Rider
Character Name: Til’lene (pronounced til-leh-nay)
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Rank: Wingrider for Third Wing One
Appearance:
[Work Attire] [Formal Attire] Til’lene stands out from the majority of the Pernese people in terms of looks. Her skin is a pale cream, kept in such a way with the help of lotion and protective clothing to keep from burning in the sun. She is taller than most, standing at around 5’9” in height, with a slender stomach and small hands and feet. Womanly curves are evident from her bosom and hourglass figure, some of the few gifts given to her from her mother. The other gift from her mother is the rider’s vivid ivy-colored eyes, which is one of Til’lene’s favorite things about herself. Another pride of hers is her long, flowing hair that is the color of corn. The moment she completed her Weyrlinghood, the woman made it a point to not only grow her hair out as long as possible, but to take care of it as much as she could.
While she is working, Til’lene wears her hair up in a number of coiled braids, so that it doesn’t get in the way. It is only for formal events or off days that she allows her hair to cascade down, unadorned, which is how she prefers it. In terms of attire, the dragonrider wears a tight, single-strap tunic clung to her body with a functional bodice, simple pants and brown boots for when she’s working. Her formal wear consists of an elegant dress that is pine green in color, adorned with a leaf pattern on the bodice, a black ribbon at her waist, and a slit up the right s ide. So as to not be too immodest, Til’lene wears formal black boots and black stockings to cover any skin that may be seen through the slit. Her dress is complemented with a gold pendant adorned with a beautiful garnet. This necklace was a gift from Restan, her ex-husband, for their first anniversary together.
Personality:
- Charismatic
Progressive
Knowledgeable
No-nonsense
Perfectionist
Proud
Til’lene is a people person; always has been, always will be. She has an easy time making friends, enjoys talking with people, and seems to get along with just about anyone. She seems to know just what to say to get people motivated, or just what they need. There is an aura about her that just draws people to look or to pay attention to her, and she does her best to not abuse such a gift that she has been given.
When it comes to traditions and the way things have been for the dragonriders, Til’lene is certainly more forward-thinking and progressive. Women, she feels, should have an equal opportunity as men in any field or position that they seek. They shouldn’t be looked down or considered weak when they can do just as much (if not more, what with being able to carry and deliver children). Yet her ideals don’t just involve the glass-ceiling women have to struggle with: she’s also feels that the colorism with dragons need to go away as well. A person with a green or a blue can be just as important as someone with a bronze or a gold. Having a metallic dragon doesn’t automatically make one a good leader or an upstanding citizen, nor should they have preferential treatment because of it. She wants to see riders with dragons of all colors in positions of power and influence, as she feels it is then that change can truly be made.
Knowledge and learning have always been one of the highest pursuits for Til’lene. During her youth, she would read as much as she could get her hands on, covering a wide variety of subjects. Her biggest interests, however, seemed to cover the topics of the military, history & politics, and the beloved dragons they formed their bonds with. Throughout her candidacy, it was not unheard of for the young girl to fall asleep with a book on such a subject under her head or in her hand. To this very day, Til’lene continues to read and study these subjects, as she feels one never really stops learning. There’s always more knowledge to gain. Due to her love of these studies, the dragonrider is quite a good military tactician, as well as an insightful political candidate and dragonrider. She certainly does her best to put all her interests to good use in a meaningful manner.
Til’lene has always taken the things that she does very seriously, be it her job, training, or even her passions. With her job, especially, though, she has little time for goofing off or cracking jokes. There are murderers out there who need to be caught, bandits that need to be dealt with, and people that need help. The dragonrider holds a position in Third Wing One, and she enjoys her job immensely. If people aren’t pulling their weight, she has no problem telling them off or raising her voice to get them to get the job done. This can come off as a bit abrasive to people, but she feels it’s not something she can compromise. As a hopeful candidate for Weyrleader, she feels that the head of a military needs to run a tight ship.
Sloppiness or laziness just won’t do as far as Til’lene is concerned. The wingrider has always been a bit of a perfectionist. Having said that – it should be noted that this is more directed toward herself, personally, as opposed to others. She always has held herself to extremely high standards, and still continues to do so even today. She keeps her quarters spotless, she is always cleaned and well-groomed, and she even takes extra care to make sure her dragon is well taken care of, too. If there is any sort of imperfection or weakness that she sees in herself, Til’lene not only becomes highly critical, but also considerably anxious and worried. Even the littlest of mistakes make her worry that others out there will doubt what she’s capable of, and that is the last thing she wants. If elected as Weyrleader, this sense of perfectionism might play out in a different way. While she generally only directs it toward herself, she will hold the various wingleaders accountable for keeping their wings and underlings in line and in top condition. The same goes for candidatemasters, weyrlingmasters, and the like. If a wing or group does not mesh well cohesively, she would be unafraid to bring this to the attention of the leader of the respective group, and hold them personally accountable for not doing a better job.
It is often said that Til’lene is as proud as a dragon. This pride, however, can often be a negative thing, rather than positive. She does not like to admit when she is wrong, and would rather stand in-tight lipped silence than recant such things. She also does not like to ask for help too often, seeing such things as a weakness on her part if she has to do so. Whatever she needs to do, she should be able to do it and take care of it herself. She shouldn’t have to rely on others to do things for her. This pride will most likely be tested, should she win the election. She’ll be put in a position where she’ll be forced to rely on others for help, but she is determined to not let this flaw of hers get the better of her.
History:
Til’lene has had what most would say has been an eventful life.
Born into a fishing family in Tillek Hold, she was given the name Tillene (pronounced til-leen). Her father, Jorvin, was a fisherman by trade, while her mother, Laia, helped by mending the nets and cleaning the fish upon return and so forth. Their family would have been a lot bigger, boasting at least four or five children, had it not been for the multiple stillbirths or miscarriages Laia experienced throughout her pregnancies. The family was hit with another blow when Tillene, herself, was born. The birthing process was so hard on Laia that she ended up passing away, leaving Jorvin to take care of their only child.
Despite being a single parent, Jorvin was determined to give his daughter the best life that he possibly could. He took his little girl out on the boats fishing with him, much to the protests of the other sailors about having a female on board. He didn’t seem to care what the others thought, though. It was important to him that Tillene learn and see how he worked. Over time, the disdain of the other sailors seemed to fade when the little girl would accompany them on board. She had warmed her way into their hearts and became a good luck charm of sorts for them. Fishing wasn’t a high paying or glamorous way to make a living, but the two of them had a roof over their head, food on the table, a place to sleep, and each other, so what more could they ask for?
At the age of twelve, Tillene had already accepted the fact that she would probably take up the family business and just be a fisherwoman. She loved being out in the water, catching fish was fun, and frankly it was all she knew. Yet all of those thoughts would be turned upside down the moment a blue searchdragon swooped down from the skies. She had been chosen, it would seem, as a person eligible to stand for a dragon one day. Jorvin was, at first, hesitant to let his daughter go. She was all he had, after all, and he would miss her. Yet after some prodding from the searchrider, he determined the opportunity would be too big to let slip away, much like the fish he so prized. It was decided that his little girl would go with the searchrider and join the ranks of the other Candidates at the High Reaches Weyr.
The initial candidacy training that she went through was a bit bumpy for the young girl. The physical rigor of the training seemed to take a lot out of her during the day, leaving the youth winded and sore by bedtime. She struggled, initially, only ever managing to be sub-par at any of the physical aspects. This made Tillene determined to do better, even if she wasn’t the best at the combat and self-defense training to come. Where she did shine, though, were the literacy and group sessions. Thanks to her father’s tutelage, Tillene came into her Candidacy with a basic knowledge of her letters. It was only during her training, however, that she really found her passion for reading and learning. She drank up every bit of information she could, knowing fully well it would come in handy to her later in life.
Despite not being so good at the more physical aspects of training, Tillene managed to do well enough in the eyes of her superiors to move on to becoming a squire. The rider she would squire under was a man named V’igmar, a blue rider in Third Wing Two. What people thought would be a good pairing for the two of them unfortunately turned out to be anything but. The dragonrider, in his mid-thirties when he took on the thirteen-year-old, found the young girl’s views to be “too idealistic”, as he put it. Tillene, on the other hand, found her dragonrider to be too sexist and traditional when it came to the roles of women. Eventually, the two of them decided it was just easier to be civil with one another, rather than to air their views out in the open to each other. Though, sometimes, when V’igmar got particularly annoyed or upset with his squire, it wouldn’t be unheard of for him to say that she would only amount to grunt work, should she ever impress a dragon.
Tillene’s chance to be free of V’igmar came when she turned fourteen. It was then that she was determined to be old enough to stand on the sands, and she couldn't have been more thrilled. The day of her Impression was an interesting one. Once her brown dragon, Pelgalath, had hatched from his egg, he practically bowled over any other candidate that stood in his way. Once he was at her side, he then would predatorily growl at any other girl or boy who even got close to her. Till knew from then on that she and Pelgalath were meant to be together. It was destined!
Weyrlinghood went as normal for both Tillene and Pelgalath. It provided the duo a much needed time to learn and get to know each other, which it is safe to say that the two of them thoroughly enjoyed. Watching Pelgalath take his first flight was the most memorable thing for Tillene during this time. The larger-than-average brown was initially hesitant to fly, and almost had to get shoved off the edge in order to go. It was a bit of a clunk start, but eventually he got the hang of it. Due to his size, however, Pelgalath knew he would never be the swiftest or most graceful flier, but this didn’t seem to bother him. Slow and steady won the race, after all!
Upon graduation from weyrlinghood, the young woman elided her name to Til’lene and joined the ranks of Third Wing One. It was in her newly appointed wing that Til’lene and Pelgalath really came into their own as rider and dragon. They took the to job without much difficulty, but not only that; they enjoyed it as well. The Third Wing seemed to be a good fit for the two of them, and it was nice to finally be done with all of their training.
It was around the age of twenty that Til’lene met and fell in love with a young man named Restan. Restan was a journeyman, hoping to become a glassmith for the Weyr once he was further in his training. The two seemed to hit it off right away, and not long after the two met, they became husband & wife in a marriage ceremony. Although a dragonrider, Restan was not put off by Til’lene’s dangerous position. He seemed quite proud of her, although during particularly bad events, he could not help but be worried from time to time. Yet he knew that, in the end, she’d come out okay. She always did.
Things did not come out okay for the couple, however, when they tried to have a family. Like her mother before her, Til’lene was plagued with multiple miscarriages. This left the couple distraught and fearful that they would never have a baby. So it came as quite a surprise to the two of them when Til’lene actually managed to conceive and bring the baby to a full-term. This happiness, however, was extremely brief. When the little girl she gave birth to came out into the world, she was already gone. She never even took her first breath. It was this event that seemed to be the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Til’lene and Restan’s marriage was no longer the same after that. After the stillbirth of her daughter, the dragonrider threw herself into her work and became increasingly distant. Her husband, too, did the same. Over time, the two of them grew so far apart, that they had to make a tough decision: the two of them would get a divorce. Luckily for the former couple, there was no bad blood between the two of them. The decision they made was a mutual one, and despite splitting up, they still remained casual friends with one another, though no more than that. Til’lene was just a mere 27 when her marriage ended.
One year later, one of Til’lene’s bonds again would be tested: this time, her relationship with Pelgarath. The Great Dragon Plague had reared its ugly head and attacked with a vengeance. Her beloved brown dragon was one of the many few to get sick during this time, and he became incapacitated as a result. Sick with a high fever and tormented by periods of coughing up blood, the dragonrider feared she might lose her best friend. But Pelgarath was determined not to let that happened. Miraculously, he survived, though the majority of his kind were not so lucky. It was as the same time as the Dragon Plague that a Civil War also broke out in Pern. Unfortunately, Til’lene was unable to help during this time, as her dragon was out of commission, what with being too sick to work.
Since the end of the Great Dragon Plague and the Civil War, life has been fairly quiet and uneventful for both the rider and her dragon. The two of them spent the rest of their years up to the present day just doing their job as a wingrider. Upon reaching her 38th turn, Til’lene has decided to try something new for a change: she is planning to run for the position of Weyrleader. Part of why she made this decision was do to the recent Flight of Malcarreth and Evmeth. Not only was the spectacle a sight to behold, but it was enough to change history and break from tradition. Whether or not she will win remains to be seen, but the wingrider is both eager and hopeful for the opportunity. Given all that the two of them have been through, campaigning for the position will be a nice change of pace.
