Mating Flight 2 -- Gold Diamoth
I think that it is a good time for me to tell you, she bespoke to Leilani, that I am finding myself wishing for wherry.
"Then go grab yourself one." Leilani grunted, while oiling her harness.
No, I think, one will not do. Nor two. She passed her eyes over the other weyrs, from her high ledge. Oh, and those males will have to go. They do nothing at all for me. They are cluttering up the scenery!
"Cluttering up--" Leilani gasped, "Oh, Diamoth, you're proddy and rising... Oh my..." The long black hair on the rider fluttered around her back, snapping in the breeze she caused by dancing about. "I must tell Lord Engell, and the others..."
You do that. I will ... be here.
Not for long though...
The call at the Protectorate went up, through the contact of bronzes and browns. There was a queen rising at one of their sands! Golden Diamoth, of Alabaster! Many of the browns and bronzes called were held back by their riders. They were due in Threadfall soon, so could not afford to be tired out and distracted by a flight. Some others, particularly at Alabaster itself, pulled out of the running purely because, well, Leilani and her weyrmate Lo’pez would not due to be separated.
Still, some dozen males drifted in while Diamoth was pacing angrily on her ledge. From the rim of the huge white quarry-weyr, Lord Engell and the gold’s rider watched the dragon pace.
“She will be going up any moment,” Leilani panted, flushed. “And I don’t know what to say. I want her to have the best mates... I want Lilioth to win...”
The white-haired Holder pressed his fingers onto Leilani’s shoulder, warmly. How fatherly he could be, to those he held dear! How distant he usually acted to strangers and those who did not belong at Alabaster! “Leilani, even K’yle isn’t here for this, and you know of anyone I could want to win your beautiful Diamoth, it would be him. He’s off at another weyr’s flight, far in the future. Now, you should go to the feeding grounds. There is an area for ... your situation, down there.”
Her situation... Oh yes, that once those dragons began flying, she would be swept away into the full emotional brunt of it all. Almost unable to respond already, Leilani nodded weakly and allowed the Lord Holder to escort her into the tunnels. He didn’t suggest that Diamoth fly her down, of course. That might not be a wise idea.
Must concentrate, Leilani thought to herself. The turbulant thoughts from Diamoth were rushing ever faster, and were more insistant. How she wanted to spread her wings, how she was thirsty! Oh, how thirsty she was... How she hated the sight of the other dragons – not all of them, but most of them displeased her.
The flock of greens which took to the air and went between to some safer locale tipped off anyone who wasn’t already in the know. The group of young golds (and experienced ones as well) residing at Alabaster Weyrhold also took to the air, though most of them were angrily fighting their riders to remain. How dare this upstart junior demand them to leave?
They did. It was a good thing. For Diamoth tore into the air and swept into the feeding grounds like a golden banshee. It was just barely as Leilani and Engell got to the flat of the feeding grounds that the dragon above soared down, landing heavily and with great agitation, at the wherry pens.
“Blood those. Blood them.” Leilani chanted, through gritted teeth. Though she had allowed Diamoth to do what she would before now, it was clear that this young lady rider had no intention of losing her queen through some idiotic error on her part. The dragon obeyed almost immediately, with a bugling growl. “I said blood them, and that is all.” Leilani said, her eyes almost the same color golden yellow as her glowing queen. Intent on that queen, Leilani did not even notice the bronzes and browns who had dropped in on the weyr for the duration.
Diamoth grasped at one large wherry, and while it shrieked, she bled it through its throat. Violently throwing it aside, the body of the feather-covered food beast nearly broke through the fence as the dragon looked for another.
Not enough! It is not enough for me! I want to FEED!
You will blood them and you will fly. Nothing else. I will not forgive you if you deviate, Diamoth. Find another and blood it quickly!
The dragoness glanced back, angry red eyes whirled with orange and yellow. She saw her rider, and focused again. Turning to find another wherry, she took one and sucked its lifeblood out, almost squeezing it to get the last. Then another, her third and final blood. Leilani was almost drunk with the dragon’s mind swirling into it, and Diamoth stood powerful and glowing like a star.
She threw back her head and looked to the sky, clouds dotted the southern area, while a thick haze drifted over the nearby sea coast. Where should she fly? Where would make her happy?
No longer caring that there were people, wherry or dragons below, Diamoth spread her great wings, and flapped hard. The crew of lower caverns staff that were collecting the wherrys killed by her dove to the ground and waited it out. Soon, Diamoth rose into the air like a crossbow bolt, aflame with light.
The men who rode the browns and bronzes gathered quickly, though they remained at bay for a moment. Engell had not left his newest queen rider’s side, yet, and they would not interfere unless it looked like he was going to okay it. Resentful, one of the bronze riders strode to the pair.
"Lord Holder,” said H’aze, “you must leave now. This is for riders.” The hint of growling threat in his son’s voice alerted the Holder and he turned, took in a long breath, and nodded. With a slight show of politeness toward the clump of riders, Engell moved aside. Leilani needed no protection from him, of course. She was one of the most deadly young women in the Weyr, trained like all the others that Engell wanted around him, in ways of subterfuge and defense. If she had to fight her way out of a mix of strong bronze riders, Engell thought to himself with a smile, he’d probably be out a number of good men!
But no such thing would be forthcoming. Though the riders were indeed swept into the air with their dragons, most of them kept in the back of their human minds that the only dragon and the only rider which this pair truly wanted to win, was Lo’pez and Lilioth. The brown was smaller than some, but faster than all the bronzes assembled. The burly L’ex took a place near Leilani and glanced across to Lo’pez who was dwarfed by the dark man. Smiling like sharks at one another, they watched the other dragons vye in the air.
At first, Diamoth didn’t seem to have a direction in mind. She did a tour of the southern hills, then led the pack of males into the air over the Weyrhold itself. Almost a sight-seeing tour, she led the large group of males for more than a candlemark! Tiring them out, a bit, Leilani noticed. But so high up did she fly that her circling tour made two browns almost too dizzy to continue. Then quickly after that, Diamoth decided to head over the ocean.
The thick sea-haze matched her mood. It was unclear, it was murky. She went very low, gliding over the water and even terrifying one boat with her nearness. The bronze pair behind her, Ulonyth and Alkalmith, had to pull up lest they smash into the fishing boat! Two more browns and a bronze dropped out.
They are only males, Diamoth thought. Leilani smirked. They have no endurance at all!
But they are good males. Let them chase you! I want to see their wings tire from chasing you!
Diamoth took that moment to turn almost straight into the air, powering up through the fog and erupting into the clear sky above it. Three bronzes and three browns still followed her, and only then did she start doing her true mating flight. Into the sky over Alabaster, she twirled. She did two huge rolls, making the nearest dragons flap away in confusion. They did not want to get tangled up in her wings, crash on the Weyrhold below! Dalinoth doggedly followed along, close behind Ulonyth. Lilioth was behind, near the other browns, and Leilani noticed this with a frown. Why wasn’t he trying harder?
Brown Surketh, ridden by another of Engell’s sons, dropped from the racing flight when he clipped a tall tree, avoiding Diamoth’s sudden dive. Pa’sha left the group and took a runner to Surketh’s side, making sure that the dragon’s wing wasn’t injured. Diamoth rose and dipped again, confusing the males as to where she would go next.
That was over their heads, doing a tremendous and low-flying back-turn, head over tail and flipping to right herself while the other dragons scattered. She trumpeted loudly and Leilani laughed on the ground.
They will never catch me! I will not be caught by these laggards!
Dalinoth tired next, when Diamoth did another swirling rocket into the sky. He couldn’t quite keep up, though his rider D’lon assured him that he was a fine bronze and would someday catch himself a queen like he promised when he hatched.
Far up into the air, with four suitors left, Diamoth assesed the situation quickly, and dove past the foursome and down to the sea hold again. The surprised bellows of the two browns and two bronzes was nothing compared to the exuberant shouts of those Hold inhabitants who saw the flight from the coast. Diamoth dipped into the sea, her claws and tail leaving runnels and spray to all sides, clouding where exactly she was. For another few minutes, none of the males could see where she had gone.
Then, wanting to prove that she was indeed the finest glowing Gold in the world, Diamoth blasted through the layer of fog and nipped at Lilioth’s tail! Shrieking with glee and anger, Lilioth finally started his own offensive. He snarled at G’ed’s Lorenth and down below Lo’pez gave a laughing apology to the rider. Lorenth dropped out of the flight when Diamoth swooped over his head and ‘tagged’ him giving off a trumpet mocking his slowness. Diamoth circled with a big barrel roll, and then headed up once again.
Surprised, Alkalmith couldn’t keep up with the gold’s swift ascent, and seemed to know that his race was over. The bronze descended with his head low, and H’aze consoled him as well as he could.
Ulonyth and Lilioth continued to chase closely behind Diamoth, turning with her left-right movements. Leilani down below could feel her arms and part of her back aching. Why? Oh! Because Diamoth’s wings were begining to tire. All the dodging she was doing started to take its toll. Diamoth tried to sweep down to the left, but Ulonyth was there. She tried moving to the right, and there was Lilioth right with her!
Snarling fiercely, Diamoth then decided a different tactic would have to do. She dropped from the air, folding her wings up above her body and allowing the wind to breeze past her. She lost altitude quickly, and caused Leilani to gasp in half-terror. The wind rose, but just before Diamoth was going to strike the slate-colored water below, she broke her fall and used the acceleration she had to carry her up higher than she had been before! So clear into the air, Diamoth barely had to flap now. But she did, eventually, and at that moment, Lilioth appeared below her. A dark brown shadow, keening with his voice joined by Lo’pez’s below.
You shall not have me yet! Screeched Diamoth’s mind, echoed by Leilani on the ground, and the men still watching closely backed away from the fierce dragon-tainted woman. All but Lo’pez.
L’ex smiled softly, and muttered, “perhaps next time, dear girl,” and bowed out, telling Ulonyth to allow Lilioth his day. You’ve already had your chance, and next time it may be another queen without ... attachments.
Grumbling, the bronze obeyed. He was nearly exhausted anyway. As he dove downwards, Diamoth and Lilioth ascended still, the brown barely behind her golden tail. When she began to slow, he sped up, still headed almost straight into the sky.
Below, mutterings of astonishment started. How high would they go? If they were to even start now... Such a spectacular sight!
At the apex of the dragon’s flight, Diamoth twisted her body into a beautiful bow arc, her wings curving off toward the sky still. Lilioth joined her wrapping his tail around hers first, then taking her neck around his own, not one scratch would he allow on either of them. Their wings tangled together as did their limbs, and below on the ground Leilani and Lo’pez were hurried into the shelter that was provided for them.
“They’ll be up there for a while,” someone muttered, “might as well start clearing the sands out, it’ll be a big clutch!”
