I Will Follow You Into the Dark

Writers: Devin, Miriah
Date Posted: 27th March 2019

Characters: J'kri, Paetri
Description: A heartbreaking loss in Threadfall leads to another tragedy.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 10, day 19 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: Rorela, D'ale (not by name)

It was a sunny day, and relatively warm for Dragonsfall. If only it
wasn't also a 'Fall day. J'kri caught the firestone sack tossed by a
weyrling and secured it before starting to feed the pieces to
Rademerth. He scanned around them carefully. For the next few moments
they were vulnerable until Rademerth chewed enough stone to replenish
his flame.

Around them the sky was filled with dragons and flashes of fire. This
had gotten easier over time, but J'kri still had nervous energy
humming through him whenever they faced Thread. It was routine, but
not the kind of task where he could ever let his guard down.

}:Ready.:{ Rademerth brought his head forward again and they were back
on, climbing a few wingbeats to burn a clump of Thread.

In another wing, Camilth chewed the firestone that Paetri tossed in
her mouth, eyeing the oncoming Thread with rapidly whirling eyes that
glinted with both excitement and instinctual rage. The wing approached
to oncoming menace that slithered through the air with blind,
voracious hunger and Camilth answered its arrival alongside her
wingmate's bellows. Assigned to fly the first half of the Fall, Paetri
and Camilth darted and dove alongside the larger dragons of her wings,
searing the Thread that the upper wings hadn't been able to catch.

Camilth dodged a clump, then banked sharply, following it and blasting
it to charred cinders before it reached the queen's wing. She returned
to her position, throwing back her head to demand more firestone.
There was a screech of pain above and Paetri looked upwards as she
filled Camilth's waiting maw. }: Upinth is badly scored and cannot
continue! She is returning to the Weyr! :{ Paetri's stomach twisted;
hoping that Rorela and her green weren't too badly injured. She shoved
more firestone into Camilth's mouth until her dragon was satisfied and
refocused on her task ahead.

Azure Wing adjusted to the loss of their Wingthird, dragons shifting
to fill the gap. It went smoothly, as they had drilled it many times.
Rademerth now had a slightly larger area to cover, as did every other
dragon. **I hope they're okay,** J'kri thought.

Ahead of them, a green ran out of flame and a blue weyrling appeared
with a firestone stack. He missed the toss and the bag went plummeting
down. The weyrling dove to retrieve it, the blue dragon catching it in
his claws. They winked /between/ to start over. In a moment they were
back, the weyrling pair moving dangerously close to the green, no
doubt worried about making the throw this time.

}:Above!:{ Rademerth spotted a huge tangle of Thread headed right for
the two dragons. They were so distracted they didn't notice.

Wordlessly, he and his rider agreed to go after it. Rademerth surged
up and forward, flame belching from his open jaws to burn the silvery
mass. The green and blue pairs below were covered in hot ash, crying
out in surprise. But they were safe.

Rademerth blinked /between/, back into position. Right into a clump of Thread.

He screamed. }:It burns!:{ Pain everywhere as the Thread ate into his
back. J'kri screamed along with him, unable to think. Rademerth went
/between/, into the dark and cold, seeking relief.

He didn't come back.

Camilth's keen that pierced the air was filled with more than just
draconic grief, it was filled with the loss of her mate, her friend,
and her constant companion. **Rademerth is no more!**

The shock and agony that reverberated through Paetri was instantaneous
and she let out an agonized cry of horror as denial coupled with
complete and utter pain rocked into her very soul. "J'kri! No!" Her
gaze swung about, desperate, trying to find him, to deny what her
heart told her was true. J'kri was her everything! He couldn't be
gone! **Where is he?!** Desperate, Camilth followed her rider's lead
and broke formation to try to reach where Rademerth had last
/betweened/. "Come back! J'kri! Please! Don't leave me!" Tears,
streaked down her face, blinding her behind her goggles. **Find him!**

Absorbed in her desperation and denial, even the command from her
Wingleader didn't pull her back into formation. Camilth too was caught
up in the roiling emotions, struggling in the air to both search for
her mate and comfort her frantic rider. Camilth dodged a larger blue
who was trying to corral her back into her wing and away from falling
Thread. The dodge sent her directly into the path of another clump of
Thread, missed because of distraction that their shared grief had
caused.

Pain lanced through both as the clump fell directly on Paetri. She
gave a heartbroken scream of agony as the Thread tore into her, but it
was blessedly silenced moments later when they followed their mates
into nothingness.

Last updated on the April 4th 2019

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I Will Follow You Into the Dark