Age: 29
Sex: Male
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual
Weyr: High Reaches Weyr
Rider Rank: Wingsecond (Hurricane Wing)
Previous Rank/Craft: Journeyman Dragonhealer
Physical Description: At six feet tall, Ay’ril is of average height and of slender build. His dark auburn hair is cut fairly short, brushing the tips of his ears and hugging his neck in the back. He is light-skinned, but not pale, with hazel eyes and a slightly-snubbed nose.
Personality: Ay’ril is a good man, the type to peace-keep and encourage those in his circle to be the best they can be. He was always a nice fellow, but he could have easily turned out bitter and resentful, if he’d has the proper mindset for it. For turns he watched his younger brother A’myl, a whiterider, suffer all sorts of provocation and torment for his dragon’s color, and even got a little overflow himself, even though he was a bronzerider. Out of a sense of honor, he chose to keep his head above water, and tried his best to buoy his brother up, as well. They both worked hard and were careful of their own actions, and are both now in good standing as riders at High Reaches, though the color battle has, of course, never ended.
That doesn’t mean all is forgiven, however. He remembers each of those who caused harm to his little brother, and most certainly will not do them any favors. He also holds a lot of ire for one of his own brothers, for reasons he never speaks of.
Ay’ril is very careful around High Reaches natives, or those he knows are colorist or otherwise extremely traditional. He’s actually quite in line with the whole color ranking system, understanding that each color has a clear Threadfighting role for the good of all, but not with the way some look down their noses at the chromatics. Before he’d met his dear bronze Yffengeth, he’d been quite set on Impressing a blue, himself. For the life of him, he couldn’t see why any of them deserved to be picked on or thought to be “lesser” somehow. It’s led him to be acutely mindful of his expression and words when in mixed company.
When at ease, and occasionally as a defensive mechanism, Ay’ril is known to joke around make light of unpleasant situations to try and lift the mood. He used to be quite the prankster, until his whiterider brother became the butt of many humiliating and sometimes dangerous pranks. Now he just doesn’t do it, out of a concern that he might accidentally case harm to someone.
Three Positive Traits: Peacekeeper, playful, honorable, steadfast
Three Negative Traits: Grudging, somewhat resigned, mistrustful
History: Ayolfaril was born at Fort Hold to the Healers Iamagyol and Farnilene. His mother passed away in childbirth when he was five. The newborn boy, Farinalgo, was perfectly healthy. Iamagyol remarried some six or seven months later. Ayolfaril blamed his baby brother for their mother’s death and, by extension, for their father’s betrayal in remarrying so quickly. He was so young then that he couldn’t have understood that his father had the children’s best interests in mind when he brought their new mother, Terrila, into the home. There were three more children born of that union, the first of them being Ayolfaril’s half-brother Arrimyl, who came less than a turn after Iamagyol’s remarriage. Oddly enough, he had no qualms about loving those half-siblings, but he never had much of a relationship with Farinalgo, whom he preferred to spurn at every opportunity. Avoidance was far easier than dealing with his own feelings and attempting actual communication.
When he was old enough, he apprenticed as a Healer, doing general studies at first, then beasthealing. He was Searched by riders from High Reaches Weyr at fifteen, and was absolutely besotted with the blue dragon that noticed him, and with dragons in general, from that moment on. At his first chance after landing at the Weyr, he went to work with the resident Dragonhealers, wanting to learn everything they knew. During his time at High Reaches, he completed his studies and walked the tables to Journeyman at twenty-two, and still practices dragonhealing in the present.
Though very serious about his healing craft, he was still a Candidate, and at age seventeen, he found himself Standing in the middle of a bloody hatch. A girl was killed and a boy was nearly shredded to bits by a blue dragonet. There was a terrible moment when Ayolfaril thought that he was going to be the blue’s next victim, but it was another hatchling who fell upon him. The noise that went up from the stands made it clear that most onlookers expected more blood. There was a little, a few scratches and shallow punctures from tiny dragon claws, nothing too exciting. The dragonet who knocked him down had only tripped over its own gangly newborn legs in its hurry to reach the auburn-haired boy who felt just right. Face to face in a tangled pile in the sand, bronze Yffengeth thanked Ayolfaril for breaking his fall, and Impression was made.
Two turns after that, Ay’ril and Yffengeth had become real Wingriders and part of the Trespassers Wing. They were both dedicated to their duties and it seemed they were on a direct course for a promotion somewhere down the line. Then Ay’ril’s young brother Arrimyl came to High Reaches, where he was unexpectedly Searched and Impressed a white dragon. From that day, Ay’ril’s life suddenly seemed to be all about protecting his brother instead of doing his duties as a bronzerider. He suffered some persecution of his own, by proximity to the white dragon and because of his apparent slacking off. He was not very popular, even among his fellow wingmembers.
Though Arrimyl and white Viyanakerth left High Reaches as soon as they graduated Weyrling training, the stigma remained. Ay’ril and Yffengeth returned to work at their previous high standards, but got little notice for it. Any Wingleaders who might have had an eye on them had since moved on to… untainted prospects. And yet they persevered with a good attitude, recognizing that their plight was nothing when compared to the ill-treatment that others had dealt with at High Reaches.
And their steadfastness paid off. When Thread began to fall over the planet, new riders poured into the Weyr by the dozens and were drafted into the wings. These were people who often didn’t know Ay’ril and Yffengeth’s history and who weren’t always so keen to follow the old traditions that were pounded into the weyrfolk, so the Trespassers Wing was suddenly home to quite a few rider pairs who got along well with the two. One of these new draftees was A’dras, rider of bronze Gareth.
Ay’ril gladly welcomed this new wingmember without treating him like an outsider. He did recognize the man from his previous visits to the Weyr, but otherwise knew little of him, except that the bronzerider was a hellion where the honor of his son Caderyn was concerned. It wasn’t long before they connected over their after-drill cups and talk of honor and family. Ay’ril had only recently become a father, and was still in awe over the tiny babe named Ayona. He confessed he’d do anything to protect her – from Thread, from falling down and hurting herself, or from being sad, anything and everything, all with equal fervor. The two men found that they understood each other, and formed a fast friendship. Ay’ril came to think of A’dras as both an elder brother and a bit of a second father – a father who rode a dragon, that is. His blood father never quite understood the politics and lifestyle of a dragonrider at High Reaches, so it wasn’t always easy to find a trustworthy and understanding ear.
They were comrades in arms for a turn before A’dras was promoted and received the honor of leading his own wing, the Hurricane Wing. Naturally, Ay’ril put in a request for transfer to that wing to remain with his friend and support him, never expecting that he might, perhaps, be considered for a promotion after all those turns of being overlooked.
Lo and behold, upon his transfer he was presented with a Wingsecond’s knot. The promotion was received with some astonishment, quickly followed by a rush of joy and pure satisfaction. Life was far from perfect, but it sure was looking good.
Other:
DRAGON
Name: Yffengeth
Age: 12
Color: Bronze
Size: 45’
Physical Description: Yffengeth has been known to cause a lot of sore necks. The fact is, he’s quite tall, especially with his usual, somewhat over-alert stance with head held aloft. In that position, his head will easily be twenty-five feet in the air, so lot of craning is often necessary for a human or small dragon in order to carry on a conversation with him. His hind legs are powerful but oddly bowlegged, causing his back end to swing quite a bit when he walks. The accepted explanation for it is that he may have been a little too large for his egg, causing his hind legs to be forced into an unusual position during the last stages of incubation.
(Color/marking info to be added when art is obtained!)
Personality: Yffengeth is a very big dragon and a little oafish on the ground, as if he isn’t really aware of his size. He’s always stubbing his toes or bruising his tail on something, if not actually knocking things or people over. Things just seem to jump into him on the ground! When flying, however, this dragon is a steady, strong foundation for the higher-flying ranks to build upon. He is a bronze through and through when it comes to duty. He can be counted on to not deviate from formation for anything less than necessity, and to carry out any task put to him by a ranking bronze, so long as his rider consents.
When off-duty, he is a sweet dragon, with an insatiable need for affection. He’s a lover of hugs and pats from all who will give them, and has been known to “steal” children from the creche now and then. And love from his fellow dragons is a must! He is always happiest when in physical contact with another living being, even if it’s just touching shoulders.
He often amuses Ay’ril by acting overdramatic when he stubs his toe or gets snubbed by another dragon. He was much more serious about the dramatics when he was a hatchling, but these days, those scenes are just both man and dragon enjoying their silly little stageplays together.
When it comes time to fly the lady dragons, Yffengeth is quite happy to oblige. He is most attracted to the larger gold ladies, but quite a few of the bigger greens will turn his head, even outside of flights. If he ever chooses a lifemate, her color likely will not be part of the decision.
Dragon Art of Proof of Obtainment: RP-contest for Hurricane Wing!
