Their Story
Born and raised just east of Tillek, Dovika was raised as a fairly rambunctious and troublesome third daughter to a moderately large holder family. She spent a lot of her free time roaming around the docks and open marketplaces along the shore generally getting underfoot with a pack of local children. Dovika, an early bloomer, was on average a half head taller than most of her playmates at any given time and as such was often the lookout and first to shout warning when trouble (in the form of adults, authorities, or a rival gang of children) was brewing.
Large families seemed to be the 'in thing' and as such, Searches of their hold ran with more frequency than others of a similar size. It was a common (if frowned upon) practice among the children to place bets on who would be searched each turn with whatever marks they could get their hands on. For the most part, the adults let it slide so long as no fights broke out over the money and no one was caught stealing. Dovika was a guaranteed player each time the Search riders came around and eventually, when she was around 14 turns old she won herself a hefty little pot (all of maybe 10 marks total, but to a child of a small hold it was a fortune) when the rider on Search chose her as one of a handful to be brought to the weyr that turn.
Dovika would have preformed spectacularly in her candidacy if it hadn't been for a lack of literacy skills. Her physical abilities were on par or better with the rest of her peers but she had severe trouble, even with remedial lessons, learning to read and write fluently, as well as preform basic math problems. She didn't hate learning or her lessons exactly but there was no doubting her relief as the young woman fairly exploded out of her seat the moment she was released every day.
Despite her struggles, she managed to scrape by just barely and was chosen as a squire by a rider of 4-1 under the still new Wingleader V'on. Four turns later, she Impressed at Pheneth's final clutch. She was 20 turns old and seriously regretting not saving for an apprenticeship as that was probably going to be her final clutch. Just when she was wondering if a proper math education was
really necessary for success as a cook the laziest dragon to ever hatch was nudged out of his previously cracked shell by a disgruntled sibling and frog marched right up to her feet where he plunked his sandy bronze bottom back down and under the baleful glare of his sibling Impressed upon Dovika with a yawn and a cheerful prrrip!
Weyrlinghood came and went before Dovika even realized it. The months seemed to meld together and even as Tolgath grew to an immense size, Dovika was convinced they'd only just bonded a few months ago at most. Time barely made an impression on her. Soon enough they were flying, then between, and firestone! It came at a complete surprise to her one morning when the Wingleader of 3-1 approached her and gave the traditional invitation for her to join their table and dine with them.
D'vika seemed at that point, to put it bluntly, to have her s**t together. She was a dragonrider with a good respectable position, she'd never got in any serious trouble (or at least hadn't been caught), and her love life while quiet, wasn't going to scandalize anyone but the oldest of holdborn prudes.
The dragonplague took her little slice of happiness and shook it like a canine with a newly stuffed pillow. Tolgath was one of the first to fall ill, starting with a thick wet cough soon after the quarantine went into place. This cough persisted his entire illness, within days it had torn his throat bloody and wracked with fever, body aches and seizures, it was a miracle he survived.
By the time his fever broke, both he and D'vika were barely shells of their former selves. Tolgath was little more than skin and membrane on thin bones having been able to take no sustenance and barely able to take in enough water to prevent his death from dehydration. D'vika hadn't fared much better as sympathetic symptoms had prevented her from eating or drinking much and worry kept her from sleeping. Both dragon and rider were grey and exhausted. It would be month's more before they started to look relatively normal again.
To their dismay, even after Tolgath had been given a clean bill of health from the healers, Tolgath found himself lagging behind the other healthy dragons remaining in their wing. Drills exhausted him and even a sweep at a slow pace left him winded and panting by the time they landed. Unable to keep up with their usual wing duties, D'vika was approached about the possibility of an honorable discharge. After a short discussion, she negotiated a position among the Veterans Wing instead. Tolgath might still get better with time and he wasn't so bad that he was incapable of the light duties of Veterans Wing.
While that never panned out in the end, both found Veterans Wing to suit their tastes. Sure she doesn't care much for the sexist attitude of her Wingleader (apparently being female, a bronzerider, and unable to fly in the main wings is either a crime or proof of his beliefs depending upon the day) He's never been outwardly cruel to her or Tolgath though so she shrugs it off for the most part.
To keep herself occupied in her spare time between duties that Tolgath was hale enough for, D'vika saved up enough marks to bribe herself into an apprenticeship with the local smiths housed at High Reaches. She was old to be starting a craft, but she figured she wasn't that far off from those candidates who aged out and had access to money. Either way it was something she wanted to do so she went for it. It seemed like the perfect outlet for both energy and creativity (at least, once she was allowed to make something other than nails!) as well as being useful.
While most of her efforts go into useful and practical items such as the basic hinges, nails, knives and buckles that are required for daily life in the weyr, as well as doing repairs on whatever is brought to her, D'vika's personality really shines when she's allowed to work freely and put her own spin on whatever comes out of her forge. Given the freedom, even the basic knives and tools come out with abstract carvings or swirling inlays that if looked at the right way in the right light she will
insist is actually a stylized wher or runnerbeast. Don't you see it? She takes great pride in her art even if others are less enthusiastic about it.
Ten turns later, she's finally got her journeyman knots and while she still makes the basics to 'pay the rent' shes much more likely to be found twisting coils of metal scraps together to make oddly cute (if in a slightly nightmarish way) statues of wildlife or people. She has dabbled in jewelery but the metals required are expensive and unless her patron is willing to front some of the costs before the piece is started it's rather out of her reach.
As for that, D'vika is pretty satisfied with her life. Working both Veterans Wing and smithing, she's making combined more than what she'd make as a rider of 3rd. Most of those marks have been saved with the occasional indulgence in furnishings (her room is actually very luxuriously decorated) or a new crespin though she did splurge a few turns back on a small firelizard egg which in turn gave her her little green Finn.
Content as she is in her craft and her 'side job' as a rider the current turmoil in the weyr has received little more than a roll of her eyes and a flap of her hands. She doesn't have the energy to deal with these idiots. Can't you see she's busy? Yes it's messed up that T'gall was attacked and someone should do something about it but it's not going to be her. Yes the timeriders are crazy and strange but she kinda likes them. Thread's back? We'll they expected that didn't they? Tolgath's got enough juice in him to do his duty you don't need to worry about them. O'ail won Weyrleadership? Good for her! D'vika certainly wasn't interested in the post.
They're reshuffling wingseconds? Well... no. She's got too much going on right now she doesn't need the added responsibilities (and she doesn't particularly want to work more with Le'bon than she has to).
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