Bitra's Bite: The Story of Pern's Most Hated
Bitra Hold decides to reform ties with Benden Weyr by opening its Hold once more to Search. Those chosen, however, are faced with the hatred of Pern's illustrious dragonfolk.
Khaleel smelled the wrongness before he truly awoke. Sharp, strong, thick, cloying: it was the smell of blood and a lot of it. He did not have time to think before he half-stood in a crouch and surveyed the cavern, searching for the person to whom the blood belonged. His eyes adjusted slowly to the dark but he could not find where the smell came from. It seemed all around him, overwhelming his senses so that he tasted the metallic tang, smelled the thickness of it, and felt the pain in his head.
Then he found her. Buthaynah, the small girl with the black hair. She lay on the floor, barely breathing. Wet, dark blood surrounded her, soaking her clothes.
He reacted instantly, taking his furs and putting them between her legs to stop the bleeding. He awoke Mikail and Mujahid, covering their mouths so that they would not awaken everyone else. Khaleel told them quietly to pick Buthaynah up, that there had been an accident and she needed to see a healer. They nodded, the surety and calm of Khaleel’s voice making them trust him.
Tayyib stirred then, as did Suhaiyl. Khaleel told them to run and alert the Weyr healer, which they did without questioning him.
A girl whose name Khaleel did not know followed Mikail and Mujahid as they carried Buthaynah out of the Weyrling Barracks. She reassured Buthaynah, who had awoken when they moved her. She murmured soothing words and stroked Buthaynah’s cheeks, telling the girl that everything was going to be okay.
Khaleel hoped she was right.
ØØØ
The Weyr healer was surprised when they brought Buthaynah in. He was a true Healer from Fort, not a rider. Dorjun sent Suhaiyl and Tayyib off to find the Headwoman and as many women as they could find.
Renni appeared soon after, her eyes cat-like from sleep. She and Dorjun spoke in hushed tones, then ordered the boys out. This was a matter for females only, Renni said.
They worked through the early morning wiping the blood away as Buthaynah lapsed in and out of consciousness. The girl from the cavern, a holder from Benden, stayed with her, holding Buthaynah’s hand in her own. Ghaliyah came in over an hour later. She told Renni that Buthaynah’s cot and furs had been taken out of the cavern to be burned. Renni nodded and sent Ghaliyah away as well, telling her to get some rest, that there was nothing she could do to help Buthaynah now.
“Headwoman?” the holder girl, Meg, asked much later when Buthaynah had fallen asleep again.
They sat watching her. The bleeding had stopped and Buthaynah had taken enough fellis juice to be delightfully numb. Someone had brought in klah and rolls, though none of them felt much like eating.
“Yes, my dear?” Renni replied, her voice tinged with exhaustion.
Meg stared into her klah as she spoke.
“I think I know what happened to her, Buthaynah, I mean,” Meg said, “I have no brothers or sisters, you see, though my mother has tried many times. It’s only ever been me. It used to be, when I was little, that she would get with child- I always used to hope that I’d have a little sister-” she smiled, then, “But it never happened. Ma would start her monthlies again right when she was certain she was pregnant- that’s what she said they were, monthlies anyway, but the bl-blood that c-came out was too much. It was sc-scary, it was so much blood…”
Meg trailed off, her voice cracking with emotion. A tear ran down the left side of her face. Renni pulled her into a hug, letting the girl cry.
Healer Dorjun nodded and took a sip of his klah.
“You may well be right, Meg. What you describe is a miscarriage, when the child separates from its mother too early, causing a heavy menstrual flow. There are other possibilities, though. We cannot know until your friend wakes up.”
“Sh-she’s not really my friend,” Meg stammered, pulling away from Renni, “We are both Candidates. She’s one of them Bitrans, so I never really talked to her. I just didn’t want to leave her there, on the floor. It wouldn’t be right, even if she is a bad person.”
Healer Dorjun frowned, then shook his head wearily.
“I’m glad that you acted as you did. I cannot say I knew her myself before this morning but it is a very useful trait to want to help people simply because they are hurt. Very useful.”
ØØØ
Word spread through the Weyr quickly that a Bitran Candidate had been hurt. Speculation as to the cause of the damage was rampant, everyone from another Candidate to the Weyrlingmaster becoming suspect. Once Buthaynah awoke and it was confirmed that she had had a miscarriage, the speculation only grew.
It was one word from Ghaliyah, though, that turned everything on its head. When asked if Buthaynah had gone between recently, Ghaliyah told Renni of the ride on Alibith the day before. It might not have been Renni that spread the news along, but soon the whole Weyr knew of the incident- and it was not chance that people assumed a spiteful spirit behind the singular experience of a queen allowing someone other than her rider mount her. Queens were too proud to carry anyone else.
Favanna was called in to see the Weyrleader. The beautiful woman walked past many a rider who suddenly stopped talking as she passed by.
“Weyrleader,” Favanna said, bowing her head as she walked into his apartments.
Galla and S’grall stood before her, Galla’s arms folded and her expression cold.
“Do you know why you are here, rider Favanna?” S’grall asked, his tone carefully even.
Favanna winced at the insult. She was a queenrider, a Weyrwoman, and he had called her by the lowest word that had any rank.
“I have my beliefs, Weyrleader, but I cannot be assured that they are correct,” she said, keeping her eyes to the ground.
She could feel S’grall’s boring into her.
“You have been accused of deliberately, and maliciously, causing injury to a Candidate, so much so that Healer Dorjun says that you ind-indaduced-” he stumbled on the unfamiliar word.
Favanna grinned slightly, then cursed herself for the foolish reaction. S’grall did not seem pleased.
“You caused Buthaynah to lose her child,” Galla hissed, covering S’grall’s mistake, “Do you understand how serious this is, Favanna? She and the rest of those Candidates from Bitra are here as part of an agreement we made with that Hold. Your stupid act has jeopardized everything.”
“I understand, Weyrwoman,” Favanna whispered.
“You will be grounded for the next five months,” S’grall said, his voice tight with anger, “Alibith may fly to feed, nothing more-”
Favanna gasped.
“You would ground a queen? You can’t do that, S’grall!”she said, her face flushing with anger.
She met S’grall’s gaze and found no sympathy there.
“You are also stripped of your title of Weyrwoman, Favanna. You may keep your weyr only because that cannot be taken from you under Weyr custom. Is that clear?”
Favanna bit her lip, trying not to let her indignant thoughts show. Queens couldn’t have their rights taken away, not for just a mistake, could they? She had only meant to scare the girls, not cause a miscarriage. How was she to know the girl had been with child?
“You are dismissed, Favanna.”
Favanna left the Weyrleader’s apartments, her thoughts roiling inside of her mind. Seconds later, she felt a hand on her shoulder, spinning her around.
A hard slap made her stumble against the wall. Favanna clutched her face, knowing who stood before her: Galla, the true leader of the Weyr, the one who she had let down.
Galla spat her next words at Favanna, her tone filled with barely contained fury.
“You have embarrassed me and the entire Weyr, Favanna. Do you understand that, you stupid girl? I had half a mind to send you to another Weyr but none would want to take you now, you filthy weyrbrat.”
Tears rolled down Favanna’s cheek. She had never been so humiliated. Surely Galla’s words could be heard by everyone.
“I simply did as you told me, Weyrwoman-” Favanna said, only to be slapped again.
“As I told you?” Galla shrieked, “Did I tell you to kill that slut’s unborn child? No, I told you to make those girls wish they were back at Bitra. But did you do that? No, you proud Favanna, sniveling half-breed whelp of a rider and a holder, decided you were going to do it your way. You are so lucky that that girl did not want that child or you-” Galla held up a hand, making Favanna recoil in expectation, “would be banned from this Weyr.”
Galla spit in Favanna’s face.
“You really are starting to make me wonder if those rumors about Alibith’s birth are true,” Galla sneered, “Maybe there was something wrong with her because, after all, she chose you.”
Galla stomped off, leaving Favanna in the hallway. The pain of Galla’s blows was strong but Favanna knew that was not why the hot tears poured from her eyes. She sank against the stone wall, a hand covering her disgraced face as she broke down. Favanna could hear Alibith crooning in her mind, grieving with her but Favanna blocked the memory of Galla’s words from her queen, knowing that the effect on her would tear them both apart.
Favanna cried in that hallway, the humiliated queenrider who had lost everything but her dragon.
Chapters:
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