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 Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 8:11 pm
It was one of those lazy days. Reneneth had spent the morning sunning while Nandeli worked indoors with the Weyrwoman. With Favan gone, that left the Weyrwoman more time to spend with the younger goldrider riders. She would be old enough soon, not as old as Yansanth but maturity was coming quickly. Hers had told her that humans matured much faster, and girls were considered "mature" whenever they felt like they deserved the title. There was biological side to it all, but Nandeli had said that didn't matter as much as everyone insisted it did. Reneneth wasn't sure what it all meant, but she had been assured by the elder golds that she would know when she had reached dragon maturity. Until then, she was to enjoy her free time and Nandeli was to learn more about what it meant to be a Weyrwoman. True, they'd only be juniors, but junior was better than nothing.
But there would be time for thinking about her new position later. Now it was time for lunch. The gold circled the feeding pens twice, trying to minimize the panic the sight of her was causing them. Unfortunately, having a large dragon flying over your head did nothing to steady nerves. Reneneth made her pick and dived, catching the bovine and neatly killing it. As she was eating she raised her head, looking to see if any of the other dragons were coming down to join her. It was always nice to be polite, even while eating.
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 8:46 pm
Although he approached the feeding pen with his usual genial demeanor (on foot, mind you), things were not quite right in the world of Xanthoth. Getting older meant learning to take on more responsibilities and doing so maturely. B'lin had told him that. Frankly, Xanthoth didn't think it was very responsible or mature to shoo him out of a room and close the door on his face. If he were to recite the story, he would conveniently leave out the part where His told him he needed alone time. It really wasn't relevant to the big picture, which was that he'd been shunned. Him. Shunned! By his very own rider! Oh, he'd never thought he'd see the day!
True anger did not come easy to him, and as he waddled toward the herd, he still hadn't managed it. However, Xanthoth had never felt annoyance quite like this. He considered it may be something else, but since he couldn't figure it out, it made him more annoyed. Therefore, he decided, that was the best choice of words to use. The loud girl would know what to do with him. She had magic powers over His not even Xanthoth himself had acquired. All he had to do was find her. Easier said than done; he felt like he'd looked everywhere! Maybe she'd left too. Maybe he should have seen this coming. After Younger Brother fled Ista for greener pastures (if only he knew), there was nowhere for B'lin to go but down.
Like they always said...
Boys will be boys.
Arioth was a fine sight, but she was nothing compared to the shining beauty before him. It was fate. It had to be. As soon as he stepped up, she had looked right at him. Like she knew he was on his way. Like she was waiting, merely a smooth dozen or so strides away. --Struts, if you wanted to get technical. Forget the boar, forget whatever he'd been doing (what had he been doing?), forget any bronze but him, oh lovely gold!
Hello, lovely, Xanthoth cooed at her, swiftly gravitating closer and closer to her side. He'd seen her before, oh yes. He'd seen her in his very best dreams. I am Xanthoth. The most beautiful of queens should stay where she can be protected at all times.
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 9:10 pm
A young bronze! What was he doing out all on his own? Though, now that she looked at him, he probably was old enough to be looking for his own food. Idly she wondered if anyone had taught him yet. Ialluth and Hers were good teachers though. The green would make sure all of her charges were well taken care of. He must be a weyrling, like herself, but of what clutch? It was hard to remember where everyone came from, but the most obvious choice would have been Cheoth's, since he was not one of her clutchmates. He must be from the sad clutch. She did not remember specifically why the clutch had been sad, but bad things had happened and Hers had expressed her sadness in a very peculiar human way. Apparently humans spat waters from their eyes when they were upset – she had had time to ponder this behaviour after the Hatching Feast and found it very strange – but then wiped it away with a little cloth. Humans were very strange creatures, she had concluded. Dragons were much easier to understand.
Reneneth crooned softly to the approaching bronze, tucking her wings against her body in the hopes that she would not appear frightening. She had heard about Arioth, the newest gold, and she did not wish to scare this bronze away before he spoke to her. Not that he looked scared. He seemed quite happy to see her, actually. How ever interesting. It is a pleasure to meet you, Xanthoth. I am Reneneth. She inclined her head. His final words, however, confused her. Protected? What do I need to be protected from? The gold looked around, not entirely sure what she was supposed to be seeing. It looked like the Bowl usually did. Was there something she was missing?
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 9:25 pm
Oh. Well... He hadn't thought of that. My, she beautiful and smart. Xanthoth leaned back to sit--an awkward pose he was becoming progressively fond of--and at this new angle admired the gold once more. The markings, pure perfection. The voice a voice the most skilled of song birds could only dream of! B'linmine! No answer. Not even a peep. There would be none, and Xanthoth predicted this, so he did his best to ignore the nagging feeling of grief and called out to his rider again, B'linmine! I am in love! And not the 'tough love' that His was so fond of.
Fixated on Reneneth, and not to be detered a second time, Xanthoth thought carefully about his next move. Oh, I don't know. All sorts of things. Thread could fall at any moment, or perhaps an expected uprising of Igenian traitors. What happens is not important. What is important is that I will protect you from now on from all of those things. Flirtatiously, he bumped shoulders with the higher color, smiling with a considerable amount of charm, even for him. He'd been saving it for a rainy day. That was impressive flying I saw.
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 9:34 pm
Reneneth was used to being stared at. From the moment she'd hatched she'd had all eyes on her, all female minds reaching out to her in an attempt to attract her interest. Even the other dragons in her clutch stopped what they were doing to look at her. She was special, after all. Everyone wanted to see what she would do, who she would Impress, and she was still under the watchful eye of the Weyr dragons. But she had never been looked at in this way before. Admiration perhaps? It was very strange, but she decided it wasn't a bad thing. After all, she admired Hers in many ways. Perhaps she had finally started down the road to becoming a gold worth admiring. It was a promising start.
Xanthoth's description of the dangers that might befall her were accurate, the young gold testing Hers' memory banks about Igen traitors. Every dragon knew what Thread was, but she did not fear it. Igen traitors she knew little about, and Nandeli did not seem to be able to tell her much, so she decided they might be a worthwhile threat. She would have to consult with Ialluth about it later. I have been told that there has not been Thread for longer that any dragon remembers, but if there is an uprising I am glad that you will be there to protect me. She lowered her head so that she could get a better look at him. I am glad you liked my flying. I practice often. Do you fly yet?
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 9:48 pm
Did he fly yet? Psh!
--No.
But!
He could if he wanted to. He just hadn't wanted to yet. Not that he'd practiced. Lately, Xanthoth hadn't done much of anything. B'lin was not himself since his brothers were taken away by the Other Weyr, and the loss of his mother was the icing on a very morbid cake. The work ethic that had been the very reason Xanthoth chose him to begin with shattered and fell to pieces like a glass window struck by a rock. Slowly but surely, this depression and the temporary behaviors spawned from it were dragging down his dragon with him and neither of them realized it. The bronze started thinking he had enough time to worry about practice things later. Maybe, just a little, he assumed he would just know how to do these things.
The flight was doomed from the start. If not because of lack of experience, because Xanthoth was getting chubby from all the food he'd conned the ladies of the Weyr into feeding him on the side. Hunting was just not worth the effort when there were better things to be done. --He'd get to them. Eventually. Of course, Reneneth lovely. I'm the best of all my clutchmates. No competition when he was the only bronze, but that was beside the point. Allow me to show you.
It was a bad idea, but it was an idea. Once Xanthoth had something stuck in his brain, it would taken nothing less than Thread and traitors from Igen to stop him. At the same time. Climbing up the side of the Bowl was not an easy thing, but that was fine. The more he had to work, the more impressive it would be. The more impressed she would be.
Watch closely, Reneneth lovely!
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 10:05 pm
The best of all your clutchmates? You must surely be a sight to see!
Reneneth was eager to watch this little bronze fly, never believing in a million years that he was doing it just to show off to her. Perhaps it was because the other Weyr bronzes had mature golds to fuss over, but she had never had any of the boys show off for her. Most of time she was dealing with the greens, who seemed to exist in either the shy and polite or the easily riled category. Not that the easily riled ones did her any damage. There were benefits to being a queen, after all. Nobody approved of bad mouthing you no matter what you did.
When he told her to watch, she replied emphatically that she was, her previous meal entirely forgotten as she watched Xanthoth. Was he climbing the side of the Bowl? Now wasn't that clever! She hadn't done that when she was learning! Maybe she could even learn a thing or two about flying from this bronze. She remembered learning to glide. It hadn't come as easily as she'd hoped, but she had gotten better with practice. Xanthoth must have practiced often to be so good. She could hardly wait to see him!
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 11:11 am
The higher Xanthoth got, the more he could feel the air. That is, the wind was working against him, and he could feel it. But he didn't have the knowledge to realize this, so he didn't know the smug display of superiority was destined to end in disaster before he even reached his perch. As far as Xanthoth knew--and as far as he felt he needed to know--you could do anything with sheer willpower alone. Conquer any illness, best any foe, and you could most definitely fly.
B'lin had been too consumed in his despair to keep his dragon's self-admiration in check. It grew right alongside his body, and now more than ever it drove him to be a stereotypical representation of everything someone might fault bronzes for. Being fed without work had made him lazy (and sort of fat). Being praised without first earning it had turned charming confidence he'd had in times past into an ego that no one was going to appreciate if it got much worse.
The most unsettling part of the situation was not that Xanthoth had taken on a challenge he was not prepared for; truly believing he could do it was. To his credit, all things considered, he didn't start off too bad at the very beginning. For a second (three of them, to be more exact), it seemed like he may actually pull it off and live to tell another tall tale. The wind did not appreciate his arrogance, though, and it wasn't going to let him get away with it in the end. At the end of that short, victorious interval, something happened. He didn't know what. Maybe the gust had caught his wings somehow. Regardless, the bronze was no longer gliding. He was falling.
B'LINMINE! Independent? Yes. Older? Yes. Just not enough of either to keep from instinctively crying out for his protector, his Impressed. Even so, B'lin would be of no help to him. There simply wasn't enough time. Xanthoth flapped his wings again and tried to right himself in the air, but ended up crashing into the side of the Bowl.
If nothing else, Xanthoth at least hadn't lost his ability to make fast decisions, because he span around and clung to the wall in desperation. He didn't dare look down because he knew he was still very high; too high to do anything about it. And all the sudden, his wing hurt almost as much as his pride.
B'linmin! I need your help!
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 3:25 pm
Ooooh look at him go! He certainly could get himself up there! The gold admired not only Xanthoth's skill but also his passion. Unlike Uktenath, who was skilled by very logical, this bronze had quite a bit more spunk. It was almost like he was showing off for her. How cute! She would very much like to introduce him to Nandeli, and perhaps even His to Hers. Nandeli would enjoy meeting the rider of such a happy dragon. Surely his rider would be just like him!
It was right around the time Xanthoth flapped his wings that Reneneth seemed to realize her little bronze friend was in trouble. Lunch forgotten, she hurried out of the feeding pens towards the Bowl wall where the weyrling was clinging. Crooning, she stood up on her hind legs, placing her front feet on the wall in an attempt to get closer to him. The young gold was large, but not large enough to hold him by herself. Not to mention she didn't think she had the skills to fly in close enough to get him without knocking them both down. Xanthoth hold on! I will find help!!
~
Now, Dievath may not have been the smartest blue around, but it's hard not to notice the distress of a queen. He remembered (sort of) this queen because H'dra told him that she was important, and because she was Important that meant he should pay attention to her. That, and they were totally friends – Reneneth had said so herself – and friends looked out for each other, right? The blue had been sunning on his usual ledge when her calls caught his attention, and he roused himself to fly down and see what the matter was. Before he could land, however, he caught sight of a very unhappy looking Xanthoth. Whatever was Cheoth's baby bronze doing all the way up here?
Little Xan… Xan… Xanth! You must be careful! You are not ready to fly yet!
Dievath hovered as best he could, trying to figure out how to get Xanthoth off the wall. He did not want him to fall. That would be very sad, and his would not like that very much. Finally, he suggested, Can you tuck your wings? I will hold you and you will not fall. Then you can let go and we can go down together!!
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 5:15 pm
Xanthoth's sense--his special version of it--rebounded with a vengeance. He didn't incriminate himself with the facts, but with the details. The length of the climb, the strength of the wind... Something had gone wrong. In a way, he had grown. Months ago, he'd have never even admitted to stuffing a piece of the puzzle in a place where it didn't belong. In the future, he may improve more; go on to realize when something was a bad idea all together, and, though it was extremely unlikely, he might avoid them completely. Someday. Maybe.
Oh, it was this blue. Xanthoth had to think about where he recognized him, not that there was much time for it. B'lin thought about the Weyrling lessons a lot, so F'sey and those directly related to the classes were always fresh in mind through his rider. He dug his claws into the wall and swore to himself he would not look down. Being afraid of heights was silly. He just didn't want to see Reneneth watching him fail so miserably.
But what could he do? Admit defeat?
I can do this. Except owowow it hurt! If I can't fly, then I will find a way to climb down.
Safety be damned, pride was on the line. If he couldn't be the best flier, he'd be the best climber!
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 5:43 pm
It was fairly predictable that Yali was down looking at the beasts. After all, it was what her parents had wanted her to do before art grabbed her and finally dragons. It was really only very natural that she be drawn to the area once in a while. They were nice to look at with a small sweet treat in hand.
It was not natural, however, for a young bronze to climb up a wall and . . . well, flying wasn't the word. Fall rather ungracefully for a bronze to a slightly lower point than he'd started from was a better description.
At first, Yali had looked at the spectacle and had been stunned into silence. Were dragons supposed to fly that young? Looking around, she didn't see too many people, so she wasn't so sure these were lessons.
When the blue arrived, Yali jumped into action.
That was, she shuffled from her sitting position onto her feet and made her way over. A more alert person might have gone looking for help, or found the situation in dire straights and gone to find the bronze's rider.
He was a nice young, dark-skinned man as Yali could recall hearing. Where he was, she couldn't have the slightest idea, however.
Coming to the base of the cliff area the bronze had climbed up, Yali looked up with one hand over her eyes to block out the sun. There was the blue hovering, and the bronze clinging.
"Yo up there!" she called, oblivious to the fact that this was perhaps a very bad place to stand should the bronze let go for any reason, and perhaps even less smart was that the dragon wouldn't be answering her. "You supposed to be scaling cliffs?"
Yet again, the obvious answers occured to her: Go find help. But the blue would have called for other dragons if the bronze was in mortal danger, right? So, she might as well keep munching and watch the show, yeah? Definitely.
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 5:56 pm
Dragons do not climb.
The wild dog bronze had been patiently waiting for his turn at the feeding pens (no matter how pushy he was, Bondyeth would never encrouch upon a Queen) when a silly little bronze decided to show off. Quite aware he was already the greatest thing on Pern, the large, splotchy bronze did not see a need to care until the fool got himself stuck on the Weyrbowl. Fool. Shifting his talons through the dirt, Bondyeth watched the drama unfold with due annoyance. This was his meal they were delaying! Honestly, the nerve of some of these weyrlings.
It would serve you well to listen to the witless blue. (Somewhere H'dek turned bright red as he listened to his dragon speak.) You will not make it down yourself. It wasn't a challenge, it was a statement of fact.
***
A Queen in distress was a very obvious thing. But a weyrling Queen? Why, Ialluth simply couldn't ignore it. A busybody to the highest degree, the small green quickly made her way to the Bowl, and it only took a moment to notice Dievath and...and Xanthoth!? Ialluth shot a cry to Hers and changed direction quickly, joining Dievath. Xanthoth, my handsome little friend! Why are you so high up? This simply won't do! Listen to Dievath, he will get you down. He is a strong blue!
Ialluth crooned softly, far enough back to stay out of Dievath's wingspace. It simply wouldn't do for them all to get tangled. Just hang on! Mine is coming! He is very smart. He will help us! Ialluth crooned again, hoping feverently the lively youngster would take her advice. Faranth only knew weyrlings liked to do things their own way, but Ialluth had the sneaking suspicion this might get...messy if she left the boys to their own devices.
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 6:19 pm
B'lin wasn't thinking, he was just running. Shards, he'd told that bronze to stay close! Why couldn't anyone listen to him?! Even Bakin had turned traitor! There was no help left for him after that! Please be okay. Please be okay. As if by repeating it enough he could make it true. Please be okay! Please be okay! When he got a hold of that sharding dragon! --He wasn't even positive what he would do, but he was in for it somehow!
Months after his Impression, he'd changed a bit physically; gotten taller, more muscular. Considering he was both those things to begin with, B'lin was shaping up to be on the large side. Still no hair, and for that he was thankful. He'd have looked like even more of a mess. His pants were torn, and his shirt... Well, there was no shirt. Ista was hot, and he didn't wear them in his room when he was busy moping.
Please be okay!
Xanthoth was a lot of things. Okay? Not one of them. Some bronze he hadn't even noticed was there until now--probably because he wasn't worth noticing--had decided to trouble him. He knew exactly what was going on here. Trying to steal his lovely, was he?! Hmph!
This one does, he responded. Insults? Bring them on. It was going to take a lot more than that to rattle him. (Like falling to his death, but that was beside the point.) Xanthoth ignored Ialluth only because he needed to focus, to think. He could do this. Nothing anyone said was going to discourage him, let alone stop him. One step. Two step. One slide. One more step. Dragons couldn't climb, he said. Clearly, he did not know who he was. He was--
"XANTHOTH!"
B'lin nearly fell down face first stopping so abruptly next to Yali. He looked at her, "How'd he get up there?!"
It's okay, B'linmine! I know what I'm doing! Until two seconds later, when a rock stumbled out from under his foot, and down, down, down fell Xanthoth.
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 6:40 pm
Oh dear oh dear oh dear!
Dievath fretted mentally, not sure why the little bronze was so insistent on climbing down. He could hurt himself! And hurting was bad! Did he not know that? Crooning softly, he gave H'dra a mental poke. Mine you must come. The little bronze Xanth is stuck and does not want me to help him come down! Once he was sure that His was on his way, the blue turned his attention back to the struggling bronze. Why wouldn't he come down? It was making him worried and Dievath didn’t like being worried. But look! There was Ialluth! She would make things better!
Or… not.
Oh no he was falling! He should do something! Dievath moved into try and catch the falling bronze as Reneneth threw her wings out to balance her where she stood on both her hind legs. She would catch him! She had seen many humans pick Hers up in their arms and spin her around, so why could she not do it? Even if she so much as cushioned his landing, that would be okay. The gold didn't want Xanthoth hurting himself showing off for her!
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 6:48 pm
The bronze wasn't doing too bad for himself, but the other dragons had started to circle.
Yali started to realize through impeccable deduction that maybe this situation was more out of hand than she'd considered. Maybe the man screaming 'Xanthoth' gave it away.
Wide eyed, she looked from the dragon to the newly arrived manner. "I-I . . . he did that." She swallowed what was lingering in her throat and looked on in growing horror at the spectacle at hand.
When the bronze fell, she let out a loud, uncharacteristic yelp in the form of, "He fell!"
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