Chap. 242 Woochick Beach

"I'm so glad you joined us, K'ndar! It's been ages since I used the secret messaging we did as Weyrlings."

"It's been a while for me, too. So, what were you doing in the water?"

"Snorkeling," Raylan said. He was gutting a large fish he'd laid on a tree leaf.

"And that is...?"

"Remember I told you? It's pretty much floating in the water, watching the fish. They're so beautiful," Francie said. She reached behind her head to untie her goggles. Like most female dragon riders, she kept her hair short in order to wear a helmet while flying. "Ish," she said, "My hair is already drying out. Dried salt makes my scalp itch, but it's worth it. Raylan, that was a good shot," she said, indicating the fish. "You're far better with a spear than I am."

"This is a big fish, K'ndar, won't you stay and help us eat it? It's about as fresh a fish as you'll ever eat," Raylan said.

"Yes, thank you, I'd love to," he said. "Are those your riding goggles?"

"Yes," Francie said,"but not these specific ones. I modified them to have a different headband, leather just doesn't care for water," she said.

"I saw you face down in the water. Unless you've turned into fish, how do you breathe?"

Francie flourished a tube. "That's what the 'snorkel' is for. It's a hollow withy inside a tube of lightwood. You bend the withy at one end, see here? This end goes into your mouth. And then, see how the lightwood keeps it straight up? You split the lightwood in half, put the withy inside, tie it back together and," she put the bent end in her mouth and tied it with a length of vine behind her head. "N ven oo ca beeve," she said through clenched teeth.

K'ndar snickering, said, "What?"

She took the snorkel out of her mouth. "I said, then you can breathe."

"But not Enunciate Clearly," Raylan said, laughing.

"Do you want to try it?"

"Um...."

"Oh, you don't swim, do you."

He shook his head. "Not very well, but maybe someday?"

"It's a treat to see the reef fish, K'ndar," Francie coaxed. "They're all colors of the rainbow."

"Um, no thanks, not today," he said. He didn't want to say he was still very timid about being in water any deeper than his waist.

"Come on, at least take off your riding gear? You can wade, at least? The water is nice and warm," she insisted.

"Um," K'ndar said, trying to resist without appearing to do so. I can at least take off my jacket, he thought, it IS warm.

Don't push him. Raventh says he is afraid, he doesn't want to be forced, Francie's her green Motanith said.

She sighed. Okay. He is protective of his rider. Just like you are of me she said, her heart swelling with love for her dragon.

Raventh had paused in his swimming to glare at Francie.

Tell him, okay, I understand.

Their fire lizards were swirling over the two dragons heads. They would dive into the water to chase the fish the dragons had flushed from their spots in the coral reef.

"I see the fire you made, how are you going to cook the fish?"

Raylan grinned. "Mother Pern provides, K'ndar. Watch and learn."

He knelt down in the sand and wrapped the fish in a long, wide tree leaf. Using a long string he'd pulled from leaf's rib, he tied it up tightly and knee walked to the small fire that had burned down to coals. Gingerly tucking the bundle into the coals, he then used a hooked piece of driftwood to finish covering it with more coals. The wood began to burn at the end and he snuffed it in the sand.

"Usually I'll put a piece or two of fruit in with it, but it's not the season for it, so that will have to do."

"How long before it's cooked?"

Raylan got up and brushed off his bare knees. "Um, I've never timed it, it might be twenty minutes? By the time the leaf has dried out enough to catch fire, the fish is done," he said.

They watched as their dragons played in the sea. K'ndar lay back in the shade of the trees, enjoying the peace after the busy doings at Nerat's port. He loved the sea, he remembered, the sound of the surf almost mesmerizing him.

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The smell of the fish, as Raylan unwrapped it, was tantalizing.

Francie had ventured into the thick vegetation lining the beach, returning with three good sized leaves. She took them down to the sea and swished them around to clean them of sand and detritus.

Coming back to the two men, she said, "Sit. Here's your plate. I brought chopsticks and a flask of water, if you want, but I usually just use my fingers," she said.

"And inevitably burn them on the fish!" Raylan said.

"Well, you want to eat it HOT, right?"

"Of course," her mate said, grinning.

"I can use my fingers," K'ndar said. He didn't want to put Francie to extra effort.

Francie retrieved her backpack from the spot where she'd put Motanith's harness.

"Nonsense. It's Turnover and this is a special occasion, so I brought the family heirlooms. Here," she said, pulling out several pairs of silver chopsticks, "These have been handed down through the women in my family since they first came from Earth." she said.

K'ndar took a pair. He looked at them. They had been ornately carved. Over the years the carvings had been worn almost to illegibility.

"These are beautifully made, " he said, amazed at their age. "I'm almost afraid to use them!"

"It's okay, I only use them now and then, just for special occasions like today. Raylan and I come here this time of year to celebrate. Usually we just use our regular every day chopsticks."

"What are these markings?" he asked.

"Those are letters. There was a culture on Earth called Korean, those are letters from the Korean alphabet."

"Hmm. I wonder what it says."

"Oh, I know. It says 'Stolen from the Yokohama's kitchen,' " Raylan said, snarking.

"It does NOT, Raylan!!" she snapped, indignant.

He grabbed her and hugging her tightly, gave her a kiss.

"Your ancestors were Korean, yes?"

She giggled and hit him, lightly.

"I have no idea. After 2500 years, we're all a blend of all the people who came here," she said, trying hard to stay mad. "My mother used to tell me we came from some hold called Paris. All I know is these sticks have been with my family for all that time," she said. "I don't know what the words say."

"Well, I do, and yes, your ancients were Korean, coming here on the Yokohama. I had the database translate the words. They don't say stolen, though. The words say, "Have you eaten rice today?"

"You never told me this," she said.

He shrugged. "I didn't think it was important. You're you, you're mine. I love you even if one of your ancestors was a thief. You're not."

She gave him a swat.

_________________________________________________________________________

"By the egg, that was fantastic," K'ndar said, "Thank you so much." His stomach was comfortably full.

Francie and Raylan nodded as one. "You're welcome."

He wiped the chopsticks clean and handed them back to Francie.

I wonder if anyone in my family knows who and where we came from, he thought. He'd never paid much attention to family history. I don't even know if Mum has something like the chopsticks, something from Earth.

Siskin was tucked in the bend formed by his knees. He idly scritched the lizards head. Francie's three were stretched out on the sand. All of the lizards were asleep after a good lunch.

My fish was good, too Raventh said. He and Motanith were resting on the beach. We'll have to come back.

"How did you find this place? It's a long ways from North," he asked, realizing how lovely the island was. Flutters were everywhere, going for the flowers that scented the air. Before him, the sea was an indescribable mix of green and blue. There was just enough wind to top the colors with white plumes.

"Aye, flying time is over an hour. It's got no name, officially, because it's pretty much uninhabitable. We call it Forbidden Island."

"Forbidden? Is it dangerous?"

"Oh, of course not. But it's inaccessible to anything but a dragon, and even then, only at low tide. I'm sure you've noticed the mangroves behind us? The tide swamps them. Where we're sitting will be under water very shortly. This tiny scrap of beach is the only one on the whole island. The rest of it is full blown jungle on the tip of an exposed seamount, it's almost all up and down. That, and the reef there keeps any sort of watercraft from beaching, unless of course, they want the bottom torn out by the coral. Finally, there's one shaff of a rip tide further out. It seems to serve to keep introduced species, like palms, from gaining a foothold here."

K'ndar turned to look at the jungle crowding the tiny beach. It was almost impenetrable.

"Any indication that it's EVER been inhabited?"

"I don't know. I've never looked."

"By the egg, I wonder...if this island has never been touched by humans, it must have nothing but original Pern life forms," he said, his mind tingling with the lure of exploring.

"I'd bet on it, K'ndar," Raylan said, catching the look in his eye.

K'ndar stood up. If I don't move around, I'll fall asleep, he thought. "Since you caught and cooked, I can do KP," he said.

"Not much to it, K'ndar, the leaves are almost burned up, but I bet the crabs would like what's left of the fish," Francie said.

"The tide will be turning any moment now, that will take care of the coals," Raylan said. "We'll have to leave soon. Unless we want wet butts."

"Did you make the cairn, Francie? Because I want to come back, someday, to explore."

"Someone did, many years ago. It's up there, atop that flat topped boulder. That's usually underwater, but so far it seems to be safe from currents," she said.

Even so, he memorized the boulders. I definitely want to come back, someday.

He'd bent down to pick up the remains of the fish when Francie said, softly, "K'ndar. Freeze. Two creatures are coming towards you from your left."

He heard them first. They were talking to each other, a soft, purring 'woochick', with now and then a 'puttputt'.

He moved his eyes first to see two birds-he thought they were birds, as they had avian feet, a beak, and iridescent, purple black feathers. They walked purposefully towards him.

He slowly turned his head to get a better look. Something was decidedly odd about them.

He was beginning to feel his back shouting to stand up straight. He did so, slowly.

The birds stopped. One turned as if to flee, looking back at him with a blood red eye.

The two watched him, as if thinking things through. One of the dragons snorted, drawing their attention away. He took that moment to straighten up completely. The birds returned their gaze on him. He could almost feel them logging in his details. They seemed decidedly unimpressed. One bent its neck to preen its chest feathers with a brilliant orange beak.

"Francie? Do you have your datalink? Maybe record these?" K'ndar said, not daring to move too quickly.

"Yes, of course," she said, and slowly reached into her backpack.

The birds looked at her. She froze, then purposefully but slowly continued to pull her datalink out.

They both said 'woochick'.

"They're not afraid, K'ndar," Raylan said, softly.

One turned its head at his voice and made several steps towards him.

"It would seem so," K'ndar said. The bird turned back towards K'ndar. They both began to walk towards him, closer, closer, then stopped.

He remembered the fearlessness of the smandas. This was the same attitude. These birds had never seen humans.

They looked so strange. What was it that was so odd about them?

Ah. Wings. He saw none.

No wings. No wings? Every Pern native bird had four wings. These had none visible.

"K'ndar, they don't have wings," Francie said, her voice a little stronger.

"I see that," he said, gaining confidence that his actions didn't bother them.

As if making a decision, one of the birds walked right up to his leg.

"Woochick," it said, as it sniffed his leg and boots. The other came up to him and pecked at his boot.

"That was rude," he said, surprised at the power of the peck.

The bird looked up at him, as if to say, You're on my beach, mate.

Their curiosity satisfied, the two birds went for the remains of the fish.

Not daring to step away, and really not wanting to, he looked at them closely, memorizing their characteristics. He noticed the middle claw on the bird's feet was not a claw so much as large sickled talon of impressive sharpness.

The birds extended limbs from the depths of their chest feathers and began picking off bits of the fish flesh. The limbs appeared to end in a bony fingers, transferring the flesh to their beaks.

"Francie! Are you getting this? They have fingers! Fingers where they should have wing bones!" he said, trying to keep the astonishment from making him shout.

"Yes, yes, I've got a good shot of them," she said.

Fascinated despite his growing discomfort at being so still, he said, "They're flightless. Their wings have evolved into arms!"

"Not all of them, K'ndar, I just see the front ones...."Francie said, when she was interrupted by an explosive hiss. Coora, her bronze fire lizard, had awakened from his digestive stupor to see the two birds next to K'ndar.

He launched, rattling his attack call. Siskin and Francie's two greens perked up to watch.

"Coora!! No!" Francie shouted, as the bronze arrowed straight at the birds.

"No!" K'ndar cried.

The bronze struck one of the birds on the back. That bird staggered. Then, faster than he could have believed such a bulky large bird could move, both birds chattered and launched straight up. Right in front of his eyes, he saw their talons slashing at the bronze fire lizard. Coora shrieked, backwinging furiously as four razors went for his eyes. He vanished between.

The birds landed, emitting furious chuffing noises, and one slashed at K'ndar's boot. He backpedaled, almost tripping in his hurry.

He backed up into Raylan, who'd jumped up. Raylan grabbed him by the arms to keep him from falling over.

"Whoa!!" K'ndar shouted. Raylan released him.

"Coora!" Francie shouted.

The bronze reappeared, hovering before them. He whimpered. One of the birds had made contact, a long slash on his chest.

She shoved the datalink into Raylan's hands. Coora flew to her and she plucked him from the air, folding his wings gently.

"Coora, you shouldn't..." she began, distraught, "oh, no, you're bleeding."

Raylan had the presence of mine to keep the datalink on the birds. The one Coora had struck shook her feathers, then both birds continued to feed on the fish.

"Is he okay, Francie?"

"I'm still checking," she said, almost in tears. "You stupid lizard, Coora," she said, "how many times have I told you," she said to the bronze. The fire lizard had his eyes closed.

"Are you okay, K'ndar? You were right in the middle of that!" Raylan said, trying to do three things at once.

K'ndar's heart slowed. "No kidding! They moved so fast! Those talons were right at my eye level!"

"They're completely unbothered, look at them. Like they fight off a fire lizard every day!" Raylan said.

They turned to Francie, who was cooing to Coora as she examined his wound. The three other fire lizards were cowering.

"Francie?"

"I think he'll be okay. It's a long gash but it hasn't gone too deep. Still, I think I'll have the animal healer look at him when we get home," she said, then, "Don't want infection, do we you idiot bronze, didn't you remember me saying not to attack things?" she said to the bronze. Coora relaxed in her grip.

K'ndar looked at his boot.

"Francie. He's lucky. Look at my boot."

"Your boot?"

"Yes, look! One of the birds slashed it. It went right through the leather. Didn't touch my foot, though. Thank the stars I kept them on!"