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i_read_whatSo last time in Dragonquest, Jaxom and Felessan found a cool room of old technology, while the grownups talked crises and politics. This was interesting and will likely have a lot of ramifications for the Weyr and possibly for Pern society as a whole.
Which is why this chapter takes us back to Kylara and the Southern Weyr. Because why should we deal with any of that?
At least it's Kylara though. As awful as she is, she's pretty much the only person at Southern Weyr with any hint of actual spark or personality. And her plot actually does at least tie a bit into the Pernese political situation. Which is more than I can say for the others. So here we go:
So as mentioned, we start with Kylara. Kylara is delighted because she apparently found another fire lizard nest, complete with golden egg. And you know, I don't think Kylara gets enough credit. We saw a few chapters ago how F'nor, Brekke and company saw a lot of advantage in getting fire lizards, and had even talked about sending people to find more, but we don't hear about any results. Kylara goes out in a fit of pique and apparently finds one immediately. She intends to take it to Meron of Nabol.
We're told that Meron hates dragonmen out of envy and that he "often carped that Impressions ought not to be monopolized by one inbred sodality" and...sorry, am I supposed to disagree with Meron here? I'm honestly not sure. I mean, Meron is one of our token adversaries, but he's not wrong. Furthermore, even F'lar seems to somewhat acknowledge that Meron isn't wrong, given that he's had some Craft and Holder boys take part in Impressions too.
Anyway, Kylara seems less concerned with political advantage as with the idea that Meron might Impress a bronze while she has a gold, and while it "might not be as spectacular as with the larger beasts", "given Meron's natural endowment...".
So anyway, apparently Meron has a huge dick. This amuses me for one reason: implicitly then F'lar does not. Because Kylara has commented on her attraction to F'lar multiple times already. But she has not mentioned his dick size. It is apparently not notable in comparison to Meron's. Congratulations, F'lar.
I might like F'lar better in this book than I did in Dragonflight, but I still find that amusing.
Anyway, Kylara takes the eggs to Meron, who is initially confused and irritated, somewhat understandably because Kylara doesn't really bother to explain anything, but is then intrigued by the possibilities. Kylara orders preparations and we get another tacked on moment to remind us that she is supposed to be The Worst:
"There was something, she decided, in what the Oldtimers said: Holders were getting far too arrogant and aggressive. No one would have dared speak up in her father’s Hold when he was giving instructions. No one in the Weyrs interrupted a Weyrwoman."
This book really isn't subtle. Anyway, they wait for the eggs to hatch. Meron starts talking out loud about advantage that solid, dependable communications would bring, showing he's smarter than a good portion of the cast of Dragonflight.
We're reminded that McCaffrey doesn't remember her own story, as Kylara muses about how even after nine Turns in a Weyr and seven Turns as Weyrwoman she still doesn't know what makes a dragon accept a particular candidate. Kylara, if you recall, was part of F'nor's trip back in time. She spent four years there, as sole Weyrwoman, and we were told to hate her because she loved watching herself as a child. Kylara has, in fact, been a Weyrwoman for eleven Turns. Longer than F'lar and Lessa have been in charge.
Actually, this is even worse than that. We were told in Dragonflight that Kylara was Searched when Lessa was. Jaxom is eleven. So really, even without the time travel, Kylara should have been Weyrwoman for nine years. With the time travel, thirteen!
Because McCaffrey isn't done with showing us how Kylara is The Worst, she also has a disparaging thought about how Brekke's foundling Mirrim Impressed three lizards.
So anyway, Kylara instructs Meron and his men, and the eggs start hatching. We get some interesting psychoanalysis of Kylara's own obsession:
"She could not suppress her own excitement and heard Prideth warbling from the heights above the Hold. Ever since Kylara had seen the tiny fledglings F’nor and Brekke had Impressed, she had craved one of these dainty creatures. She would never understand that her imperious nature had subconsciously fought against the emotional symbiosis of her dragon queen. Instinctively Kylara had known that only as a Weyrwoman, a queen’s rider, could she achieve the unparalleled power, privilege and unchallenged freedom as a woman on Pern. Skilled at ignoring what she didn’t wish to admit, Kylara never realized that Prideth was the only living creature who could dominate her and whose good opinion she had to have. In the fire lizard, Kylara saw a miniature dragon which she could control—easily control—and physically dominate in a way she could not dominate Prideth.
And in presenting these fire-lizard eggs to a Holder, particularly the most despised Holder of all, Meron of Nabol, Kylara struck back at all the ignominies and imagined slights she had endured at the hands of both dragonmen and Pernese. The most recent insult—that the dishfaced fosterling of Brekke’s had Impressed three, rejecting Kylara—would be completely avenged."
It's hard for me to explain why this bit annoys me. It might just be because McCaffrey never bothers to psychoanalyze why F'nor wanted to tame Grall, or why Brekke wanted her bronze, whose name I forgot, or Mirrim, or G'sel. Kylara is the first person to actively seek the fire lizards, but it's not like the others didn't want one. What's wrong with a motivation of: "Fire lizards are neat and pretty and I want one?"
But it is interesting. Especially by what it doesn't say. We're told that Kylara's bond with Prideth is imperfect and that she subconsciously resents the idea that Prideth could dominate her. Because Prideth does, actually. All of the dragons do, when it's time for the mating flight. The mating flight forces people into sham-relationships that may work out in the long run, as F'lar and Lessa do, but more often seem not to. T'ron and Mardra, T'bor and Kylara, they're all very unhappy.
It's true that the men have more of a choice than the women in this, to be fair. After all, they could choose not to take part in a mating flight...I think. (Unless it's a biological need of the dragon?) Whereas the women don't have the option to just not hold flights at all. But withdrawing basically involves ceding their leadership role entirely, which could have catastrophic effects. We saw what a difference it made when F'lar took over from R'gul, after all. So there is a lot at stake, and a lot of reasons a man might feel like he has to go along with this mess too.
God, this is such a stupid way to determine human leadership.
Anyway, I also think, as I said a few chapters ago, that Kylara had every right to be offended by the fact that no one called her when the fire lizards hatched. Sure, she is a bitch, but her presence may have made the difference for a few more fire lizards. Even if Canth didn't call Prideth, you can't tell me ONE of those others couldn't at least shout in her direction before racing down the beach.
That said, I have no idea how the revenge plot is supposed to work. Meron's got a scheme, sure, but the dragonriders already have the ability to communicate effectively. It's not clear that Kylara herself has any grand plans outside of showing up at the wedding with Meron and some shiny new toys.
Anyway, the hatching goes chaotically. Kylara gets her gold, but the men are basically making "every mistake in the Record". I'm shocked, SHOCKED, that these people with no experience with anything dragon are doing badly. But then, I wonder, ARE they doing badly?
We know of four lizards who explicitly survive: two men are mentioned to take their lizards out of the circle, we learn later that Meron manages to keep one of his bronzes. Kylara makes note of a few other bronzes (saying her fire lizard won't be short of mates), which implies a few more survivors, which already then takes them close to F'nor and company's seven.
Kylara even points out to an unhappy Prideth that they lost more at Southern, and that was with trained dragonmen and Weyr folk.
Granted, Kylara had more time to prepare, but even so, when there isn't that big of a difference between the success of completely untrained Holders and trained Weyrfolk...it does make you wonder a little about how necessary the Weyrs actually are.
What WOULD happen if there were no Weyrs at all? What if the dragons were actually part of the Holds? What if they were cared for by their local people and they chose from everybody? Would it really be any worse than the system they have now? I wonder...
Which is why this chapter takes us back to Kylara and the Southern Weyr. Because why should we deal with any of that?
At least it's Kylara though. As awful as she is, she's pretty much the only person at Southern Weyr with any hint of actual spark or personality. And her plot actually does at least tie a bit into the Pernese political situation. Which is more than I can say for the others. So here we go:
So as mentioned, we start with Kylara. Kylara is delighted because she apparently found another fire lizard nest, complete with golden egg. And you know, I don't think Kylara gets enough credit. We saw a few chapters ago how F'nor, Brekke and company saw a lot of advantage in getting fire lizards, and had even talked about sending people to find more, but we don't hear about any results. Kylara goes out in a fit of pique and apparently finds one immediately. She intends to take it to Meron of Nabol.
We're told that Meron hates dragonmen out of envy and that he "often carped that Impressions ought not to be monopolized by one inbred sodality" and...sorry, am I supposed to disagree with Meron here? I'm honestly not sure. I mean, Meron is one of our token adversaries, but he's not wrong. Furthermore, even F'lar seems to somewhat acknowledge that Meron isn't wrong, given that he's had some Craft and Holder boys take part in Impressions too.
Anyway, Kylara seems less concerned with political advantage as with the idea that Meron might Impress a bronze while she has a gold, and while it "might not be as spectacular as with the larger beasts", "given Meron's natural endowment...".
So anyway, apparently Meron has a huge dick. This amuses me for one reason: implicitly then F'lar does not. Because Kylara has commented on her attraction to F'lar multiple times already. But she has not mentioned his dick size. It is apparently not notable in comparison to Meron's. Congratulations, F'lar.
I might like F'lar better in this book than I did in Dragonflight, but I still find that amusing.
Anyway, Kylara takes the eggs to Meron, who is initially confused and irritated, somewhat understandably because Kylara doesn't really bother to explain anything, but is then intrigued by the possibilities. Kylara orders preparations and we get another tacked on moment to remind us that she is supposed to be The Worst:
"There was something, she decided, in what the Oldtimers said: Holders were getting far too arrogant and aggressive. No one would have dared speak up in her father’s Hold when he was giving instructions. No one in the Weyrs interrupted a Weyrwoman."
This book really isn't subtle. Anyway, they wait for the eggs to hatch. Meron starts talking out loud about advantage that solid, dependable communications would bring, showing he's smarter than a good portion of the cast of Dragonflight.
We're reminded that McCaffrey doesn't remember her own story, as Kylara muses about how even after nine Turns in a Weyr and seven Turns as Weyrwoman she still doesn't know what makes a dragon accept a particular candidate. Kylara, if you recall, was part of F'nor's trip back in time. She spent four years there, as sole Weyrwoman, and we were told to hate her because she loved watching herself as a child. Kylara has, in fact, been a Weyrwoman for eleven Turns. Longer than F'lar and Lessa have been in charge.
Actually, this is even worse than that. We were told in Dragonflight that Kylara was Searched when Lessa was. Jaxom is eleven. So really, even without the time travel, Kylara should have been Weyrwoman for nine years. With the time travel, thirteen!
Because McCaffrey isn't done with showing us how Kylara is The Worst, she also has a disparaging thought about how Brekke's foundling Mirrim Impressed three lizards.
So anyway, Kylara instructs Meron and his men, and the eggs start hatching. We get some interesting psychoanalysis of Kylara's own obsession:
"She could not suppress her own excitement and heard Prideth warbling from the heights above the Hold. Ever since Kylara had seen the tiny fledglings F’nor and Brekke had Impressed, she had craved one of these dainty creatures. She would never understand that her imperious nature had subconsciously fought against the emotional symbiosis of her dragon queen. Instinctively Kylara had known that only as a Weyrwoman, a queen’s rider, could she achieve the unparalleled power, privilege and unchallenged freedom as a woman on Pern. Skilled at ignoring what she didn’t wish to admit, Kylara never realized that Prideth was the only living creature who could dominate her and whose good opinion she had to have. In the fire lizard, Kylara saw a miniature dragon which she could control—easily control—and physically dominate in a way she could not dominate Prideth.
And in presenting these fire-lizard eggs to a Holder, particularly the most despised Holder of all, Meron of Nabol, Kylara struck back at all the ignominies and imagined slights she had endured at the hands of both dragonmen and Pernese. The most recent insult—that the dishfaced fosterling of Brekke’s had Impressed three, rejecting Kylara—would be completely avenged."
It's hard for me to explain why this bit annoys me. It might just be because McCaffrey never bothers to psychoanalyze why F'nor wanted to tame Grall, or why Brekke wanted her bronze, whose name I forgot, or Mirrim, or G'sel. Kylara is the first person to actively seek the fire lizards, but it's not like the others didn't want one. What's wrong with a motivation of: "Fire lizards are neat and pretty and I want one?"
But it is interesting. Especially by what it doesn't say. We're told that Kylara's bond with Prideth is imperfect and that she subconsciously resents the idea that Prideth could dominate her. Because Prideth does, actually. All of the dragons do, when it's time for the mating flight. The mating flight forces people into sham-relationships that may work out in the long run, as F'lar and Lessa do, but more often seem not to. T'ron and Mardra, T'bor and Kylara, they're all very unhappy.
It's true that the men have more of a choice than the women in this, to be fair. After all, they could choose not to take part in a mating flight...I think. (Unless it's a biological need of the dragon?) Whereas the women don't have the option to just not hold flights at all. But withdrawing basically involves ceding their leadership role entirely, which could have catastrophic effects. We saw what a difference it made when F'lar took over from R'gul, after all. So there is a lot at stake, and a lot of reasons a man might feel like he has to go along with this mess too.
God, this is such a stupid way to determine human leadership.
Anyway, I also think, as I said a few chapters ago, that Kylara had every right to be offended by the fact that no one called her when the fire lizards hatched. Sure, she is a bitch, but her presence may have made the difference for a few more fire lizards. Even if Canth didn't call Prideth, you can't tell me ONE of those others couldn't at least shout in her direction before racing down the beach.
That said, I have no idea how the revenge plot is supposed to work. Meron's got a scheme, sure, but the dragonriders already have the ability to communicate effectively. It's not clear that Kylara herself has any grand plans outside of showing up at the wedding with Meron and some shiny new toys.
Anyway, the hatching goes chaotically. Kylara gets her gold, but the men are basically making "every mistake in the Record". I'm shocked, SHOCKED, that these people with no experience with anything dragon are doing badly. But then, I wonder, ARE they doing badly?
We know of four lizards who explicitly survive: two men are mentioned to take their lizards out of the circle, we learn later that Meron manages to keep one of his bronzes. Kylara makes note of a few other bronzes (saying her fire lizard won't be short of mates), which implies a few more survivors, which already then takes them close to F'nor and company's seven.
Kylara even points out to an unhappy Prideth that they lost more at Southern, and that was with trained dragonmen and Weyr folk.
Granted, Kylara had more time to prepare, but even so, when there isn't that big of a difference between the success of completely untrained Holders and trained Weyrfolk...it does make you wonder a little about how necessary the Weyrs actually are.
What WOULD happen if there were no Weyrs at all? What if the dragons were actually part of the Holds? What if they were cared for by their local people and they chose from everybody? Would it really be any worse than the system they have now? I wonder...
