Age: 42
Gender: Male
Sexual Preference: Homosexual
Rank: Whermaster
Physical Description: Vadran is a leanly built man, were it not for his active lifestyle he would probably be downright scrawny. Standing at 5'9'' he isn't particularly intimidating to look at, but he doesn't really try to be. This isn't a man to walk around with an eternal scowl on his face. Black hair is more than a little peppered with grey by this point and there is often stubble on the man's face, though he will decide to shave it for what he deems as special occasions and he has no intention of growing a beard.
Pale blue eyes are the main point of an otherwise rather unremarkable face. There are signs of ageing; crow's feet, lines around the mouth and other such things, but Vadran doesn't really have many striking features in comparison to what some other wherhandlers come out looking like. None of his impressive scars are on his face, it's only a vertical scratch beside the right eye, a diagonal line from the bridge of his nose across about half of his left cheek. Nothing to write home about. Overall his face is slender, with a long nose and pointed chin.
Personality: For the most part Vadran is an easy going fellow. Not one to easily lose his temper or go off on a rant, he prefers to keep his worries and frustrations a private matter. They're his problems and there's no need for him to go dragging other people into it and making things worse for them. As good at keeping other people's problems under wraps as his own, Vadran is a good listener. His friends are free to rant, vent, cry, scream, whatever they need to do, safe in the knowledge that what they share will not be passed on to another person. It's not Vadran's place to go spreading their business around and even if he is concerned for them he won't tell someone. He will try to get them to seek the help they need, or subtly try and get someone to realise what is going on if he thinks they can help.
This particular wherhandler is very driven. He applies himself whole-heartedly to the things he commits to, but can only commit to things he loves. The man tends to only do what is required to have the job done well, not necessarily perfectly. Fortunately most work with whers is something he loves, so a lot of effort goes into it. When it comes to teaching other Vadran seems to have an inexhaustible supply of patience. Mostly likely derived from turns of working with a truly independent green that doesn't always like to listen. Vadran gives out as much as is put in. If a student wants to succeed and tries then he will help them every step of the way, but if they can't be bothered then he won't waste his time trying to get them to excel. It makes no real difference to him whether they are successful or not. The only time that this will be broken is if Vadran discovers someone isn't controlling their wher properly. He won't have someone's laziness and stupidity putting other people at risk.
History: Many people are born with expectations. Some rebel, some fail to ever meet them and some even manage to surpass them. Vadran is one of the lucky ones to fall into the last category. Born to a long line of Ista Hold guards it was always expected for Vadran to take up the mantel of protecting his Hold. Luckily this expectation never stifled the boy, the young lad following close at his parent's heels, both being successful guards in their own right, enjoying the adventure of it. The late nights wandering the hold, investigating strange goings on. It seemed that Vadran was never not a guard and, although this meant his interaction with other children was limited, it never seemed to upset him. The guards all seemed happy to have the youngster around as long as he wasn't causing trouble.
The Hold's whers were always a point of interest for the lad. The large creatures roaming the Hold at night, sniffing out trouble and making sure nothing went wrong. They seemed so serious to outsiders, but Vadran knew better. He had seen the way the handlers and the whers were with each other and he thought that bond just as valuable as any dragon bond. At the age of fourteen the young teen approached the Whermaster and expressed his desire to bond to a wher. His attempt at candidacy was accepted the boy began learning about wherhandling on top of running errands for the guards of the Hold. The teen worked hard to be noticed, knowing that the better he performed, the better chance he had of getting chosen for a clutch.
As it was a turn passed before Vadran was given the chance. Ista Hold's resident gold wher had run and a clutch was readying in her den. Along with others the fifteen turn old was given his turn to approach the gold. He wasn't first, as he would have liked, but he was third and that was nothing to be sniffed at. He waited outside the den as the first candidate entered, emerged with a large egg, the second entered, came fleeing out moments later, no egg in hand. That gave him second choice. He journeyed into the gold's den, a frightening experience to be sure, and managed to earn himself an egg. Choosing a large dark grey egg the teenage near strutted from the den with his future partner. Certain he had chosen the best wher among the bunch.
The hatching was soon upon him, the experience passing by as a blur. The egg began to rock late into the night, the creature within silent as it struggled to escape the thick walls of the egg. Vadran was by the egg in an instant, watching with barely contained excitement as a green wher forced her way clear of the egg. The newborn stood proud all on her own, large eyes staring at Vadran in the dark, watching and waiting. Cutting his palm the boy offered his hand to the creature, knowing full well that if she rejected him then the green would be culled. A few tense moments passed before the large green padded forward and licked the blood from his palm. The bond was formed and the green took the name Vask.
It would be two turns before her name lengthened to Vadsk and another three before it grew to Vadrask. The green showed a strong independent streak. She was proud, brave, large and strong, everything a guard wher needed to be. The pair served Ista Hold as guards loyally for several turns. Patrolling the Hold at night, tracking down bandits and hunting wild whers that settled too close. It was the last task that would change their lives.
Vadran was thirty-one turns old, Vadrask sixteen. A report had come in of a bronze wher setting up residence near a farm in Istan territory. It had already taken several livestock. Vadran and two other handlers were dispatched to take care of the problem. A bronze could be dangerous, but all three were well seasoned in the disposal of wild whers. It would have been an easy task, they outnumbered the male three to one, had their information been correct. Upon venturing into the territory the first discovery was that the wher was not in fact a bronze, but a gold. That information in itself was not terrible, a gold could be the same size as a bronze and wasn't necessarily more dangerous.
It was her packmates that made it dangerous. The gold had managed to attract two greens, the three settling and living as a unit. Their number advantage stolen the fight was a gruesome affair. Two of their party, a brown pair, was dragged down and killed by the greens. Fortunately the wher had managed to severely injure one of them, allowing Vadrask to take her down as the other remaining pair fought the gold. It was Vadran that managed to land the killing blow on the second green and the two were free to join the fight against the large wher. The fight was long, but the two whers eventually managed to overpower the gold, allowing their handlers to finish her off. The fight however left heavy damage. One of their group was dead and Vadrask badly wounded. The wher had to be taken back to the Hold by dragon, unable to make the journey herself. Although she did survive, the fight cost Vadrask her left foreleg. The pair were honourably discharged from guard duty.
No longer able to take part in active duty the pair were lost for a while. They had never known anything else, but there was no way that Vadrask could patrol in condition. It was then that Vadran was approached with the idea of trying for Mastery. He could still teach younger pairs and those hoping to bond. He had plenty of experience in guarding, if he studied in the other aspects of wherhandling he could become a Master. It might not have been what he had always wanted to do, but it was something.
Turns passed, the pair learned. Vadrask adjusted to her disability and. although she could never regain the speed she had before the, green remained an intimidating creature to come across. At the age of thirty-seven Vadran attained his mastery and moved to Ista Weyr to be in charge of the Weyr's whers. He has lived in the Weyr for two turns so far, but with no resident gold to bear clutches his need to train candidates and wherlings is rare. The organisation of the Wherhandler pairs already grown and in service is his main task day to day and he's quite content with that.
Wher:
Name: Vadrask
Age: 27
Color: Green
Size: Large
Build: Muscular
Physical Description: Vadrask is a mountain of a wher. Despite being a green she is intimidating to look at. At the top of the size range for her colour she is an impressive seventeen feet long and stands at almost 6 feet at the shoulder. Her body is powerfully muscled, with a broad chest and thick legs. Well, three thick legs. Her left foreleg is missing from just above the elbow where it has been amputated after heavy damage. She has a broad, round face and a thick neck.
Her colouring is a simple affair a dull grey shade of green covers the majority of her body. Vadrask's underbelly, muzzle, as well as her toes and under her eyes are slightly lighter, but not striking. The edges of her ears are a darker shade and the end of her forked tail is a darker, richer, shade of green. There isn't anything striking about her colouration, but the light scars marring her hide draw enough attention. The wher has clearly seen a fair number of battles and come of with injuries over the turns.
Personality: At first glance Vadrask does not seem to be the most pleasant wher to be around; she is quiet and doesn't show much emotion. This, combined with her intimidating appearance, makes people wary to be around her. Vadrask is almost always calm and collected, able to keep her cool in most situations and is always careful in her course of action. Loud methods of communication aren't her style and are never her first method of getting a point across.
Despite this first impression, Vadrask is a friendly wher though she has a strong independent streak and doesn't want to play all the time. There's an affection for those smaller than her, wher or human, that boarders on maternal. She can be very protective of those she deems as needing her to care for them or those she is friends with. This wher can be very loving to those she holds dear, but ruthless to those that have wrong her or hers. Vengeful to a fault Vadrask will not think twice about striking down someone who has tried to hurt someone she cares for. Brave and with an unconquerable will this green can seem fearless at times and will not bend to anyone. Even her bond with her handler is one of mutual respect and Vadran is only heeded as he has earned her trust.
