F'sten and blue Symploth

The Road So Far!

It all began at Jessaf Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Finsten – a young boy of 14 Turns, dreaming of becoming a blue rider.

Finsten was born to unusual privilege – a grandson of Winstone, Lord of mighty Jessaf Hold. Finsten didn't scramble for the attention of the young Search rider, Garlan, who came to Jessaf in early 102 seeking candidates for Madellon Weyr's latest clutch. But as a scion of the Hold, Finsten was among the party welcoming the green rider to Jessaf – and, in due course, became the focus of her dragon Hushith's attention. Lord Winstone wasn't enthusiastic about Finsten becoming a candidate – while conceding that he could spare a younger grandchild. And with Winstone's admonition that he Impress a bronze – or a brown at the very least – ringing in his ears, Finsten left to begin his candidacy at Madellon Weyr.

As a candidate, Finsten was assigned a bunkmate – Martom, a confident young Weyrbred lad, who would soon become his closest friend in the Weyr. He also got to know many of his fellow candidates, including the Weyrbred twins Leover and Leoguy; Zielaph, the nephew of a Madellon bronze rider; and Chiliam, a good-natured highborn lad from Kellad.

But he also made an enemy – Gydeton, the blustering, entitled son of Lord Meturvian of Kellad – who took a firm disliking to Finsten! Backed up by his crony Varell, Gydeton became the thorn in Finsten's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.

Hatching Day

The dragons' hum woke Martom and Finsten on 102.03.17. Following a brief run-in with Gydeton, 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 Finsten left, Martom – keen to prove himself by Impressing on his first attempt – asked him for help procuring some additional confidence in the form of some alcohol.

The one-armed green rider and the thieving queen

Immediately on leaving the candidate barracks, Finsten 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 Finsten to find it. Despite Finsten's best efforts, though, he didn't manage to complete and return the jewellery set before the Hatching.

A Masterful order

In the dining hall, Finsten met his 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, Finsten 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.

Eggs and baskets

A visit to the Archives led to a meeting with Tarshe, Madellon's Weyrwoman Second. When Finsten expressed an interested in looking up some Weyr records, Tarshe offered him the loan of a glowbasket – on the proviso that he return it afterwards. Which – mindful of not offending such an important personage of the Weyr – Finsten did!

A blue lady

Coming across T'gala, Pern's only female blue rider, bathing her Heppeth in the lake, Finsten offered his assistance – which T'gala gladly accepted.

The Hatching

When it came to the Hatching, Finsten had to wait a little while before the pearl-green egg Hatched to reveal the deep midnight-blue dragonet who would choose him, naming himself Symploth.

A friend bereft

But to Finsten's dismay, Martom wasn't as fortunate. No dragonet showed an interest in him, and he was left among the candidates remaining unmatched at the end of the Hatching.

Whatever happened to Gydeton?

It turned out that making an enemy of Finsten was a very poor choice on Gydeton's part. For the low, low price of just three marks, Finsten had Grimes, the shady fellow loitering near the Gather stalls, spread a series of nasty rumours about Gydeton. By the time the Weyrlingmaster mustered the candidate cohort immediately before the Hatching, the damage to Gydeton's reputation was done – and he was ejected from the candidate pool without ever setting foot on the Sands!

After the Hatching

"Symploth" by Chris S. Baily

The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Finsten on his Impression, but it was Garlan, delighted that her risky choice of Winstone's grandson had Impressed, who stepped in to help with the immediate matter of Symploth's first meal. That was the first moment Finsten had truly grasped that Martom wasn't going to be a weyrling alongside him – a truth that hit hard. In Martom's absence, Chiliam – the highborn lad from Kellad, who'd Impressed a dusty-brown dragonet, Destrath, and who now styled himself Ch'liam – was a welcome friendly face.

It wasn't long before Symploth'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.

Meeting the Weyrleader

As Finsten and Ch'liam wiped the worst of the blood and sand from their tired new dragonets, the Weyrleader, T'gat, came to inspect both boys' dragonets, to ask after their names – and to ask the two new weyrlings how they should now be called. Finsten was proud to introduce Symploth to the Weyrleader. And after a brief conference with Symploth, Finsten gave the Weyrleader his own new name: F'sten, rider of blue Symploth!

Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Symploth's and Destrath's newborn itchiness, F'sten and Ch'liam headed into the boys' 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

F'sten and Ch'liam soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk F'sten had helped during the day greeted him with warm congratulations as he hunted through the throng – but, at last, he found his family.

Lord Winstone, F'sten's grandfather, was highly displeased that his grandson had only managed to Impress a blue – against his strict warning that nothing less than a brown would suffice. The Weyrleaders were quick to step in on F'sten's behalf, but the damage to his relationship with his grandfather was done.

The rest of the evening passed in a blur for F'sten, 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, F'sten was flagged down by a Weyrbrat, Emry, bringing the message that Weyrwoman Second Tarshe wanted to see him in the Archives.

Setting the record straight

Tarshe, tasked by the Weyrwoman with converting candidate documentation into weyrling records, went through F'sten's background with him – including much of what he had got up to on the morning of the Hatching – for good and ill. She offered F'sten some advice about paying attention to his new classmates and surroundings, lest he fall foul of the Weyrlingmaster's penchant for snap quizzes, and made some observations on Symploth.

A close encounter

On his way back to the barracks , F'sten 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 F'sten would later realise was firestone, who called him by name – and gave him a curious wooden box.

"The Watchful Queen" by Chris S. Baily

Back at the barracks, F'sten decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.

Returning at last to Symploth – billeted between Ch'liam's Destrath and a slender green dragonet – F'sten was too tired to examine the strange wooden box very closely, and put it in his clothes' chest for later examination. But even as he went to sleep – a dragonrider at last, his blue beside him – F'sten 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 Finsten's Impression here. F'sten and Symploth's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!

F'sten'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:
THE YIN TO YOUR YANG

Symploth and I complement each other!

Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY

Symploth and I agreed on something very important!

Achievement Unlocked:
IN TUNE

Symploth and I agreed on something quite important!