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[Twilight Flames: C'tis & Malcarreth

(46 + 50), 55, 96 = 247

((1314))]

To be completely honest endurance flying was…. Well it wasn’t what they were best at. Still, they’d made the cut to fly in the wing relay and so long as they took regular breaks C’tis and Malcarreth were collectively confident that they’d do well. They needed to do well. Their performance in the obstacle course had been… well, it was a thing that had happened and that was about all C’tis felt there was to say about it. Malcarreth’s concerns were less related to their previous performance and more based around his colour, and his diminutive size for that colour.

Flying well today would make up for the obstacle course and show everyone that size wasn’t everything, even on a long course such as this. The leg they had been assigned began at the prosperous Eron Hold and ended at a small hold a little way inland on the river, it ought to take them about a day and a half if nothing went terribly wrong.

<> Malcarreth sighed as they waited for Solath to appear with the baton. <> Oh well, they’d got what they’d been given and he was glad at least that they were getting a chance to prove themselves. <>

<> C’tis agreed, eyeing the other riders waiting to take off for their wings on the fourth leg. <> Optimism didn’t come naturally to either of them but C’tis found it more easily than it did to Malcarreth.

<> Malcarreth sighed, <> They were a newly formed wing however, untested really and unused to working together.

<> C’tis pointed out with a grin. <> Now that he didn’t see happening but it was fun to imagine, and to needle at Malcarreth’s gloom cloud. <>

Malcarreth sighed again. <>

“Waagh!” C’tis barely had time to lean into the takeoff, Malcarreth was in the air like an arrow loosed from a bow, racing forward to grab the baton from the other blue. The handover was… well Malcarreth would have words for Solath later but for the time being he had a race to contribute to; he vanished between to their checkpoint and turned his nose along the coast.

_________________

The hardest part was fighting the urge to sprint. If they sprinted they were out, they’d drop from exhaustion before they were half way there. So they paced themselves. Malcarreth took advantage of thermals where he could to spiral upward and then glide effortlessly for a spell. Even so they rested every couple of hours for just a couple of minutes, giving the sleek blue a chance to recover himself a little.

<> Malcarreth wondered during one rest stop; they had seen another pair coming up behind them a little while ago but had managed to pull away again. With a race like this however it was hardly unusual for the competitors to be rather spread out by the fourth leg, anyone else could be anywhere.

<> C’tis replied helpfully as he took a deep swig of water from one of the skins he had with him. <>

<> the blue snorted as C’tis moved around him, making some checks of his harness.

“Seriously,” C’tis said with a cheerful grin at the thought of rivals flopped in a clearing somewhere crying piteously for somebody to come and help them. <>

<> Malcarreth replied. He was tired, he ached, but that wasn’t going to go away until their leg of the great Wing Relay was done with. <> he heaved himself to his feet, <>

C’tis’ grin went even more wicked than it already had been, climbed aboard and fastened himself back into the straps. <>

<> Malcarreth grinned in reply as he bunched his muscles and sprang back into the sky.

_________________

As night fell the going got harder. It was more difficult to see their progress and the wind got up, forcing Malcarreth to expend energy in staying on course. They were losing time, both of them could feel it, and at one point Malcarreth thought he faintly spied a dragon off to their right overtaking them. It could merely have been his imagination however, or a trick of the moons on the water.

Just a little further, he told himself, it was always just a little further. He knew he wasn’t built for this but they had been selected and he refused to fail, his pride wouldn’t allow him to give in. Besides, their position in the wing woul become unbearable if they forfeited the race for Twilight Flames. And so he flew onward, drawing on his own stubbornness and the fire of C’tis’ heart to keep beating his wings. It would be easier when the sun rose again.

_________________

It was easier when the sun rose again, a little, but then there was the rest of the day to get through. They stopped more frequently through the morning than they had the day before but, a little after noon, Malcarreth saw something ahead of him that sent energy surging through his muscles.

<> He was sure of it!

C’tis peered through Malcarreth’s eyes and didn’t question him. <>

Malcarreth grinned, and his eyes flashed orange-red like a dragon going into battle. <> The small blue gave a challenging roar and shot forward, accelerating swiftly until he was flying faster than he had through the whole race so far. A few minutes later they levelled with the rival pair and then shot past them, and Malcarreth let out a trumpet of triumph as they did so. On he raced, on and on though his muscles screamed at him to stop. He could do this!

The small hold that marked their checkpoint appeared on the horizon and grew rapidly larger until they were streaking overhead with a mighty bugle and them duty done, disappearing to return to Trine.

As they reappeared from between Malcarreth sought the next dragon in line and dived to meet them, turning a neat roll to press the baton directly into their grasp.

He then dropped like a stone and only barely managed to flail into a safe, graceless landing. A couple of healers hastened over to check him as he lay there panting, possibly more exhausted than he had ever been but triumphant. <>

C’tis laughed and lent forward to lean his brow against the blue’s neck. <<You did it, I just sat here!>>

<> the blue raised his head a little and turned to regard his rider, <>

D'lin and Plexith
Gale Stalkers

"Plex please hold still" D'lin begged as he tried in vain to recheck his dragons riding straps while they waited for Eliza and Velath to appear, the generally steady bronze ignored him however and kept shifting about as he kept watch for their fellow riders. 'They will get here when they get here, Velath hasn't sent any signals of distress and she is a green' He reminded his dragon who merely grumbled a reply causing his rider to sigh slightly. Of course telling Plexith not to fret about a member of his wing was like trying to tell the sun not to shine - a completely pointless en devour, he was just hard wired to want to keep track fo those under his care and really, if that was his fault then it wasn't a very bad one as far as D'lin was concerned - even if it made things trying from time to time. Like now.

'I don't know why you keep fretting over the straps, you've already checked them a dozen times' The bronze finally decided to answer, huffing slightly at his rider and causing him to wince slightly as he noted the truth in the dragons words.

'Yes well you can never be too careful with such things now can you.' He remarked, smacking the bronzes shouldered in a good natured manner.

'And you say I'm the one who worries.' The dragon rumbled before turning his eyes back to the sky and the direction they both expected the green dragon and rider to come from.

'I think we'll just have to accept that we are both prone to worry' D'lin admit before running a hand through his hair and squinting into the sun. Eliza and Velath were not even overdue yet and still they were finding themselves getting anxious - of course the added excitement of this being a race certainly didn't help much, if he were honest with himself then he would have to admit that they had been jittery since this waking this morning and he was pretty sure the same could be said for each rider and dragon pair before they were set to start their leg of the race.

'There!' Plexith finally remarked, his far keener eyes picking out the arrival of green Velath long before D'lin would have been able to do so, such was the advantage of dragon eyesight the bronze rider supposed. 'She is tiring.' The bronze shared with his rider and Plexith bugled a call of encouragement to the smaller green.D'lin wasn't surprised that Velath was flagging , even giving them one of the easier legs of the race it was still a long ways to go for a green, the entire wing had been training for these games however and both Eliza and Velath had put forth the effort and had deserved to be made part of the team. He had had no doubts that they could finish - even if he also knew they would be a bit sore for a couple days afterwards. Such was the price of long distance races like this. Heck he wouldn't be surprised if even he and Plexith were a bit sore after this race, sure his dragon had stamina to spare but neither of there were exactly used to such prolonged flights - even if they had been training for it.

'Alright Plex, you ready?' D'lin asked his dragon as Eliza and Velath began to get closer, moving from tiny specks in the sky to distinguishable companions that he and Plexith had known for a long long time now.

'Of course I am' Plexith responded as his rider mounted and he took to the air to receive the baton from Velath. 'Well done Velath!' The bronze congratulated the green as her labored flight brought her close enough for the hand off 'Rest now and know you have done well' He complimented the pair before letting the wind carry him onto his own path in the race.

'we will have to congratulate everyone when this is over, the entire wing has put forth a great deal of effort' D'lin mused out loud to his dragon as they sped along.

'They have' Plexith agreed 'Win or loose we certainly can't say that they didn't give it thier all' The bronze agreed. Of course they didn't mean he didn't want to win and considering that fact he drove his wings harder, pressing himself to greater speed, the distence of the flight was not a worry for the bronze, he was Plexith after all, he had fought in more battles then many of these youngsters could count and he had flown in more threadfalls then many of them combined, they of course would say his age was a detriment but Plexith did not feel particularly old, he was still strong and in fine shape after all the training that they had been doing in preparation for today's race. No his experience and his strength of will would certainly be far more of a deciding factor then his age and Plexith didn't now to many dragons whose strength of will was stronger then his own.

'At least the weather has held up' D'lin remarked as they flew along the steady beating of Plexith's wings a soothing sound in the background. For a little while D'lin had been worried that a storm would blow in from the east but that worry seemed to have been for nothing as the gathering clouds had dissipated away earlier this morning.

'I told you it would, according to the dolphineers the weather was set to hold and no one knows weather better then they do.' Plexith replied, it made sense really, as the ships they escorted relied on good winds and fair weather to make it through safely.

'True, still, I am glad that we didn't find ourselves flying in the rain.' D'lin replied.

'Why is that? A bit of harsh weather to much for you now?" The bronze teased, folding his wings slightly to make them drop sharply before unfurling them to catch the wing and bring them level again.

'Of course not.' D'lin remarked 'But I can't ever recall a time when flying in the rain was considered fun.' he remarked before thumping his dragons neck as he pulled his funny little stunt. 'Quit joking around Plex, we get one to the the young ones for things like that and here you are doing it!' He stated with slightly rolled eyes.

'There's no one here to see and I'm not going to plow into the dirt doing it like the inexperienced ones will.' The bronze replied with a touch of pride in his voice.

'True enough' D;lin agreed 'But need to set a good example and all that' He reminded his dragon

'Of course' Plexith replied, a touch of amusement in his voice before he continued 'When they are around' Before doing his little dip a second time.

'Plex cut it out' D'lin stated in exasperation but his tone was only slightly critical, once in a while it was okay to have a bit of fun he reckoned and it wasn't like he and Plexith got the opportunity to do so very often anymore. 'Look isn't that the first rest stop?' He questioned his dragon as they came upon the familiar looking spot.

'Looks like it' the bronze replied before folding his wings slightly to start a descent, the first leg had not been so bad but then he hadn't really expected it to be, he was a bronze, surely he could handle a bot of distance yes? Slowing himself with a tipping of his wings to shed some speed the bronze touched down lightly beside a stream, lowering his head to take a quick drink while his rider jumped off to refill his own water before they continued onward.

'The next two legs will be harder' D'lin warned as he remounted 'There are some challenging air currents in this part of the race' Of course that was precisely the reason he had picked this leg, sparing others of his wing the bothersome battle.

'Don't worry' Plexith assured his rider as they took to the air again ' I am more then up to the challenge'

'I know you are' D'lin replied, patting the great bronze neck fondly as Plexith's wings carried them higher and reoriented them in the proper direction before carrying on.

As D'lin had promised the second wing of the race turned out to be far more challenging then the rather lackadaisical first part had been, buffeting wind currents and headwinds made the going difficult and even Plexith, proud strong bronze that he was found himself getting winded as they flew along. The bronze was hardly the type to give up however and if anything the struggle made him dig deeper, fly harder. A challenge placed before Plexith was simply something to overcome and defeat and woe to anything that thought otherwise.

'Don't strain yourself' D'lin warned the bronze as they went along, of course he knew that saying something was pointless and having been keeping a close eye on his dragons condition he wasn't overly worried quite yet, the words were just a gentle reminder to be careful. If it seemed Plexith was on the verge of actually pressing himself so hard that he was in danger of hurting himself D'lin would be more forceful in his demands. Neither of them were of the age where recovery from such things could be considered easy anymore despite being fit and in shape age did play a part in recovery.

'I am fine, your worrying to much' Plexith responded, his eyes partially slit against the wind as he drove his wings along, striving for even more speed.

'I know, was just reminding you.' D'lin replied as he scanned the ground below them, if his timing was right they should be coming up on the second rest stop shortly and both of them could use a bit of water and cooling off in the water, it wasn't overly hot out today but riding clothes were made with the cold of between in mind not the relative warmth of extended open air low altitude flying. Just as he expected the shimmering expanse of a lake showed up in the distance a short time later. ' I think that is our second rest stop.' He pointed out to his dragon as they approached. 'Just in time, my waters out and I need to pee.'

'The latter probably has something to do with the former' Plexith quipped as they came upon the shoreline, Plexith back winging slightly to land, D;lin jumping off almost as soon as his claws hit the dirt. Chuckling slightly Plexith lowered his head to drink from the water as he waited for D'lin to return.

His rider wasn't long ad swinging his head towards his rider Plexith's eye whirled with amusement. ' Better?'

'Much' D'lin admit before stooping to fill his canteen again and remounting 'you?'

'Of course, this is the last stretch' The dragon responded, strong wing beating and lifting them up from the ground so that they could continue their journey. He would be lying if he said he wasn't tired but the adrenaline of being nearly finished gave him a bit of a second wind and the dragon's wings beat strongly as they drove him towards the finishing point of their leg. Mi'ca and Black Turoth would be waiting for them up ahead, ready to take over the race do their part to bring victory to the Gale Stalkers. Of course the other wings were all performing strongly as well, at least according to all accounts and Plexith knew that it was truly going to be a close race. However there was much to be said for simply competing and win or loose he would make sure that all the dragons and riders flying for them were praised for their efforts.

'Is that them ahead?' D'lin asked, squinting at the figures in the distance as they arrived at the end of their leg..

'yes, they are ready to fly' Plexith reported, the sight of the finish driving him to even greater speed and they passed the baton strongly to the other pair, shouting encouragement and cheering them along on their way.

2052 words = +80 points to first roll

K'gan and Trekth, Dauntless.
[I'm so sorry guys, work has been crazy]


K'gan often felt the world around him was too slow. The same old routine with the same people and dragons and the same lessons. It was easy for the weyr to fall into a rut and when not on assignment it fell to him and his beautiful hide covered partner to find their own entertainment. Weather that entertainment landed them in trouble was always a risk worth taking for the thrill of feeling alive. But as the dragon games approached the pair suddenly found that there was plenty of things to keep them busy. Excitement enthused the weyr like life blood. Young blood. The flurry of activity and energy always reminded the young rider of the hype before a battle but the air had a different edge. The tension that held the air between the wings was one of friendly competition and banter (with the occasional bets) was free flowing. There was life in the old girl yet!

With new activities and chores K'gan suddenly became one of the most helpful riders of the weyr. He wanted to help with the decorations, setting up the stalls, preparing the food, clearing the weyr bowl and anything else that would involve him in the process. No surprise then that he jumped at the chance to sign up with the games. All his fever to be helpful also helped keep his bed wetting, mouth frothing, arm flailing levels of excitement for his leg of the race at manageable levels. K'gan had Trekth keep an open channel to the event so he could make a mad rush to the weyr bowl each and every time there was a pass off between riders.

It didn't bother K'gan that he was in the middle of the back, neither starting or ending the race where chances of glory and game changing manoeuvres were highest. As corny as it sounded the boy was just happy to take part.

----------------------

When the call sounded that his predecessor was at last finishing his leg of the race K'gan was on Trekth's back before the message had completed it's relay.

“You ready for this?”

“As always.” His partner assured him as the bronze burst from between and they leapt into the air to meet them. The baton was thrown and K'gan caught it with ease before they both leapt between. The cold of the empty void stole the breath from K'gan's lunge and suspended the whoop of victory until they burst out above the hold. Unfortunately the confidence was to much too early. In the very moment the pair burst into the open another dragon overtook them, a larger brown and their indistinct rider. Trekth let out a shrill of alarm and banked to avoid a collision. His wing tip caught one of the taller trees outside the hold walls and they pair both went ridged with the pain of the impact as they spun out of control. Tumbling like loose leaves caught in an up-draft. Luckily the pair had enough flying experience and agility to right themselves mid-air but the forced bend in his wing had done the black some damage. The brown dragon was already out of sight. <******** werry brained, shading tunnel snake.” K'gan fumed as he put a steadying hand on his partners neck. Weather the knock had been pure accident or strategy K'gan couldn't determined but he quickly ordered Trekth to the ground.

He was unbuckling his riding straps and sliding down before Trekth had even finished touching down. “How bad is it?”

“Just a sprain I think. I can fly but it wouldn't by steady.” Trekth slowly extended the bruised wing and flexed it to feel out the worst of the pain.

K'gan frowned. “Do you think it will ease with some rest?” Trekth confirmed the possibility with a silent incline of his head. K'gan felt his temper simmer again. The small mishap would put them well behind. The good natured young rider was a hard target to rile anger in. But like all riders he was protective of his partner and hurting his beloved second half was enough to stoke the cool embers.

“Well.” K'gan stated as he looked around him. “Guess we should start, walking.” A small smile returned. A walk through the jungle suddenly seemed appealing. Near the walls of the hold the jungle boarders were still thinner and Trekth was slim for a dragon. It wouldn't be easy but K'gan knew from experience they would both find a way through. Snatching up a long stick for assistance in turning away stingers K'gan marched confidently into the wilderness. “Might not be as good as flying but we can make some time.” Trekth followed him, head lowered to avoid snagging branches so his nose almost touched K'gan's hand. Like a giant canine.

K'gan knew many tricks for navigating the jungle paths, following the sun and the simple but effective path finder of picking out a tree ahead of you, keeping eyes focused upon it and moving close enough to pick out a new target within the same line. Naturally the calm subdued manner of the walk couldn't last. Injuries aside the pair were still buzzing with energy.

“Race you to the next tree, you can't beat me here.”

“I don't think so, you still only have two legs.” Trekth retorted as they both set off running. The black dragon slinkying his way over logs and under love branches while K'gan ran flat out. Natrual speed and greater manoeuvrability faced off and rider and dragon ended up leapfroggingfirst and second place again and again.

“I win” K'gan declared panting as he broke into a clearing with his arms up.

“You did not, I didn't even know this was the finish line.” Trekth complained, though both dragon and rider were buzzing and happy from the chase.

“Bah. It is because I say.” K'gan retorted laughing at his dragons grumbling. “But you're right. Let's call it a draw. We have an actual race to win.” he pointed out as the reminder of their real task battled through the fog. “How's your wing.”

Trekth tested it, giving a few experimental flaps. “It feels better” the dragon confirmed.

“Okay, let's get a drink here then we'll try flying.” K'gan suggested, his partner readily agreed. The area was perfect for a pit stop. At a guess K'gan would have suggested it had been cleared by traders around the spring for a camp site. The pair took full advantage of it while K'gan's breath returned to him.

Refreshed and with renewed spirits, K'gan clambered back onto the black's back and with a signal launched back into the sky.

At last they were fully part of the race and Trekth found a steady pace that worked to keep his energy up while making use of his speed advantage over the heavier colours. K'gan busied himself keeping an eye on the skies for fellow dragon riders while also keeping track of their path to the next check point.

Strangely the sprain may well have been a blessing in disguise. The pair were always known to be reckless and the urge to sprint and use full speed to cover the distance was there but while the threat of the reawakening damage remained K'gan was more careful.

----------------

Night fell and the pair were still flying. The encompassing darkness made K'gan feel they were more alone than ever and he relished it. As a scout the concealment of night was a welcome friend. Yet K'gan had no desire to run into a second dragon (however unlikly) so he attacked small baskets of glows to his riding leathers, casting them as a moving star while they continued on through the night and K'gan hummed songs of his childhood to keep himself awake and semi alert.

As the sun rose the race had turned from the excitement filled jaunt of friendly competition to the gruelling test of stamina it was intended to be. Trekth never complained but K'gan could feel that the sprained wing had started to bother him once more. K'gan switched from humming to singing allowed to keep spirits high and his eyes open. They only allowed themselves a brief stop at noon to drink and cool off by a local steam before they were aloft again.

--------------------------

The day faded as had the one before with constant flying and K'gan set out his glows for a second night. When the day broke and light flooded the green landscape it brought with it a beautiful sight, the checkpoint! Trekth bulged success and K'gan instructed him to send the message back to the wing. The next rider should be ready. Valiantly Trekth tried to make a sprint for the last leg but he barley had the strength to keep up his current pace. By the time they had reached the checkpoint itself even that was flagging.

Struggling through the haze of sleep deprivation K'gan forced the image of home into his head as the pair jumped between. Luckily Trekth had the skills of his colour and locating his intended location for a jump was an easy task. They appeared above the weyr with the usual rush of cold air and K'gan searched the area for the hand off candidate. Trekth was already falling from the sky towards home and rest, barley keeping his path stright, but fighting till the last to do wing and rider proud.

(Word count= 1568/ 60 points. 10 points for the second roll and 50 for the last for a smooth hand over.
76 roll + 60 rp = 136 total)

((Ralla and Firith, Dauntless!

Edit: I did not jump the gun. :/ I was asked to post and I did.))

Twilight Flames - C'rrys and Leszyth

C’rrys was still wondering how he and Leszyth got saddled with one of the longest legs of the relay as he prepared his flying leathers and packed saddlebags for the venture ahead. The pair had performed well in the bonded obstacle course and agility course already, but this was a whole new level. The Wing Relay was the pinnacle of performance for Trine and he would be damned if he let his wing down.

Leszyth and C’rrys had become more and more competitive over the last few days, their desire to prove themselves growing with each perceived victory or failure. On this morning they felt only so-so, perhaps having taken on too much in the Dragon Games preceding their length of the Relay. It was a foolish mistake- one that should have been avoided by a pair with ten turns of experience- but C’rrys was still a young man who wasn’t always the best gauge of their limits and Leszyth a dragon who was always eager to put on a show, and so the pair had some sore muscles to stretch and sleep to clear from their eyes before they were ready to embark on this test of tests.



C’rrys checked, double-checked, triple-checked his flying gear with Leszyth’s watchful eye over him. He did NOT want any mishaps to occur due to negligence and after his final inspection gave them a satisfied pat. He then looked over the stores of food and water he’d packed, true they would be making time for rest along the way (no blue had the stamina to fly for two and a half days straight), but he didn’t want Leszyth to make unnecessary stops for his own merit and humans had to sustain themselves far more often than their bondmates. Leszyth had already fed to abate his own hunger, although it was somewhat difficult for him to gauge how much he should eat- he didn’t want to be struck with sudden hunger pains during their leg, but he also wanted to avoid being weighed down by an unnecessarily large meal.

Fully satisfied with their preparations the duo launched into the air above the Weyr and blinked between to their starting position. They waited eagerly for their chance to fly, and Leszyth- with the advantage of dragonsight- indicated to C’rrys, I see Somnuth mine! Let us be ready to receive the baton. C’rrys nodded in affirmation and leapt up to his position on Leszyth’s harness and strapped himself in securely; this was it- the big day- and a knot of nerves was developing in the pit of his stomach. Okay Leszy, this is it! Let’s get that baton and show the wings what we’ve got! Leszyth bugled in response and took off, positioning himself to receive the baton. With Somnuth’s excellent execution of the pass there was nothing really that the pair had to worry about and C’rrys saluted Allia as he and Leszyth were off.



Leszyth appeared to be making good time and C’rrys was happy with the pace they were flying- not too fast as to wear them down quickly, and not too slow as to hinder their Wing’s performance. It had been several hours since they started their leg of the race, well almost a half-day by C’rrys’ estimate of Rukbath’s journey across the sky, and C’rrys had been nibbling and sipping at his cache sparingly, Alright Mine, I think you’ve flown valiantly so far, how about we touch down for a short rest hmmm? I can stretch my legs and you can get a much deserved break, even quench your thirst at the end of this lake we’ve been flying by! Yes, I think that will do nicely, I could use a quick drink! Leszyth spotted a nice cove before the lake became a river and angled his flight down to glide gently to its shores- the less active flying he had to do the better! C’rrys managed to undo his riding leathers with hands that had gotten somewhat numb from the hours of flying and slid heftily to the earth below.

“Ahhhh, has the ground beneath your feet ever felt so good?”, he exclaimed with a grateful stretch before twisting from side to side, trying to regain the sensation of feeling in his legs. Leszyth snorted at these antics but took the same opportunity to stretch out his back and limbs before turning to the lake to take a much needed drink of fresh water. C’rrys meanwhile stretched his legs by making a quick trip to the edge of the forest and relieving his bowels, it wouldn’t do to need such a break mid-flight, before heading back to Leszyth. “I think I’ll rub some oil into your hide beneath the harness, I don’t want you chaffing when we’re in the air. The more comfortable you are in flight, the better you’ll perform!” Leszyth’s consent was a deep warble and sigh of content as the cool oil was rubbed into the ice-blue of his hide. Alright Mine, that is good enough and we had best return to the skies! C’rrys complied and returned the oil to its place in their bags before strapping into his riding straps once again.

Over the course of the next 48 hours the pair continued in this manner, making brief stops to stretch and quench Leszyth’s thirst while C’rrys spent much of the night sleeping fitfully in his riding gear atop Leszyth, who took only brief naps to sharpen his mind and keep up his strength.



These last six hours would be grueling for Leszyth and C’rrys; there was only so much they could have prepared for and more than two days of solo flying and brief reprieve was beyond preparation! They were determined to stick through with this commitment however, and it was their combined force of will that made all the difference.

Leszyth was still doing his best to gauge where the currents of air would take them and ride them appropriately, eager to let the warm air carry them rather than beat his wings to keep them aloft. Mine, how much further before another rest? C’rrys patted Leszyth’s hide beneath him, If you really need it we can touch down for a short respite beside the river, but it’s only a few hours more… what do you think? We at least get to finish our leg at Aquor Hold. Imagine it now Leszy, no need to rest before going between to reach our weyr, instead you can indulge in a herdbeast and nap as soon as we pass off the baton! This did help lift Leszyth’s spirits and he strengthened his resolve to press on, I think I can last. But I want the fattest, juiciest, herdbeast they have to offer! C’rrys’ laugh was torn away by the wind, but its mirth was evident in his mindvoice, I think you’ll have to beat our competitors to it!

Leszyth took notice of the thin wisps of smoke before them and practically shouted into C’rry’s mind, The hold C’rrys, the hold! I can see it now! C’rrys in turn took hopeful gaze to the horizon and did indeed see just the faintest distortion, Yes! I knew we could do this! Let’s not celebrate prematurely though, we still have to make it there and pass the baton on to Ko'lin and Komaith! Leszyth snorted and with that gathered his last reserve of energy, eager to end this crazy marathon.

The duo finally made it and an exhilarated, if weary, Leszyth passed on the baton before coming down to rest in the fields beside Aquor Hold. C’rrys was thrilled to dismount and hastily removed their gear from Leszyth’s back. I’m so proud of you Leszy, you did so well! He gave his bondmate a loving scratch above his eye ridges and dragged his weary self off to the hold, eager to sleep in a proper bed! You too mine, this was a test for both of us! Now it is time for some well deserved rest before returning home, so saying Leszyth stretched out before falling into a contented nap.

WC: 1355
(+50 to last roll = 59, successful hand-off)
Total value of roll + rp = 176

How had it happened that one of the riders had vanished? Naressa knew, mainly because Reciproth knew and had told her, she was holed in with weyrmate most likely and had forgotten about everything all together. This had caused Rall and Firith to go and dock them some points. It wasn’t her place to be angry, but she was quite upset at the lack of discipline that had been shown. She wasn’t the weyrwoman, let alone an assistant one so it wasn’t her place to deal with the issue. But still. How could she have let her emotions guide her so?! What if this had been something far more important than a race? 'It will all be alright Mine. Mistakes are made and consequences will be dealt with later. Don’t let it harbor within you. You and I are unhurt in this. We shall wait our turn, or we shall go ahead and take the baton from Ralla and Firith'

Naressa sighed and looked up towards her bonded and gave him a smile. ’You are right Reciproth. Thank you, I needed to hear that.’ They stood upon the platform staged and ready to go. She had been sleeping here with the others waiting patiently for them to come in and it was nearing their turn. She had checked out the map and her and Reciproth would be flying a 2.5 day stretch. So she had made the proper preparations to ensure they would be fine if anything happened while out there. She had packed some medicinal herbs as well as some bandages and twine just in case of emergencies and a good portion of snacks. Reciproth had eaten well and she didn’t want him over fed and he knew to portion himself at any rate. This was going to be a long ride and they both knew it.

'Ralla and Firith are coming mine. Prepare yourself, I do not see Kalendol and Kynigoth yet. Though I heard her dragon stirring her not too long ago.' There was a bit of an annoyance in his voice but other than that he said nothing else. She tightened his straps so they were tight, but not too tight and mounted him and waited. One of two things was going to happen. Kynigoth would show up with her rider or she wouldn’t and then they would go. Firith came in from between moments after the green and her rider appeared. Talk about cutting it close.

’I guess we have a couple more days of waiting eh?’ She hoped down off of her dragon and untied the saddle from him so he would be free to do what he wished, within reason of course. They had a few more days of preparing they could do. Though, she was pretty sure they would be fine. A small thrill broke the air and she turned her head to look and see Tris come flying in from who knows where chattering up a storm, sending images left and right. “Hey now, hey now. Calm down Tris.” She said pulling a piece of dried meat from her pocket to entice him to calm down. It seemed to work for her quickly averted his attention and he happily crawled onto her lap and fell asleep. She wondered what had gotten him all worked up but she hadn’t caught anything to cause for concern.

x . x . x . x . x . x . x . x .

The days seemed to pass by slowly for her, mainly because she knew they were next and she was most certainly anxious to get started. As the hours ticked by it finally came the day for Kalendol and Kynigoth to return and pass the baton off. This most certainly had her nerves worked up to the point where she had hardly eaten any of her cereal and it had grown cold by the time she had taken a couple of bites. She was back on the platform, awaiting the green and her rider to return, she was already perched upon Reciproths back and she had double checked that everything was good to go.

’Are you ready? We have two and a half days of traveling to do once we start. We haven’t done a flight like this in a while dearest one.’ She said thinking of the last time they flew at a steady pace for that long. ’I am always ready as long as I have you mine. We will do this, like we have done everything else. Together and in good form.’ His head whipped upwards and she could hear him utter a slight growl as Kalendol and Kynigoth appeared from between without warning. “By the shards of the first egg.” She called out at Reciproth rocketed skyward to retrieve the poorly passed baton. She had to lean into him to hold on as he had taken off without warning, then again they had thrown it without warning. Within a few flaps of his massive wings he was upon it and the second it was in his grasp she felt the cold of between take them.

She forgot how cold it was the second the vast emptiness surrounded them. Her gear kept her from freezing, but still. She knew this was a necessity, for many things, so she didn’t argue it. As quickly as it had come it was gone and the two were above one of the rivers just past Aquor Hold that snakes up towards Trine. They would be flying over heavily wooded areas and there wouldn’t be too many clear spots to land, but still. She had mapped out some sort of a chart to follow. Both of them knew their strengths and weaknesses and had planned stops according to those limits.

Reciproth was built for endurance. He had his days of being sprightly and full of energy, but they were far and few between. Besides, this race needed those with endurance. Not someone who would die out after a couple of hours. ’Sorry about that Mine. I didn’t have time to give warning. It’s alright. It wasn’t your fault. I’m sure Kleos will have a word or two to say to her about her actions. All that matters is that we are here now.’ She said allowing herself to sit up slightly. Reciproth was allowing the wind to carry him and he beat his large wings every now and again as a boost, but beyond that he kept the pace steady, not too fast that he’d tire out, but not slow to the point it would be considered leisurely.

x . x . x . x . x . x . x . x .

’There, that spot over there. We can land right there and rest.’ It had been a couple of hours into their journey and she didn’t want to overwork him. Besides, they were making good time and she figured stopping a little short of their initial point wouldn’t hurt. As they landed she dismounted and checked all of his straps for tearing or any sign they might have come loose and then dug into one of her packs for some meat rolls. Finally finding the package of them she took one out and bit into it furiously. Her dragons eyes swirled with her hunger and she looked up at him as she chewed happily.

’I told you that you should have eaten more at breakfast. You’re kind of adorable when you’re hungry like that.’ The laughter in his tone made her smile as she took another bite and leaned against him happily. His wings were extended on either side of him as he stretched them and she allowed herself a moment before turning her attention to his wings. ’How are your wings? I brought some salves to help with your muscles in case they lock up.’ She said making sure to locate the containers just in case. ’Thank you for doing that, but they are just fine Mine. They just need a good stretch is all. Come now, let us be on our way. I want us to make good time before night falls.’ Naressa packed up the few things she had taken out and mounted the blues back and they were on their way once again.

Reciproth was quite adept at flying for great distances without needing much rest. His rider on the other hand, well, she needed her sleep. It was dark and they were already a pretty decent distance into their journey. From her calculations they would be arriving on time, maybe a little sooner. She reached down into the pack and pulled out the baton that Reciproth had caught in his teeth when they had first started out. She had gathered it from him when they had first stopped and now she was curious about it. 8 Dragons and their riders before her had held this and now she had it. She ran her hand over the surface, feeling the dents and nicks and chips upon its surface. Interesting how such a small thing could be so important. 'I’m actually surprised I didn’t swallow it. Could you imagine how that would have turned out? You’d of smelled bad for a week! Oh by the first egg Reciproth. I do not need to picture going through your waste looking for this.’ She said with a laugh and a shake of her head. Though he did have a point.

She replaced it in her pack and felt a yawn escape her lips. ’Reci, do you mind if I take a nap while you fly? I know you’ll wake me if anything serious happens.’ She knew he wouldn’t get lost and she knew she could count on him to wake her if anything bad happened. Her nap wasn’t very long, maybe a couple of hours at most. She never did rest long while on flights. It was just to give her some energy for if they needed to land and he needed to rest. She liked for one of them to be awake, just in case. Her stirring mind had caught his attention for he was present there, instantly. ’Did you rest well? You were crying out in your sleep again.’ It had been a long time since she had done that and he knew the nightmares that haunted her in the night. ’Yes.. I didn’t even know that I was dreaming.’ She frowned slightly. She wondered why now of all times her past would choose to haunt her.

’How are you doing? Do you need to rest? How far till the next check point?’ She asked stretching slightly in her seat. Her legs were growing stiff, they needed to land soon. ’We’re just arriving, so you chose quite the time to wake up.’ He said warmly as she felt him descending. She could sense his hunger and wondered if perhaps there was anything small to sate him but she had heard the scream and flash of satisfaction as they landed, apparently on top of something. She didn’t care to ask what, she knew whatever it had been was necessary for his energy and she felt his strength stabilize. She dismounted and groaned as she threw her legs over him and climbed down. She did a couple of stretches and removed her gear. ’Is there water around here? I thought I had seen something when I was mapping this out.’ She wanted to wash her face a little and she knew he was starting to grow thirsty, though the small animal he had just killed had helped sate that just a fraction. ’I believe I smell some this way.’ She followed him as he pushed through the growth and they came upon a small pool of water.

She let out a sigh of relief and she darted towards the water that her dragon was already drinking from. She kneeled down, despite the protest of her aching joints, and cupped some of the water and splashed it upon her face and rubbed her neck then took another handful and sipped it from her hands. Her body felt renewed with energy and it seemed to be that it had helped him as well. ’To think, we have a day and a half left.’ He thrummed and lifted his head and leveled it with her body so she could rub his eye ridges. ’I brought some oil just in case you dried out some while on this journey. Come, let’s tend to you.’ She said as they went back towards the location they had landed to set up camp for a short period of time so Reciproth could rest.

He had fallen asleep while she was oiling him. She wasn’t able to bring much so she only hit the spots that needed it: his wings, where the straps were and his face. It had taken her about an hour or so to get all of the locations and she checked his membranes for any tears and when she was satisfied that he was ready to go she dug through her bag for some dried spiced wherry meat. She took a couple of bites and then plopped the rest of the piece into her mouth and set everything back up. ’Come now mine. It’s time to be off once more. Did you have to stop? I was quite enjoying you tending to me.’ He chuckled as she climbed back up into the saddle. ’If we want to win this race, we have to.’ She wasn’t sure where they were at currently with the points. She had been keeping track up until she and Reciproth had started. They were somewhere close to the 2000s which was good. She wasn’t sure how the other teams were fairing though.

x . x . x . x . x . x . x . x .

The second day seemed to breeze by as Rukbat rose and fell in the sky and night was once again upon them. They had made great time and covered quite a bit of distance. They had successfully traveled the course of the route with any delays. She was actually quite certain that their time had actually helped to make up for the points that had been docked by Kalendol and Kynigoths lateness. And that horrible handoff. They weren’t going to mention it. They had looked quite worse for wear and she was most certain that Kalendol was feeling quite bad about the condition her dragon was in due to her negligence. It was, what it was though. She reached out a hand and touched it to her blue. She would always be there for him and he for her. She had made that promise 7 turns ago and would always keep it that way.

The final few hours seemed to fly by quickly and she actually laughed out loud when she realized that they were going to have to between not too far from where the starting point was, to the starting point. She wondered if perhaps they could just fly the whole way there? But going in between would be much faster so she figured they would just stick with the rules instead. She could feel the strain on her blue only slightly and she was very pleased with how quickly they had come to the checkpoint. ’Are you ready to pass this off my strong magnificent blue?’ She was buttering him up for his hard work as they were nearing Trine. ’That I am, that I am. Do you have the baton ready?’ You know I do. Let’s pass this off.’

With those words they hit the checkpoint and disappeared between. Reciproth had already sent out a warning to the next rider and their dragon to be prepared. It was Brown Ragnoth and his rider T’nak (NPCS). Reciproth could feel the browns eagerness. They were going to be in for one heck of an adventure. The coolness of being between seemed to last forever in those moments, mainly because of their stiff muscles and sore spots but it passed just as quickly. As they appeared from between Reciproth let out a low bellow and the Brown and his rider arched themselves into the sky as Reciproth banked and Naressa passed the baton onto T’nak. Once it was out of her fingers the brown and his rider disappeared between and the two of them landed upon the platform.

Naressa dismounted from the blue and almost toppled over from holding the position for so long but Reciproths tail reached around and steadied her. ’We did it Mine. We have finished and now you can wash and oil me and you can soak in a nice mineral hot spring. I also want my pick of beastrunners.’ Anything for you my love. Anything for you. Come now. Let us go and reward ourselves for a job well done, then we can come back and cheer on our teammates.’ She said as she removed parts of her riding gear that seemed to be stuck in places it shouldn’t be. His large blue head came down to level with her and she hugged his face and scratched his eye ridges.

She was definitely going to drink some nice warm Klah, eat some nice hot food and wash and scrub herself and her dragon until they felt brand new again. ’Come now you overgrown wherry. Let’s get you cleaned up.’

[WC: 2865]
Points from Post: 2865 / 250 = 11.46 = 110points (right?)
Points added: 92 + (28+ 72) + 90 =total: 282 +(38 points left over from RP that I'm not sure what to do with.)

I will roll the final results later today =3

Dauntless NPC Rolls

6 NPCs * 3 rolls each = 18 Rolls

Kalendol and Ralla both posted out of turn, so the team gets -50 over all.