Chronicles of PernTravel back to the earliest days of Pernese history in this first-everDragonriders of Pern short-story collection!
Join the original survey team as they explore Pern and decide torecommend it for colonization.
Share the terror of the evacuation from the Southern Continent as aflotilla of ships, aided by intelligent, talking dolphins, braves thedreadful currents of the Pernese ocean.
Learn how the famous Ruatha Hold was founded, and thrill with thedragonriders as they expand into a second, then a third Weyr.And discover a secret lost time: the rescue of some of the originalcolonists before the planet was cut off forever!
Building a new life on a distant world, braving the dreaded Thread thatfalls like silver rain from the sky only to destroy every living thingit touches, flying heroically on the wondrous dragons: TheDragonriders of Pern!
Dragonsdawn
The dragonmakers
The beautiful planet Pern seemed a paradise to its new colonists --until unimaginable terror turned it into hell. Suddenly deadly sporeswere falling like silver threads from the sky, devouring everything --and everyone -- in their path. It began to look as if the colony, cutoff from Earth and lacking the resources to combat the menace, wasdoomed.
Then some of the colonists noticed that the small, dragonlike lizardsthat inhabited their new world were joining the fight against Thread,breathing fire on it and teleporting to safety. If only, they thought,the dragonets were big enough for a human to ride and intelligent enoughto work as a team with a rider...
And so they set their most talented geneticist to work to create thecreatures Pern so desperately needed -- Dragons!
"Anne McCaffrey 'remains a master of the well-told tale.'"
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
"Few are better at mixing elements of high fantasy and hard sciencefiction in a narrative that disarms skepticism by it open embrace ofthe joys of wish fulfillment."
NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
"This is must reading for fans of the The Dragonriders of Pernseries..."
SAN DIEGO TRIBUNE
Cover art by Michael Whelan
MoretaAn air of pleasant anticipation hung so thickly over the Halls, Holds,and Weyrs of Pern that it had affected even the businesslike ways ofMoreta, the Weyrwoman of Fort Weyr, where her dragon, Queen Orlith,would soon clutch.
Then without warning, a runnerbeast fell ill. Soon myriads of holders,craftsmen, and dragonriders were dying; and the mysterious ailment hadspread to all but the most inaccessible holds. Pern was in mortaldanger. For, if dragonriders did not rise to char Thread, the parasitewould devour any and all organic life it encountered.
The future of the planet rested in the hands of Moreta and the otherdedicated, selfless Pernese leaders. But of all their problems, the mostdifficult to overcome was time...
"Anne McCaffrey, with her dragons, says something very valuable aboutthe interplay of humans and the world around them."
MARION ZIMMER BRADLEY, AUTHOR OF THE MISTS OFAVALON
"The story moves with compelling speed and power; involving at least abaker's dozen of well-drawn characters... a well-told tale in theclassic pattern."
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
"Fine heroine, an absorbing story and an abundance of dragons.Recommended."
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Not since St. George set off on his quest has there been such a flapover dragons."
PEOPLE MAGAZINE
Cover art by Michael Whelan
Nerilka's StoryA deadly epidemic was sweeping across Pern. Everyone, holder anddragonrider alike, pitched in to help -- except Nerilka's father, whorefused to share Fort Hold's bounty with the other Holds. So, ashamed ofher family and determined to do her part, Nerilka packed up medicinesand supplies and sneaked off to aid her people.
Her quest to help wherever she was most needed led her finally to RuathaHold, where Lord Alessan was frantically preparing the precious serumneeded for mass inoculations against the dread plague.
Nerilka had long ago abandoned the hope of marriage and a home of herown. Now she found happiness in being useful and appreciated -- firstthe Healers and then Alessan made very clear that they were grateful forher help.
She had no idea that her new path would change the course of her lifeforever!
