“Every Turn back all the way through ten Turns has been used already,” Kindan said. “If we’d sent more weyrlings back in time, we’d already know about it.”

“You can’t break time,” B’nik told his mate quietly.

“And we don’t know quite when the sickness started,” Lorana said, “so we can’t go back further in time.”

“Not only that, but before then I don’t think the holds had recovered sufficiently from the Plague to provide supplies,” Fiona said.

“We can bring supplies,” H’nez said.

“From where?” Sonia asked.

“From wherever we’ll get them to feed our new weyrlings, I suspect,” K’lior said.

“It still won’t work,” Fiona said. The others looked at her. “If it had happened in the past, there would have been signs at Igen.”

“But you said yourself that someone had worked the firestone mine nearby,” Kindan reminded her. “And it was the new firestone, not the flamestone we’d been using.”

“Perhaps we could use timing itself,” M’tal said while Fiona absorbed Kindan’s comment with a thoughtful frown.

“How?” D’vin asked.

“Dragons could go back to a Fall to aid in the fight,” M’tal said.

“How would they know to go back?” K’lior asked.

“Because they would have seen themselves come back,” M’tal said.

“So … when we do it, we’ll do it?” Sonia said.

“That seems to be the common case with timing,” M’tal replied dryly.

“Who has the most experience with timing?” D’vin asked, looking around the room, his eyes settling on M’tal.

The older rider chuckled. “Guilty.”

“Well, then, it makes sense to go with the advice of the most experienced in this matter,” D’vin said. “I’ve only done it once, myself.”

“I’ve done it once as well,” Tullea griped, “for three bloody Turns!”

“Yes, dear,” Sonia said in a tone that was both calming and dampening, “we remember.”

“My experience isn’t all that much different from Tullea’s, except that I never stayed back in time as long as she has,” M’tal said, nodding diplomatically toward Tullea, who gave him a mollified look in return. “But I think that journeying between time is more fatiguing than going between places.”

“I’d agree,” Fiona said.

“So what that will mean for the riders is that they should be well-rested before going between times and have time to recover before another Threadfall,” D’vin surmised. He turned to M’tal. “Is that right?”

“I’d say so.”

“According to what I’ve learned from Kindan and the other Weyr harpers,” Verilan said, careful to note his sources, “the pattern of Threadfalls repeats every fifty days.”

M’tal pursed his lips thoughtfully and nodded, turning to D’vin and B’nik, who each made gestures of agreement.