Candidates at Ryslen Weyr
Rank: Apprentice WoodCrafter
Rank: Apprentice Starcrafter
Haesh is the smaller of the pair, standing about 5'9, while his brother is just under 6'. They are both of a strong build, neither flabby nor terribly muscular however. They share their father's distinctive nose, and their mother's green eyes.
In the first strains of Threadfall, after this long Interval, small amounts of the dreaded thread made it to Pern before the mass invasion. It was in this first odd little fall, that Haesh sustained a terrible wound to his right hand, losing two fingers in the process. It was either that or lose his eye, and he still considers himself lucky that he is alive at all. However, it is this injury which keeps his ego from inflating like his brothers. He enjoys the company of women, but in a quiet, patient way. Since he was following in his father's steps of being a wood crafter, the loss of his valuable fingers has ruined most of his ability to work fine carvings. He privately is shattered by this, but consoles himself with thoughts of having a dragon to care for, and the fact that ones fingers don't all need to be present when tossing fire stone or holding on for dear life.
Olash on the other hand has always been aggressive, pursuing both women and flight with ease. He is charming, but is no Bronze rider, if you know what I mean. He will perhaps find a woman who will settle him, but more likely he will be allowed to drift around weyrs like a flit. He was a Starcrafter Apprentice when he was Searched, so his head has always been in the clouds so to speak. He can still contact the Starcraft, occasionally, and if he becomes a dragonrider he will have that much more valuable time looking up. He loves his brother dearly, more than he shows, but his big mouth often makes him seem gruff or abrupt with him. He is protective, but wants Haesh to be his own man, and hopefuly living in a Weyr will make that easier.
"You're hopeless," he muttered. "It's the scoop shaped one."
"They're ALL scoop shaped, Haesh, I don't use these things, they're yours! I'll stick with the star charts..."
Haesh kept his thoughts to himself. Perhaps if his older brother would just look at their father's work once in a while, he might know which chisel or blade was required for this work. It wasn't as if Haesh could really do much fine work any more. His fingers still burned.
Well, the stumps of his fingers burned. His fingers themselves were of course long gone. Burnt off by thread and ...
"Hey, stop looking so glum. I'm going to go find a glow basket and see if I can't make a nice mood for later... Having young Lady Fiersheni here for an evening..."
"When do you not have a nice young Lady here?" Haesh asked, but as usual couldn't expect a response. Olash was already out of the room.
***
"Wonderful wine," Fiersheni grinned, "where did you find it?" She looked over the edge of the glass, at Olash, who smiled back at her.
"Ablan, of course. I'll admit it's nice, but to really appreciate it it ought to be properly chilled."
"But it's very cold already, perhaps it needs to be ... warmed up?"
Olash looked at the lovely lady as she batted her eyes. He was apparently just about to move in for his kiss, when Haesh burst into his brother's den.
"Search! Here! Now!" He gasped, hand clutching his chest. He quickly removed it and indelicately placed it behind his back so the Lady might not see it and mock him. They were known to do so, weren't they? He wouldn't much know, Ladies didn't go for quiet guildsmen like himself. Obviously they preferred his brother's type, worldly ones.
Olash turned with a stare of utter anger and amazement, but then the words his brother had spoken sunk in. The star-mapper turned to the irate Lady and placed his fingers on her lips. "Enjoy more of the wine. I ... you know. Search riders. Pfah. You've got to humor them, right?"
She grinned and sipped at the wine, tracing her finger over the edge of the glass.
"Come back quickly, Olash... I still need that 'warmer' for my drink..."
The brothers bolted down to the flats near Paveh's racing area. There sat a smallish blue dragon, who was already in the process of sniffing out candidates. Or more accurately, sniffing no candidates.
He had to turn his nose up at the girls, but J'rin told them it wasn't permanent. It was just that the dam of this clutch insisted on having only boys for her eggs. Mutters of 'male greenriders,' and 'typical of a green, isn't it?' could be heard as Olash and Haesh finally landed themselves in line. Several others beside them glared at both young men, but said nothing.
"Well... here we have a pair," J'rin announced, when Amitath got to them. By this time, it was almost midnight. "And just in time, too. Do you have any travel bags packed?"
"It's the middle of the night!" Olash blurted. "I've got company!"
"Typical of a young lordling," J'rin commented. The starcrafter bit his tongue. "You've got to understand that if you don't come -- right now -- this clutch might hatch without you, and perhaps there would be a dragon without you as their partner."
"I couldn't imagine how hard that would be..." Haesh whispered, "not to find your bond when you hatch..." He shuddered. Long had he imagined what a dragon's life might be like, quite the opposite of how most young boys started thinking of dragons! Most wanted to ride high and be a hero... Haesh might want to fly, but also ... never be alone. Even though Olash had always been there and mostly been protective of him, Haesh would never be on the same level.
But you are. Bespoke Amitath. You and he are both right for this clutch. I feel it. Come along. Pack your things...
"Its high enough, the entrance is --!" He cut off right then as Amitath backwinged right into the dome of the landing ledge. They could barely see anything at all, through the thick fog. "Right here--" J'rin exclaimed. "The hatching has already started, I'll join you in a moment."
The brothers dismounted, both of them rather shaken but the other wildly sure. They bolted into the hatching cavern and were greeted by a sly looking rider, who told them the stands were up ... somewhere over that way, he waved his hand. But J'rin caught up with them to explain that they were candidates. It was just in time too, as a blue hatched and impressed.
They remained on the sands as one large egg broke and showed off a beautiful brown. He scampered around, chanting free free free I'm free! The blue sire of the clutch calmed him down before he could make any more trouble. He drifted over to the brothers and almost jumped around Haesh.
H’sh, com’on! Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go, let’s go! I wanna eat eat eat eat eat!
“Slow down, Wavkokith… I can tell you’re going to be a handful.” Ignoring his rider for the moment Wavkokith turned back to where he’d hatched. Come on brother! You should impress too. We hatch from the same egg and you have to be slower than me.
Stunned, then, Olash watched another brown step from the shell -- the egg could have held a bronze, but of course a green and blue clutch would never contain such a wonder. Would it? It didn't matter.
I am not slow, I am patient. The brown announced. The dragon approached Olash. We will have to keep an eye on our brothers, eh, O’sh?
“I guess so, Wimkukith" O'sh grinned and caught up with his brother.
"Wim, it's okay if he flies too." O'sh sighed. "You do not really have to be first now."
I was not first out of the egg... Wimkukith growled.
"You don't have to be first at all..." O'sh announced. "Settle for being best!"
The brown opened his wings and shook his head. They soared into the air with the wind.
Down on the ground H'sh and excitable Wavkokith paced around. They have made it. I am ashamed I did not do it first. I will fly farther and go higher, though!
"Get into the air first," Laughed H'sh, "then let's worry about those things. And you'll be needing to remember our drills too."
I do those best! I remember every pattern we have walked! I can do those in the air too!
Is it finished? I would like to swim, and you must put that thing down before I do that. I remember when I tried last time...
"That's right," O'sh laughed, "When you almost doused three days of hard cartography work with one dive! Not this time, Wim! Take me back to the dens, and then you go swimming. It's still warm, I might even join you."
Wav, you're hardly small! You're much bigger than those blues around her. But I--
H'sh don't be embarrassed, please? She is a fine green, and I know her rider likes you. You do not have to stay together, but... Would you not like to fly her too?
"We don't 'fly' our mates, but..." H'sh gave off a sigh, and looked at his marred fingers.
She will not notice that unless you keep staring at it... So stop! I insist!
Laughing, H'sh put his glove back on and walked down to the waters edge where Wimkukith was just setting down for his typical swim. The younger of the riders on the smaller of the dragons dearly wanted to go up to the green rider and announce that her dragon looked indeed quite fine tonight... Almost glowing.
He would have choked, his brother appeared out of nowhere and dove into the water, the girl following him. But her charming laugh only came when she realized that H'sh was on dry land. She came from the water, wringing out her pale brown hair. "H'sh, I saw you coming over here, are you going to swim? It's really nice and warm..."
He was about to say something, anything, but then Wavkokith and the cadre of blues scattered into the sky. The green was --
"Oh!" The still-dripping green rider gasped, her face turning a vibrant blush, "she's -- oh my..."
They watched as the brown, known for his quick moves and razor-edge turns, out manuvered all the little blues, and out lasted the green. From the shore, still sitting on the diving stone, O'sh grinned to himself as his little brother suavely led the girl into one of the changing tents nearby...
