts of this peninsula of these larvae for centuries." He grimaced with distaste as he watched F'lar carefully pick up the grubs and deposit them back into the nearest tub. "They're as pernicious and indestructible as Igen sandworms and not half as useful Why, let them get into a field and every plant begins to droop and die."

  "There's not an unhealthy plant here," F'lar protested, gesturing at the burgeoning growths all around.

  Andemon stared at him. F'lar moved, grabbing a handful of soil from each tub as he circled, showing the grubs as proof.

  "It's impossible," Andemon insisted, the shadow of his earlier fear returning.

  "Don't you recall, F'lar," Lessa said, "when we first brought the grubs here, the plants did seem to droop?"

  "They recovered. All they needed was water!"

  "They couldn't." Andemon forgot his revulsion enough to dig into another tub as if to prove to himself that F'lar was wrong. "There're no grubs in this one!" he said in triumph.

  "That's never had any. I used it to check the others. And I must say, the plants don't look as green or healthy as the other tubs."

  Andemon stared around. "Those grubs are pests. We've been trying to rid ourselves of them for hundreds of Turns."

  "Then I suspect, good Master Andemon," F'lar said with a gentle, rueful smile, "that farmers have been working against Pern's best interests."

  The Masterfarmer exploded into indignant denials of that charge. It took all Robinton's diplomacy to calm him down long enough for F'lar to explain.

  "And you mean to tell me that those larvae, those grubs, were developed and spread on purpose?" Andemon demanded of the Harper who was the only one in the room he seemed inclined to trust now. "They were meant to spread, bred by the same ancestors who bred the dragons?"

  "That's what we believe," Robinton said. "Oh, I can appreciate your incredulity. I had to sleep on the notion for several nights. However, if we check the Records, we find that, while there is no mention that dragonmen will attack the Red Star and clear it of Thread, there is the strong, recurring belief that Thread will one day not be the menace it is now. F'lar is reasonably ..."

  "Not reasonably, Robinton; completely sure," F'lar interrupted. "N'ton's been going back to Southern, jumping between time, as far back as seven Turns, to check on Threadfalls in the southern continent. Wherever he's probed, there're grubs in the soil which rise when Thread falls and devour it.

  That's why there have never been any burrows in Southern. The land itself is inimical to Thread."

  In the silence, Andemon stared at the tips of his muddy boots.

  "In the Farmer Crafthall Records, they mention specifically that we are to watch for these grubs." He lifted troubled eyes to the others. "We always have. It was our plain duty. Plants wither wherever grub appears." He shrugged in helpless confusion. "We've always rooted them out, destroyed the larval sacks with, " and he sighed, "flame and agenothree. That's the only way to stop the infestations.

  "Watch for the grubs, the Records say," Andemon repeated and then suddenly his shoulders began to shake, his whole torso became involved. Lessa caught F'lar's eyes, concerned, for the man. But he was laughing, if only at the cruel irony. "Watch for the grubs, the Records say. They do not, they do not say destroy the grubs. They say most emphatically 'watch for the grubs.' So we watched. Aye, we have watched."

  The Harper extended the wine bottle to Andemon.

  "That's a help, Harper. My thanks," Andemon said, wiping his lips with the back of one hand after a long pull at the bottle.

  "So someone forgot to mention why you were to watch the grubs, Andemon," F'lar said, his eyes compassionate for the man's distress. "If only Sograny'd been as reasonable. Once, so many men must have known why you were to watch for the grubs, they didn't see a need for further implicit instructions. Then the Holds started to grow and people drifted apart. Records got lost or destroyed, men died before they'd passed on the vital knowledge they possessed." He looked around at the tubs. "Maybe they developed those grubs right here in Benden Weyr. Maybe that's the meaning of the
diagram on the wall. There's so much that has been lost."

  "Which will never be lost again if the Harpercraft has any influence," said Robinton. "If all men, Hold, Craft, Weyr have full access to every skin, " he held up his hand as Andemon started to protest, "well, we've better than skin to keep Records on. Bendarek now has a reliable, tough sheet of his wood pulp that holds ink, stacks neatly and is impervious to anything except fire. We can combine knowledge and disseminate it."

  Andemon looked at the Harper, his eyes puzzled. "Master Robinton, there are some matters within a Craft that must remain secret or ..."

  "Or we lose a world to the Thread, is that it, Andemon? Man, if the truth about those grubs hadn't been treated like a Craft secret, we'd have been hundreds of Turns free of Thread by now."

  Andemon gasped suddenly, staring at F'lar. "And dragonmen, we wouldn't need dragonmen?"

  "Well, if men kept to their Holds during Threadfall, and grubs devoured what fell to the ground, no, you wouldn't need dragonmen," F'lar replied with complete composure.

  "But dragonmen are su, supposed to fight Thread, " the Farmer was stuttering with dismay.

  "Oh, we'll be fighting Thread for a while yet, I assure you. We're not in any immediate danger of unemployment. There's a lot to be done. For instance, how long before an entire continent can be seeded with grubs?"

  Andemon opened and closed his mouth futilely. Robinton indicated the bottle in his hand, pantomimed a long swig. Dazedly the Farmer complied. "I don't know. I just don't know. Why, for Turn upon Turn, we've watched for those grubs, exterminating them, razing an entire field if it got infected. Spring's when the larval sacks break and we'd be ..." He sat down suddenly, shaking his head from side to side.

  "Get a grip on yourself, man," F'lar said, but it was his attitude which caused Andemon the most distress.

  "What, what will dragonmen do?"

  "Get rid of Thread, of course. Get rid of Thread."

  Had F'lar been a feather less confident, F'nor would have had trouble maintaining his composure. But his half-brother must have some plan in mind. And Lessa looked as serene as, as Manora could.

  Fortunately Andemon was not only an intelligent man, he was tenacious. He had been confronted with a series of disclosures that both confused and disturbed basic precepts. He must reverse a long-standing Craft practice. He must rid himself of an inborn, carefully instilled prejudice, and he must accept the eventual abdication of an authority which he had good reason to respect and more reason to wish to perpetuate.

  He was determined to resolve these matters before he left the Weyr. He questioned F'lar, F'nor, the Harper, N'ton and Manora when he learned she'd been involved in the project. Andemon examined all the tubs, particularly the one which had been left alone. He conquered his revulsion and even examined the grubs carefully, patiently uncoiling a large specimen as if it were a new species entirely. In a certain respect, it was.

  Andemon was very thoughtful as he watched the unharmed larva burrow quickly back into the tub dirt from which he'd extracted it.

  "One wishes fervently," he said, "to find a release from our long domination by Thread. It is just, just that the agency which frees us is ..."

  "Revolting?" the Harper suggested obligingly.

  Andemon regarded Robinton a moment. "Aye, you're the man with words, Master Robinton. It is rather leveling to think that one will have to be grateful to such a, such a lowly creature. I'd rather be grateful to dragons." He gave F'lar a rather abashed grin.

  "You're not a Lord Holder!" said Lessa, wryly, drawing a chuckle from everyone.

  "And yet," Andemon went on, letting a handful of soil dribble from his fist, we have taken the bounties of this rich earth too much for granted. We are from it, part of it, sustained by it. I suppose it is only mete that we are protected by it. If all goes well."

  He brushed his hand off on the wher-hide trousers and with an air of decision turned to F'lar. "I'd like to run a few experiments of my own, Weyrleader. We've tubs and all at the Farmer Crafthall ..."

  "By all means," F'lar grinned with relief. "We'll cooperate in every way Grubs, Threads on request. But you've solved the one big problem I'd foreseen."

  Andemon raised his eyebrows in polite query.

  "Whether or not the grubs were adaptable to northern conditions."

  "They are, Weyrleader, they are." The Farmer was grimly sardonic.

  "I shouldn't think that would be the major problem, F'lar," F'nor said.

  "Oh?" The quiet syllable was almost a challenge to the brown rider. F'nor hesitated, wondering if F'lar had lost confidence in him, despite what Lessa had said earlier.

  "I've been watching Master Andemon, and I remember my own reaction to the grubs. It's one thing to say, to know, that these are the answer to Thread. Another, quite another to get the average man to accept it. And the average dragonrider."

  Andemon nodded agreement and, judging by the expression on the Harper's face, F'nor knew he was not the only one who anticipated resistance.

  But F'lar began to grin as he settled himself on the edge of the nearest tub.

  "That's why I brought Andemon here and explained the project. We need help which only he can give us, once he himself is sure of matters. How long, Masterfarmer, does it take grubs to infest a field?"

  Andemon dropped his chin to his chest in thought. He shook his head and admitted he couldn't estimate. Once a field showed signs of infestation, the area was seared to prevent spreading.

  "So, we must find out how long first!"

  "You'll have to wait for next spring," the Farmer reminded him.

  "Why? We can import grubs from Southern."

  "And put them where?" the Harper asked, sardonically.

  F'lar chuckled. "Lemos Hold."

  "Lemos!"

  "Where else?" and F'lar looked smug. "The forests are the hardest areas to protect. Asgenar and Bendarek are determined to preserve them. Asgenar and Bendarek are both flexible enough to accept such an innovation and carry it through. You, Masterfarmer, have the hardest task. To convince your crafters to leave off killing ..."

  Andemon raised a hand. "I have my own observations to make first."

  "By all means, Master Andemon," and F'lar's grin broadened, "I'm confident of the outcome. I remind you of your first journey to the Southern Weyr. You commented on the luxuriant growths, the unusual size of the trees and bushes common to both continents, the spectacular crops, the sweetness of the fruits. That is not due to the temperate weather. We have similar zones here in the north. It is due," and F'lar pointed his finger first at Andemon and then toward the tubs, "to the stimulation, the protection of the grubs."

  Andemon was not totally convinced but F'lar did not press the point.

  "Now, Master Andemon, the Harper will assist you all he can. You know your people better than we, you'll know whom you can tell. I urge you to discuss it with your trusted Masters. The more the better. We can't lose this opportunity for lack of disciples. We might be forced to wait until your Oldtimers die off." F'lar laughed wryly. "I guess the Weyrs are not the only ones to contend with Old-timers; we've all got re-education to do."

  "Yes, there will be problems." The magnitude of the undertaking had suddenly burst on the Masterfarmer.

  "Many," F'lar assured him blithely. "But the end result is freedom from Thread."

  "It could take Turns and Turns," Andemon said, catching F'lar's glance and, as if that consoled him somehow, straightened his shoulders. He was committed to the project.

  "And well may take Turns. First," and F'lar grinned with pure mischief in his eyes, "we've got to stop you farmers from exterminating our saviors."

  An expression of pure shock and indignation passed across Andemon's weather-lined face. It was swiftly replaced by a tentative smile as the man realized that F'lar was ribbing him. Evidently an unusual experience for the Masterfarmer.

  "Think of all the rewriting I have to do," complained the Harper "I'm dry just considering it." He looked mou
rnfully at the now empty wine bottle.

  "This certainly calls for a drink," Lessa remarked with a sidelong glance at Robinton. She took Andemon's arm to guide him out.

  "I'm honored, my lady, but I've work to oversee, and the investigations I ought to conduct." He pulled away from her.

  "Surely one drink?" Lessa pleaded, smiling in her most winning way.

  The Masterfarmer ran his hand through his hair, clearly reluctant to refuse.

  "One drink then."

  "To seal the bargain of Pern's fate," said the Harper, dropping his voice to a sepulchral bass and looking solemnly portentous and amazingly like Lord Groghe of Fort.

  As they all trooped out of the Rooms, Andemon looked down at Lessa.

  "If it isn't presumptuous of me, the young woman, Brekke, who lost her queen, how is she?"

  Lessa hesitated only a second. "F'nor here can answer you better than I They're Weyrmates."

  F'nor was forced to step up. "She's been ill. Losing one's dragon is a tremendous shock. She has made the adjustment. She won't suicide now."

  The Masterfarmer halted, staring at F'nor. "That would be unthinkable."

  Lessa caught F'nor's eye and he remembered he was talking to a commoner.

  "Yes, of course, but the loss is unsettling."

  "Certainly. Ah, does she have any position at all now?" The words came slowly from the Farmer, then he added in a rush, "she is from my Crafthall you see, and we ..."

  "She is well loved and respected by all Weyrs," Lessa broke in when Andemon faltered. "Brekke is one of those rare people who can hear any dragon. She will always enjoy a unique and high position with dragonfolk. She may, if she chooses, return to her home ..."

  "No!" The Masterfarmer was definite about that.

  "Brekke is weyrfolk now," F'nor said on the heels of that denial.

  Lessa was a little surprised at such vehemence from both men. She'd had the notion from Andemon's attitude that perhaps her Craft wanted her back.

  "My apologies for being so brusque! my lady. It would be hard for her to live simply again." His voice turned hard and lost all hesitancy. "What of that adulterous transgressor?"