Moreta was the Senior Weyrwoman at Fort Weyr during the Sixth Pass. Her dragon was gold Orlith.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
During her early years, Moreta lived in the Beastcrafthall at Keroon Hold. A Search reached her father’s hold the very day of a Hatching at Ista Weyr, where she successfully Impressed the newly hatched golden queen, Orlith. Before her Impression, Moreta and her childhood friend Talpan were to be apprenticed to the same Masterhealer.
Ista Weyr[]
Moreta studied under Weyr Healer Ind, and had learned so much from her father about the healing of runnerbeasts that she was able to transfer that knowledge to the healing of dragons. She explained to the High Reaches Weyr Healer Pressen about how she had reconstructed Dilenth's wing. She told him that the secret was to keep numbweed on the bones; and, it was important to have knowledge of where to draw and spread ichor to the needed areas.
Fort Weyr[]
Due to her skills as a Weyr Healer, Moreta was transferred to Fort Weyr. Several years later, when Leri's gold dragon Holth failed to rise to mate the winter before, Moreta became Senior Weyrwoman.
Moreta's Ride[]
While attending a Ruatha Hold Gather, Moreta first heard of a disease, later found to be caused by a mysterious Southern Continent feline, that was infecting all of Pern. While dragonriders and runnerbeasts were being infected, the dragons themselves appeared to be immune. Moreta herself was infected by this illness through contact with a recently-dead infected runnerbeast; but, with Orlith's help, she recovered. This dragon/rider support was used by Leri and Jallora after it was discovered that riders were failing to recover because their dragons were panicking instead of supporting the riders.
With the help of MasterHealer Capiam at Healer Hall, Lord Alessan of Ruatha Hold, the healer Rill (Nerilka of Fort Hold), and M'barak and his blue Arith, Moreta discovered that the cure could be made from the serum of already infected patients' blood.
Tragically, while delivering the serum to various holds across Pern, Moreta and her borrowed dragon, Leri's old Holth (Orlith was in Clutch at Fort Weyr and unable to leave), began to tire as their mission wore on. They finally became so exhausted that they were trapped between forever. Orlith stayed at the Weyr until the eggs hatched, then went between forever with Leri, so as to die as their other halves had. Lord Alessan, who had fallen in love with Moreta, and Fort's Weyrleader Sh'gall were both grief-stricken, even though Sh'gall had not been very close to Moreta. Before going between forever, Orlith had laid a queen egg. Alessan's Searched sister Oklina Impressed the new queen Hannath and later became the weyrmate of the High Reaches wingleader, B'lerion, rider of bronze Nabeth.
Legacy[]
Despite the attempts to ensure that nobody would know that Moreta had travelled between times, it was revealed in The Skies of Pern that some Record independent of the The Ballad of Moreta's Ride — which omitted all mention of this — evidently existed with this information, as F'lessan was aware of it by the mid-Ninth Pass. Such a Record could have been written at Fort Weyr, the Healer Hall or Waterhole Hold, as the inhabitants of each location were aware of Moreta's actions, but it could also have been written at Ruatha Hold in the form of «Nerilka's Story», as she detailed Moreta's actions in her memoirs.
Appearance, personality and traits[]
Moreta had high empathy for healing and beasts. She was willing to do what was needed. She liked Benden's white wine but disliked Tillek's acid wine. She enjoyed dances and races.
While at Ista, she had a relationship with the bronze rider D'say and bore M'ray, who Impressed brown Quoarth. She was certain that her third child had been fathered by B'lerion. She lamented giving her children away because of her healer position.
Note[]
In Dragonflight, F'lar says, «And, of course, our greatest Weyrwomen—Moreta, Torene, to name only a few—have all come from Ruatha Hold, as does Lessa of Pern. I don’t need to be reminded of Moreta right now. She could talk to any dragon in the Weyrs.»
According to the legend, Moreta could speak and hear all the dragons, which actually does not coincide with the novel «Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern». Perhaps this refers to the combination of two women: Moreta — the Lady of Fort Weyr and Moreta — the daughter of Alessan and Nerilka from the novel «Nerilka's Story», who also became the Lady of Benden Weyr and was one of the riders who could hear all the dragons, like Lessa. This information is not mentioned in the books, but Anne McCaffrey herself said it when asked by fans on a forum.