En'kaffoh and blue Acrobolth
The Road So Far!
It all began at the Healer Hall at Blue Shale Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Kaffohasan – a young woman of 18 Turns, dreaming of becoming a blue rider.
Kaffohasan was born the daughter of two Master Healers at the Southern Healerhall, Blue Shale Hold. She was treating minor injuries even before she was formally apprenticed to the Craft. But frustration with the drudgery of the long apprenticeship made Kaffohasan an undistinguished crafter, lacking the focus or passion demanded by the Healerhall. And then, in early 102, brown rider P'lian came to the Healer Hall complaining of frostbitten fingers. Kaffohasan was assigned to treat the minor condition. But P'lian's Sparth – despite his colour, a budding Search-sensitive dragon – insisted that Kaffohasan was a likely sort for candidacy. And a sevenday later, Kaffohasan arrived at Madellon Weyr, joining the candidate pool for senior queen Shimpath's first clutch by her new mate Muzzanth.
As a candidate, Kaffohasan was assigned a bunkmate – Erilde, a quiet young woman from the Lower Caverns fearing a second unsuccessful Hatching, who would soon become her closest friend in the Weyr. She also got to know many of her fellow candidates, including the Weyrbred twins Leover and Leoguy; Zielaph, the nephew of a Madellon bronze rider; and Arina, a level-headed young woman from Jessaf who'd stood at the previous Hatching.
But she also made an enemy – Auciet, a snobby and superior Holdbred girl – who took a firm disliking to Kaffohasan! Backed up by her crony Cedranne, Auciet became the thorn in Kaffohasan's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Erilde and Kaffohasan on 102.03.17. Following a brief run-in with Auciet, the pair joined the rest of the candidates for a morning lecture. The Weyrlingmaster, L'stev, gave the whole cohort – increased by three late Searchees to a total of thirty-five – strict instructions about pre-Hatching preparations, including eating, drinking, bathing – and in some cases, getting a decent haircut – and then turned the group loose for the morning. Before Kaffohasan left, Erilde asked her to make enquiries about any dragonrider heritage she herself might possess, to give her confidence a boost before the Hatching.
The one-armed green rider and the thieving queen
Immediately on leaving the candidate barracks, Kaffohasan was flagged down by M'shen – a green rider with one arm, a fire-lizard queen – and a problem. His queen, Squiffy, had stolen several pieces of the Weyrwoman's jewellery, and hidden it around the Weyr. M'shen recruited Kaffohasan to find it. Despite Kaffohasan's best efforts, though, she didn't manage to complete and return the jewellery set before the Hatching.
Respecting her elders
In the Weyr's kitchen gardens, Kaffohasan encountered R'hren, a former Weyrleader of Madellon, now peacefully retired to potter among his beloved plants. R'hren asked Kaffohasan to help him track down the ingredients for a warming salve to help his elderly bronze, Staamath, with his arthritic forepaws. Kaffohasan duly located the components of R'hren's salve, winning the old bronze rider's approval in the process.
A Masterful order
In the dining hall, Kaffohasan met her fellow candidate Zielaph, who'd been tasked by his somewhat dim uncle, bronze rider Fr'ton, with delivering a complicated drinks order to a group of Master Crafters. Zielaph had information about their names, beverages, crafts, and fire-lizards – but not in any sensible order!
Luckily for him, Kaffohasan solved the puzzle of Fr'ton's confusing notes adeptly, delivering the correct drinks to the correct Masters, and earning a handsome tip in the process.
A rising problem
Kaffohasan encountered both Soleigh, whose green Bristath was preparing to rise near the lake, and her weyrmate Maris, who was getting very drunk in the dining hall on account of her fears that Soleigh was having an affair with a blue rider, G'tron. Kaffohasan's intervention successfully got rid of G'tron, whose Imdoth was very sweet indeed on Bristath, from the mating flight – not to mention G'pellas, another blue rider, needed in the Harper ensemble – and reconciled the two green riders. Even if Kaffohasan did annoy Soleigh, who wasn't impressed with her for prolonging Maris' binge by bringing her more wine!
Hot stuff
Madellon's kitchen was the source of the hotfruit R'hren had sent Kaffohasan to find for his warming salve. Headwoman Crauva handed one over immediately she asked for it, pleased to be helping such an august figure as the old Weyrleader.
Weyrbrat by name...
A run-in with a Weyrbrat – Terzon, whom Auciet had paid to cause Kaffohasan trouble – resulted in an unfortunate public incident. All too aware of being shaken down, Kaffohasan gave the kid a shove – in front of a number of witnesses – doing nothing for her reputation!
A blue lady
Coming across T'gala, Pern's only female blue rider, bathing her Heppeth in the lake, Kaffohasan offered her assistance – which T'gala gladly accepted. Getting some first-hand advice about what it took for T'gala to Impress a blue dragon was an opportunity Kaffohasan didn't want to pass up.
Hair today
Mindful of the Weyrlingmaster's orders to be smart for the Hatching, Kaffohasan visited Madellon's resident barber, Z'fell, for a trim. But she fell foul of the green rider's perverse sense of humour, and came away with a curious cut – short on top, long at the back – that prompted quite a number of odd looks and laughs at her expense!
The Hatching
When it came to the Hatching, Kaffohasan had an excruciatingly long wait before the pearl-green egg Hatched to reveal the deep midnight-blue dragonet who would choose her, naming himself Acrobolth.
A friend bereft
But to Kaffohasan's dismay, Erilde wasn't as fortunate. No dragonet showed an interest in her, and she was left among the candidates remaining unmatched at the end of the Hatching.
Whatever happened to Auciet?
Sadly, there was at least one fly in the numbweed. Auciet Impressed an unusually aggressive grass-green hatchling, making them Kaffohasan and Acrobolth's new classmates. (On the bright side, at least Cedranne didn't Impress!)
After the Hatching
"Acrobolth" by Chris S. Baily
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Kaffohasan on her Impression, but it was P'lian, ecstatic that Sparth's very first Search had yielded an Impression, who stepped in to help with the immediate matter of Acrobolth's first meal. That was the first moment Kaffohasan had truly grasped that Erilde wasn't going to be a weyrling alongside her – a truth that hit hard. In Erilde's absence, Arina, who'd Impressed a cloudy-green dragonet, Chanth – was a welcome friendly face.
It wasn't long before Acrobolth's personality started to become evident. The big midnight-blue dragonet showed an immediate desire to show off and preen – not surprising given his handsome colour and conformation!
With both dragonets full to bursting with fresh meat, the newly minted dragonpairs left the Hatching sands for their new home: the weyrling barracks.
Big sister
Another friend Kaffohasan made along the way – a young Weyrbred candidate, Brithie, whom Kaffohasan had encountered in a sudden crisis of confidence directly before the Hatching – hailed Kaffohasan at the barracks – crediting her with her successful Impression of a tiny bottle-green dragonet, Epatanth!
Meeting the Weyrleader
As Kaffohasan and Arina wiped the worst of the blood and sand from their tired new dragonets, the Weyrleader, T'gat, came to inspect both girls' dragonets – and in particular to remark upon Kaffohasan's unusual Impression of a blue. T'gat further enquired if Kaffohasan would like to elide her name, as T'gala had done, or not. Kaffohasan took up the opportunity to rename herself, and after a brief conference with Acrobolth, Kaffohasan gave the Weyrleader her new name – En'kaffoh, rider of blue Acrobolth!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Acrobolth's and Chanth's newborn itchiness, En'kaffoh and Arina headed into the girls' barracks to claim the billets that would be theirs for the next Turn. Choosing adjacent cots, the two new weyrlings got their dragonets settled on the couches that they would take months to grow into. But there was no time for them to sit and admire their new dragons. The Weyrlingmaster soon came along to give them their new weyrling shoulder-knots, before chivvying them off to the Hatching feast!
The Hatching feast
En'kaffoh and Arina soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk En'kaffoh had helped during the day greeted her with warm congratulations as she hunted through the throng – but, at last, she found her family.
En'kaffoh's father, a loud man in normal times, was positively bellowing with pleasure at En'kaffoh's Impression – albeit with a certain disappointment that his daughter wouldn't be continuing in the Healercraft. And he embarrassed both his daughter, and his long-suffering wife, still further when the Weyrleaders came to drink a toast to En'kaffoh and Acrobolth – remarking, very loudly, on the parentage of Valonna's soon-to-arrive first baby!
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for En'kaffoh, and it came as a relief when the Weyrlingmaster ordered all the new weyrlings back to the barracks for a good night's sleep. But en route to bed, En'kaffoh was flagged down by a Weyrbrat, Emry, bringing the message that Weyrwoman Second Tarshe wanted to see her in the Archives.
Setting the record straight
Tarshe, tasked by the Weyrwoman with converting candidate documentation into weyrling records, went through En'kaffoh's background with her – including much of what she had got up to on the morning of the Hatching – for good and ill. She offered En'kaffoh some advice about paying attention to her new classmates and surroundings, lest she fall foul of the Weyrlingmaster's penchant for snap quizzes, and made some observations on Acrobolth.
A close encounter
On her way back to the barracks , En'kaffoh had two peculiar encounters – first, with Tarshe's queen, Berzunth, who seemed quite agitated by one of the visiting dragons on the Rim; and then with a mysterious hooded figure, smelling strongly of what En'kaffoh would later realise was firestone, who called her by name – and gave her a curious wooden box.
"The Watchful Queen" by Chris S. Baily
Back at the barracks, En'kaffoh decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Acrobolth – billeted between Arina's Chanth and a very large green dragonet – En'kaffoh was too tired to examine the strange wooden box very closely, and put it in her clothes' chest for later examination. But even as she went to sleep – a dragonrider at last, her blue beside her – En'kaffoh was struck with a deep sense of foreboding. Who was the mysterious dragonrider in the hooded cloak? And what was the significance of the strange wooden box?
Find out more about Kaffohasan's Impression here. En'kaffoh and Acrobolth's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
En'kaffoh's achievements
Achievement Unlocked:
CARRY ON WAYWARD SON
I travelled The Road So Far!
Achievement Unlocked:
OUR ROB, OR ROSS
I received a mysterious box!
Achievement Unlocked:
A HORSE WITH A NAME
I have a name and it's a good name and I don't need to fix my name. Probably.
Achievement Unlocked:
OPPOSITES ATTRACT
I make quite a strange match with Acrobolth!
Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY
Acrobolth and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
BUM NOTE
Acrobolth and I disagreed on something quite important!