If you're reading this I strongly recommend you stop right now and put this back where you found it if you like your face un-savaged. Fang flames first and asks questions later... actually the second part's a lie, unless the question is 'Can I now eat this?'. Seriously, put the book the shaff down and leave while you still have all your senses and appendages.
1. Cover 2. Index 3. History 4. C'tis 5. Malcarreth 6. Fang 7. Possessions 8. Allies & Enemies 9. The Wing 10. Missions 11. Mission report index
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Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 1:09 pm
History
Pre-game history
Carltis was born in Ista Weyr and like most Weyrbrats he was raised by the crèche, unaware of who his parents were. He liked to imagine he was secretly the child of the Weyrleader and one day when the bronze rider had time he would swoop down and raise him up as his protégée. One reason for this little fantasy was probably the fact that Carltis wasn't a very happy boy or one with many friends; he always seemed to say the wrong thing, or he took offense too easily, or overreacted - viciously, both verbally and physically - to minor slights. As he was a rather clever boy as well as rather tempremental he firmly decided that it was all everyone else's fault, that they were just too stupid to like him, that he was too good for them.
Somebody Carltis did get on with, most of the time, was one of the Weyr's Harpers Pheror. He enjoyed learning little bits about the man's craft and in return for running errands now and again he was given lessons in playing the lap harp now and again.
Like most Weyrbrats Carltis began candidacy aged twelve. He was a big, fit, clever boy with the advantage in knowledge over Holdborn children that all Weyrborn had and so he took to it very well. If he hadn't had that temper on him he would have been a model student but as he did have that temper when it came to time for squireship he was assigned to a steady green rider in third wing, not the bronze rider of first wing he had hoped for. Carltis sulked mightily with all the dark scowls and muttering his thirteen year old self could muster.
When Carltis was fourteen and ready to stand for the first time a new batch of candidates appeared in the dormitory. Amongst them was a fifteen turn old boy named Jenca; ridiculously handsome, ridiculously charming, ridiculously talented, the second son of a hugely wealthy family.... Carltis hated him from the start, and also had an enormous crush on him. He tried to assert his dominance over the other youth but without success; Jenca had the support of the others who had come from his Hold (he made friends at the farewell feast) and soon made more friends in the Weyr than Carltis had managed to make his whole life. Unable to push Jenca around Carltis resorted to just being better than him in classes, easy enough at first but as Jenca caught up in knowledge the witty youth started to equal him.
For his part, Jenca started doing his best to win over the few friends Carltis had to being his friends instead. Those who weren't fond Carltis, well, a lot of them became even less fond. Increasingly isolated but feeling powerless to make anyone like him more than they liked charming Jenca Carltis withdrew from just about everyone and became ever more spiky and prone to outbursts of anger, eventually driving off even his Harper friend.
The rival pair Impressed in the same clutch when Carltis was 18 turns old. The tempremental young man was chosen by a skinny blue, while Jenca was pick out by a sleek bronze. Jenca didn't gloat but he didn't have to, the smirk he shot Carltis at the feeding tables said everything. The pair moved through weyrlinghood with Carltis always trying to best Jenca but always finding himself overlooked for the charismatic bronze rider. As they neared graduation however Jenca seemed to have a change of heart and started to offer little olive branches, which the blue rider initially rejected with anger and suspicion. Tired of being alone and still with that enormous crush however Carltis eventually relented and accepted one of the peace offerings; the pair quickly became close after that.
The pair graduated, Jenca to 1st wing and taking the name J'ca; Carltis to one of the 3rd tier wings and taking the name C'tis. C'tis admitted his true feelings for J'ca not long after this - it was love, he was sure - and the pair fell into bed together. The next morning C'tis found J'ca gone from his weyr but quickly located him on a favourite beach... where J'ca was collecting on a very large bet from his inner circle of friends to much laughter and back-slapping. Enraged and hearbroken C'tis confronted the bronze rider and threatened to tell everyone what he'd done, to expose him for the lying faithless tunnelsnake he was. J'ca smiled and told him to go right ahead and let the whole world know how badly humilated he had been rather than just a handful of people.
C'tis left the beach and spoke of the incident to no one, closing himself off from the world more than ever before, losing himself in combat training and music.
Later in that turn - 193 - C'tis travelled with a handful of others from his wing to High Reaches Weyr to liase with their wing 3rd-1 over the matter of a series of similar murders that had taken place near HR Hold and near Neart Hold. Their timing could not have been worse; just a sevenday after their arrival the first dragons began to get sick and before they knew it the Dragonplague was descemating the dragonkin of the Weyr. Ista Weyr sent out a message; their skies were closed and any who tried to apprach them would be forced away by their golds.
In High Reaches there was nothing much anyone could do but wait it out. Some fled the Weyr, taking to the wilds, and while C'tis briefly considered this he soon dismissed the notion; a rider who had turned tail to save his own skin would never achieve the rank and power he craved. Malcarreth grew ill briefly in the ninth month of the turn but his case was mercifully mild; the young blue was slight but hale and hearty and recovered with only a couple of shortened hind toes to show for the ordeal.
When the plague passed Ista was the very least popular Weyr in the world but also the one everyone needed. The island Weyr sent out its two junior golds to Weyrs who had lost all of theirs and allowed a good number of its riders to transfer around Pern. It did little to bolster Weyr who had lost upwards of two hundred dragons each but it did mean that C'tis was able to opt to remain at High Reaches. It was even more colour biased than Ista, yes, but it had the distinct advantage of not containing J'ca.
As time passed, without J'ca around to set him off and with the steadying influence of his dragon, C'tis was less of a loose cannon and even actually succeeded in making some friends. He remained a spiky, snarky and volatile person but he started to become a less miserable spiky, snarky, and volatile person. In turn 196 C'tis sucessfully applied for promotion to 2nd wing. He actually found that he rather missed the headwork and detailed investigations of the murder team but he enjoyed the action of bandit hunting, and more to the point he liked the increased prestige. He and Malcarreth both picked up some scars from their work but these were mainly cosmetic and didn't deter them in the least.
In turn 197 C'tis had managed to save up enough money from his wages to buy a firelizard egg for himself; the usefulness of the beasts appealed to him, as did the slight cache of owning one. The small egg he bought hatched into a blue who he named Fang because upon hatching it promptly bit him on the thumb, bonding to him through the blood rather than the nice little bits of liver he'd had ready. Fang grew up to be malice personified, prepared to fight with or try to mate with just about anything up to and including a gold dragon. C'tis has trained him to aid in combat; he knows how to go for the eyes with flame and claws!
C’tis also acquired a named blade in turn 197, this is detailed below under 'possessions'.
When the Thread returned C'tis and Malcarreth proved themselves very able in combatting it; the small blue with his deep chest and narrow pointed wings excelled at dodging and weaving in the thick of a Fall or zipping from place to place clearing up stray strands in the lower positions. Endurance was a problem for them early on however, in the first few falls Malcarreth used all his strength in the first quarter hour and had to drop out before they ended. With three turns of experience, early embaressment, and a few scores behind them however the pair have struck the right balance between performance and conserving enough energy to see a fall through to the end.
Aged 30 as of turn 3 C'tis has his eye on high office and intends to do whatever he must to achieve it, blue bondmate or no.
Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 1:10 pm
C'tis
Name: C'tis Age: 33 Gender: Male Height: ~6'1" Build: Powerful, wide shoulders Skin: Medium beige Hair: Dark chestnut brown, straight, short Eyes: Dark brown
Detailed Appearance: C'tis stands just a little over six feet tall; he possesses a powerful build, and a hard square-jawed face. A scar from a slash wound runs straight down across his right eye from mid forehead to just below the cheekbone but the eyelid and eye are not damaged thanks to the knife skipping off his orbit bone. His eyes and hair are both dark chestnut brown; the former are usually glowering or sneering and the latter is usually spiky and unruly; his skintone is a mid-tanned beige. He favours dark colours in his clothing, especially black, and always seems to be wearing the same pair of heavy knee boots that look designed for kicking things.
He actually has a very pleasant smile, not that it comes up often.
Personality: Sharp, prickly, short-tempered and volatile; C'tis is not a man to trifle with. He is a malcontent, and a born cynic; when social grace was being handed out, he was definitely in another room. Why should charm be everything, he would like to know? He’s an intelligent man (not brilliant but definitely bright, and possessed of a healthy dose of practicality too), and yet he struggles to form and maintain friendships. Deep under his spikes and acerbic temperament is a man who would love to have a large group of friends, but can’t seem to get them. Because of this failing in himself (he definitely sees it as a failing) C'tis decided a long time ago that if he couldn't be liked then he’d at least be respected, or failing that feared.
To be respected or feared a man must be tougher than nails, and so that’s what C'tis has made himself; his rough, tough, remorseless image is all important to him. Unfortunately, it is this determination to stick to his ‘next best thing to being liked’ that is actually part of the reason he struggles to make friends. C'tis has a temper. A real temper. Call him volatile, and you’d be right; call him that to his face, and you’d certainly find yourself on the receiving end of his considerable ire. So, he’s prone to fits of anger and saying unpleasant things in the heat of the moment... But he wants to be liked. He regrets his outbursts, but he can’t be liked, so he has to be tough, so he never shows his remorse, so people dislike him more, so he gets angrier, so he becomes more vicious, so he regrets that too, but he can’t apologize.... It’s a real vicious circle, one that he might well never break free of. So far as he's concerned pretty much everyone will stab you in the back given half a chance, so why even take the risk? Remaining a man aloof without close connections might be lonely, but it's safer.
Despite his rough attitude with others, loyalty in general in fact is one of his major redeeming features; when he actually does manage to form a solid relationship with somebody he will stick by them through thick, thin, forest fires, being dragged out of bed at stupid o' clock to help with something and so on and so forth. Betrayal is something C'tis deals poorly with, and at first tries not to deal with at all through denial. If there is not a shadow of a doubt that somebody he trusted and cared about had shaffed him over however the burning fiery passion of a thousand suns would be a candle next to the amount of hate he would have for that particular individual. Unfortunately for him however he tends to have trouble letting go of the affection he had for them, leading to extremely uncomfortable like/hate conflict that he tries to suppress with extra hate.
If C'tis had a middle name (well, two middle names, because Acerbic-Wherson would certainly be one too) it would be Stubborn. Quitting just isn't something he seems to be capable of once he's set his mind to a task, and while this is positive in that he'll keep trying no matter what it also means that he has a tendency to drive himself into the ground and or attempt things it's really unwise to attempt. Added to his short temper it can be a recipe for disaster but thus far it hasn't got him killed!
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Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 1:11 pm
Malcarreth
Name: Malcarreth Age: 14 Colour: Blue Feel of voice: The steady beat of drums, a rumble of distant thunder, a whestone down a blade, the smell of smoke in the air. Appearance: At just over 24 feet long Malcarreth is at the the bottom end of the size scale for a blue. He is built like a racing dog; long and slim with a huge deep chest while his wings are quite short and narrow making him quick and agile in the air but costing him hugely in stamina. This blue is quite striking to look at; his base colour is a bright sky blue and he is marked with dark indigo/blue spots, elongated into stripes down his back. He has a few scars across his body from fights and from Threadscore but they seem to have healed well and don't impede his movement, though C'tis is extra careful about keeping them well oiled so they stay supple.
Personality: Cynical, restrained and proud Malcarreth is a dragon who likes to think before he acts, who thinks quite a lot of the world is a pile of wher-dung, and also thinks that he should be telling you what to do not the other way around. It is easy to annoy him with foolishness, and easy to anger him if you should happen to imply that he is worth less than any other dragon based upon his colour. He is however very much in control of his anger; rather than exploding he simmers quietly and holds back. If somebody crosses him he'll get them back in the end, but if it doesn't make sense to exact his revenge on the spot, he'll wait until it does.
Not all of his holding off and waiting is due to good sense; perhaps half could be attributed to that, and the other half to fits of brooding pessimism. He is, after all, a small blue in a big bronze's world. He knows that it's likely that no amount of skill or snarling will allow him to achieve his dreams of leading a wing and that weighs on him, making him bitter and rather prejudiced against dragons of a shiny hue. If he's having a day where he feels life is especially pointless it takes a very firm kick up the tailfork get him to move at all and even then he will make sure his rider knows exactly how pointless he feels everything they're doing is, and will do it sloppily with bad grace. This hesitance does have its advantages however, namely that he doesn't go off half cocked or get himself into trouble in the heat of the moment. He might well get himself into trouble once he's really thought about whether or not to compare that bronze to what came out of his rear this morning but if he does it, it will be a calculated decision that he is prepared to accept the consequences of.
In spite of his rage buttons and cynicism Malcarreth is a reasonably sociable sort of a dragon, so long as you're the 'right' sort of company. He appreciates intelligence in his fellows, along with wit and passion but he can't stand overly sweet dragons, or dim ones, and also has little patience with whers. He's a witty sort himself in a dry, sometimes dark way; he appreciates irony, and is very much an aficionado of and master of the art of deadpan sarcasm.
Another thing that can make Malcarreth difficult for some to get along with is his pride and natural dominance. He really dislikes taking orders and makes no secret of this fact; he has the intelligence, considered nature and attention to detail required to lead and should he find a rider with fiery passion who excels in acting swiftly in the moment he could make a great leader... but he's a blue, so he probably won't, not in High Reaches. He loves to sneer at shiny dragons' expense and will happily ignore the fact that he can't hold the ranks he would like and try to give out orders if he thinks his leaders are being stupid.
Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 1:12 pm
Fang
Oh Faranth. Run!
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Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 1:20 pm
Possessions
In the weyr
Harp C'tis' most precious possession, though if anyone asked he would probably say he cared more for his sword. It has twenty seven strings and though plain it has elegant swooping design and is made from a beautiful rich ruddy coloured wood. Its tone is deep and full bodied with an authoritative bass and bell-like treble and mid range. C'tis can often be found playing out on his ledge of an evening and may on occasion join up with other musically inclined folk to play together.
Usually carried
Carried on duty
Sword - The Kept Oath The Kept Oath had been owned by the Lords of Nabol since the start of the fifth interval when the Lord of the time Herav, a dragonless man who inherited unexpectedly from his brother, led a series of successful campaigns against High Reaches Hold.
C’tis acquired the named blade in turn 197.
The blade was carried by the son of Herald the Proud of Nabol at the battle of Stony Brook Bridge during the civil war of turns 193 to 196, and was taken from him by the mercenary captain Kinal - loyal to the Ruathan contender for the Lordship of Ruatha, the Holder Gaedwin - who slew him there. After the ultimate defeat of Gaedwin by Willeim, Kinal fled with his men into the wilds and as peace began to return to the rest of Pern the mercenary planned revenge and ultimately to take Ruatha for himself. This was more than a little delusional to say the least but he was a passionate man who succeeded in inspiring his followers and gathering up new ones too, men who were not content to return to the lives they had led in peacetime; he had not the power to take Ruatha but he certainly had the power to raze cotholds and that was exactly what he did.
Flying with Second Wing meant that C’tis was amongst those dedicated to putting a stop to such people and in a mountain pass to the east of Ruatha, not far from the ruins of the cothold the mercenaries had just raided, the wing made their strike. Seeing the riders approach Kinal mounted his horse and charged recklessly down a narrow path that zigzagged down the side of a gorge too narrow for a dragon to fly down, towards the entrance to a confounding networks of caverns where he could easily have lost pursuit and popped out again miles away. Quick action by a brown of the wing prevented the men who were with him at the time from following him down the path but they were just a small portion of Kinal’s forces and had the man escaped he could have rejoined the rest of his troops and continued to spread death and destruction.
C’tis however had never been put off by little details such as ‘too narrow’ or ‘common sense’ when he set his mind to something and after consideration Malcarreth agree, tucked his wings back, and into the gorge in near freefall. Freeing himself from the riding harness C’tis swung off the side of his dragon, allowing the blue to catch him in his forefeet. As they passed over Kinal Malcarreth spread his wings as far as he was able to lose momentum, dropped his rider, and then flashed between to safety with the rest of the wing with an image provided by one of his wingmates.
C’tis struck the mercenary in the middle of his back and clean from his horse, sending the pair of them rolling painfully down the slope and dangerously close to the edge. Driven by adrenaline both men scrambled upright, drew their blades and became locked in combat. Each succeeded in wounding the other over the coming few minutes but before C’tis’ wingmates arrived - having been forced to run down the narrow slope - C’tis struck Kinal’s sword arm clean from his body at the elbow, shattering his blade on the rock of the gorge face behind the mercenary. Panting and bleeding C’tis then picked up The Kept Oath and demanded that Kinal, howling in rage and pain, surrender and face justice. Kinal however refused; defiant to the last he spat in the rider’s face and flung himself off the path, plunging to his death on the next section far below.
Exhausted and injured as he was when his wingmates arrived beside him C’tis failed to think of something dramatic to say. Instead therefore he just said; “Stupid bugger jumped. Can we go home? I need a shaffing drink.”
C’tis got his shaffing drink and got the keep the named sword too for Herald’s brother, who inherited from him, had little interest in warfare or weaponry and little time to worry about relative trivialities in any case. For his (ridiculous) actions C’tis was also awarded a ring to adorn the grip of the blade by the Weyrleader of the time; it is gold, inlaid with a pattern of dragons picked out in sapphire to match his blue bondmate.
The Kept Oath is a large sword, the blade being fully 32”, and would be too heavy for a small man to handle well. Practicality dictates that the blade be largely plain and so it is save for very delicate etchings down the blade's center. One side bears the Dragonrider’s Oath while the other bears the Duty Song, and both also display dragons battling the Thread. The hilt on the other hand is highly ornate. The guard, forged of iron, takes the form of a pair of dragon heads; jaws open, teeth flashing, eyes picked out with red rubies. The grip is made of wher bone wrapped in leather. At the top of the grip, by the pommel, is a gold ring inlaid with a pattern of dragons picked out in sapphire. The pommel itself is diamond shaped, forged of solid gold. Etched in tiny perfect script into its surface is a poem describing the last flight or H’rav - who later became Lord Herav, the sword’s first owner - and his blue Leromarth. In one of the final falls of the 5th Pass the swift blue saw a tangle of Thread about to strike his wingleader and with his flame spent and no time to do anything else he twisted in the air to take the hit for the bronze dragon. Mortally wounded Leromarth used his last strength to rend through the riding straps sending his rider plunging through the air to be caught by a green. The moment he saw his bondmate safe the blue breathed his last and blinked between.
The poem speaks of honour, duty, grief and sacrifice.
Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 1:21 pm
Allies & Enemies
C'tis has a reasonable number of allies, quite a lot of enemies, and perhaps most surprisingly he even has a handful of actual friends.
Bakarn of green Blyth - Weyrling - Okay, C'tis is kind of fond of his former squire. In his own words: 'The kid's tough, loyal, and reliable. Wouldn't mind him at my back when he graduates.' From C'tis this is high praise indeed. L’ris of green Pennath - Wingrider, 3rd1 - C'tis grudgingly considers L'ris a friend, one of his best friends in fact. This doesn't mean they get on all the time of course, in fact they argue frequently and have dueled one another on more than one occasion. Regardless of past broken noses however if anyone else insults L'ris C'tis will come to her defense and would have her back in a fight against other people any day.
C'tis is proud of his place in Second Wing and like many of his wingmates he claims they're the finest, fittest, leanest and meanest wing in the Weyr. He publicly scoffs at the idea of trying to get into First Wing but given the chance to join that elite group he would have a hard time saying no despite how much he currently sneers at them. It's no secret that C'tis has ambitions on a wingsecond post, or that he believes - says he believes - that if Malcarreth had a shiny hide he would be one already.
Wingleader: Ko'ren (m) of bronze Morth (NPC)
Ko’ren is ambitious and a bit ruthless, it’s no secret he has his eye on the post of Weyrleader. Newly promoted by T'gall after the last elections and aged just thirty four he is still getting to grips with his role but his exceptionally sharp mind and adaptability have seen him through so far. Ko'ren demands a lot from his riders and hates to have their glory - his glory! - snatched by first wing. He encourages his riders to be competitive with one another, often pitching the three squads against one another in a variety of contests; swordplay, archery, flight manoeuvres, and so on. He believes that in competing with one another in a friendly environment they will be better equipped to compete with First Wing, and best them wherever possible. He is a fairly small man with a lean wiry strength and great skill with a light sword; he is proud of the fact that he can now consistently beat G'vian in a sparring match. He's less pleased that O'ail is at least his equal in combat. With high cheekbones and full lips along with his striking blue eyes and glossy black hair he is widely considered something of a looker. He has two firelizards, a pair of bronzes, and attracts some derision for the extravagance but only behind his back!
Wingsecond #1: NPC bronze rider (m) Wingsecond #2: NPC brown rider (m) Wingriders: Re'ka of Pycath Z'fer of Calanoth C'ross of Nimith C'tis of Malcarreth x + approx 23 other riders.
Pirates and bandits are the focus of High Reaches' Second Wing. They spend a lot of time rooting out these criminals, working closely with Hold forces (to the frustration of many riders, as Hold guards tend to be uneducated and lacking in specialised investigative skills) to discover patterns and then hunting down wrongdoers. While not as glamorous, prestigious a posting as First Wing this is the next best thing in the opinion of many; there's still a lot of action, and a lot of glory to be had provided First Wing doesn't get involved! Second Wing will also find themselves called in to help in the case of large scale combat. Like 1st wing there are a lot more men than women in 2nd wing but it is not quite so unbalanced and there is a more average proportion of bronze riders.
Ko'ren became wingleader in turn 3: he was promoted by T'gall when the bronze rider - the previous wingleader of Second Wing - became Weyrleader. Ko'ren was previously one of T'gall's wingseconds.
Squads
Squad #1: Ko'ren of Morth Re'ka of Pycath, Z'fer of Calanoth,C'ross of Nimith, C'tis of Malcarreth + 5 other riders.
said Malcarreth as his rider worked oil into his hide.
"Mmmh."
the blue clarified.
C'tis snorted but assented. That was going to be difficult but Malcarreth was probably right, how they acted was going to be remembered and if he was a forkhead to people then it wouldn't do the case for equality amongst the colours any good at all. he assured his dragon, sharing a few only faintly blurred memories of the evening as he spoke.
Malcarreth said as he turned over the sound of laughter and music, the feeling of elation and the sharing of drinks. the blue continued, wincing a bit as C'tis got to the muscles in his wings.
C'tis felt an apology to his dragon but carried on regardless, massaging the muscles a bit would help Malcarreth to recover more quickly. some of the rest.> Sharding dragon, he'd won that money fair and square!
<-mean, yes C'tis I do but my point stands. Oh, and you will use some of the money to buy something for Shylla and Evmeth.... Maybe a jewelry box with two dragons on the lid, a blue and a gold.> Malcarreth snaked his neck around and lowered his head to be on eye level with his bondmate.
"Yes yes," C'tis grumbled, moving from Malcarreth's wing onto his shoulders. least keeping enough to buy myself a new harp.> He loved his current harp, loved it dearly, but it wasn't masterwork. If his damn dragon let him keep any of the marks he'd won - fair and oblong or whatever else you cared to call it - then he could actually commission one to his own specifications. He could buy proper furs for his bed too, and beautiful wall hangings, and he was sure he would think of other things he wanted.
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