"A case of all or nothing," F'lar said after the first few hours of imperfect results with Mnementh.

"Control," Lessa suggested cryptically, having had no better performance from her queen.

With the felines, there hadn't been a problem of safe transit or landing. Pieces had done very well. Ramoth disapproved of challenging more felines for practice or in groups large enough to provide the stimulus that Zaranth had had: sheer terror at seeing her weyrmate and the two riders attacked.

The dragons could send things straight up in the open air-and out of sight. To move an object telekinetically in a horizontal direction had taken a lot of control and required Mnementh and Ramoth working together, one slowing the other down. Ramoth and Mnementh practiced daily, slowlylifting small rocks vertically from the ground and putting them back down without crushing them into dust or pebbles. They could probably have thrown one all the way to the Yokohama,also not the desired destination, but one that was causing considerable speculation by Lessa and F'lar. Thathad been a significant forward step.

When queried by Ramoth, Zaranth recommended that dragons experience trundlebugs. If there were many riders who found that a bizarre way to awaken telekinetic ability, it proved to be the one that worked-on trundlebugs. Ramoth and Mnementh earnestly suggested that the experiment be carried out in pairs, female and male dragons, and preferably a good distance from any holdings and close to a stream, lake, or ocean.

Then, when Ramoth and Mnementh worked together, one controlling the other, kinesis became more practical, less hazardous to what was being moved without physical contact.

What purpose, other than repelling-and destroying-felines or disciplining trundlebugs was not immediately apparent to many, though the ability provoked deep thought and theorizing in many quarters. Meanwhile, the dragons and their riders continued to practice this counter-balancing of kinetic energy.

Master Esselin-who now complained bitterly about all the tasks set him-was supposed to see what records were available on early dragon training: going betweenand using firestone. Nothing legible remained from the old Record Aivas had transcribed and those who owned fire-lizards insisted that the dragons had learned from these smaller cousins.

No one had ever observed fire-lizards telekinetically moving something, unless the speed with which fire-lizards could gobble food from a plate could be considered a form of telekinesis.

Many other matters were being set in place, the most important of which was siting the Western Continent observatory. This so-called continent was two landmasses, a wide inlet almost completely separating them except for a straggle of boulders making a bridge at the northern end. Erragon had the plans Aivas had printed out for Cove Hold and, apart from a different telescope mount (he recommended the fork type), these would suffice: especially when those who had worked on Cove Hold volunteered their services to erect the new one. Lord Ranrel was as good as his promise and three ships were loaded with material and volunteers to sail, with Master Idarolan in nominal charge of the expedition, to the southernmost cape of the larger landmass. A pod of dolphins assigned by the dolphins' venerable leader, the Tillek herself, were to accompany the small fleet to a harbor she could recommend.

Green and blue dragons were to precede the ships, setting up a base camp.

The same general plans, with variations to the terrain, were to be implemented at Ice Lake and in Telgar. The most pressing need was training apprentices to serve the new facilities or to add to the Crafthalls that produced spyglasses that used to be called "far-seers," binoculars, and small telescopes.

Master Tagetarl's Print Hall was busy, first with printing the requirements of craftsmen and -women, lists of materials to be supplied-especially lists of people willing to be transported to such a distant location to help in building an observatory on the Western Continent.

That was a simpler task than the demand for printed instructions on how to build smaller non-metal telescopes: thick wherhide would suffice so long as the interior was painted black and sealed against dust. Manuals must be written by the Star Hall, charts and diagrams of what objects were known to be in unthreatening orbits, instructions on how to sight, recognize, and make proper notations on possible discoveries. The GlassCraftHalls could supply mirrors for reflective scopes from 100-mm to 400-mm. Larger ones, of course, required time to shape and build.

When Thread, inevitably, fell near Honshu, the healers made sure the two injured dragons were so deeply sedated that they were unaware-except at some very primal level-that the ancient enemy was being met. Zaranth was recovering well but Golanth's injuries still concerned every Weyrhealer and Beastmaster.

"There's considerably more available about every other animal on this planet," Wyzall said after a long afternoon's study with Beastmaster Ballora; his best animal healer, Persellan; and Tai, "than about the ones we're most dependent on." He pushed back from the table, rubbing his face to ease fatigue.

"That's because we have had bodies of every other animal to dissect for study," Ballora remarked. She was a big, athletic woman. She had started healer training with Master Oldive but found a real empathy and skill with animals so she had changed to the BeastCraftHall. Her manner was in general as reassuring to humans as it was to the animals she tended and bred. Now she sighed with deep regret. "But then the only anatomical studies ever available were those done on dead fire-lizard hatchlings that Ancient zoologists happened to find. And those most incomplete notes that Wind Blossom left that concerned unhatched watchwhers which, as we all know, were not ourdragons."

"Records state that there were unhatched dragon eggs…" Tai began tentatively.

Wyzall dismissed that. "There was a prejudice against such study," he continued. "Not that I disagree, since any eggs that didn't hatch failed because of some defect." He gave a sigh. "Live dragons can at least tell their riders where they hurt, if it isn't visible. Unlike us humans who do not seem to be sufficiently in tune with our bodies because we-" He broke off, clearing his throat and riffling the pages he had been reading.

"Because we die when we wear out," Ballora said with detachment. "Did you ever discover which is the oldest living fire-lizard, Wyzall?" she asked with a grin.

Wyzall tut-tutted and shook his head. "It's an impossibility. They may tell dragons what they 'remember' seeing but I think it's analogous to the Tillek's knowledge of delphinic history. The fire-lizards weren't there to see it happen but they have passed the tale of it down so that it"-and he waved to the fairs that were either sleeping or lazily flying on the light breeze-"becomes a personal memory."

"Not all the fire-lizards remember seeing the spaceships in the ship meadow," Tai reminded him.

"Ah," and Wyzall wiggled a finger at her, "but which do? Back to the present," he said then, growing solemn, "I do think that gentle massage with the unguent will help circulation to Golanth's damaged wing joint. At least it no longer causes him great pain."

"How could it with five jars of numbweed soaked in!" Tai asked, since she had undertaken a lot of that massage.

"Well, no harm in trying this unguent," Ballora said, taking it from her pouch and placing it on the table with the air of exhibiting an item of rare value. "Helps with joint-ail on runnerbeasts but it's worse to produce than numbweed."

"Nothing can be worse," said Persellan, who was usually in charge of collecting, boiling, and rendering the weed at Monaco Weyr.