2024-07-23 - [8.1] Choice or Willingness

Pop. Poppoppop–

If Courth’d had feet on the ground to clamber with, he would have climbed to the top of his egg to scan the sky as Gwillanth did – maybe even have climbed on top of her. In his cramped little cage, though, he merely wriggles. It’s smaller now, though, and he can’t get out his frustration with as much movement as he used to.

’Welcome back! Welcome back – how many? How many!’

In all the noise, both mental and physical, he doesn’t figure out that all the wings have come back safe for a long, stretched out moment. He scrambles between minds, trying to pull out figures and mental tallies from those in the know, and sparking furiously when he doesn’t find the numbers he wants. Does no one in this weyr care about the specifics? Does everyone leave it all to the damn weyrleader?

Eventually the relief of the weyr becomes palpable enough he mantles his mental wings and settles, reluctantly, to soak in information rather than seek it out.

The return of the formations and Gwillanth’s thoughts raise too many questions to answer in one day. Why didn’t the other weyrs send help? What were the tactics used? Did one wing lead the others better? What were the conditions that made it difficult actually like? There’s very few siblings among the eggs that Courth can pelt with questions, even fewer who will put up with it. Will the person he finds on the sands enjoy these questions? Add their own? He bristles with the need to spread these questions to someone else, engage in a conversation.

Or will they both be too tired, after flying?

He discards the courage of the wings flying in such a terrible fall from his considerations as quickly as people celebrate them for it. What other choice is there? ’Are we allowed to sit out if we want? You can’t praise people for doing what you demand of them,’ he grumbles at the humans who can’t hear him. Courage is nothing without the knowledge to back it up. Otherwise it’s just like the boy at the touching, willing to go down in a blaze of ‘glory’ and leave everyone else to pick up the pieces. He would rather consideration of the facts and situation, not blind chasing.