W'vell and blue Bignoth
The Road So Far!
It all began at Jessaf Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Wavell – a young man of 18 Turns, dreaming of becoming a blue rider.
Wavell was born to unusual privilege – a grandson of Winstone, Lord of mighty Jessaf Hold. Wavell 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, Wavell 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 Wavell becoming a candidate – displeased that such a opportunity would ruin his plans for Wavell's betrothal to a niece of Lord Orfen's. But he grudgingly accepted that, as Wavell had his majority, he had the right to accept Search. And with Winstone's admonition that he Impress a bronze – or a brown at the very least – ringing in his ears, Wavell left to begin his candidacy at Madellon Weyr.
As a candidate, Wavell was assigned a bunkmate – Soburn, an anxious Weyrbred youth with one failed Hatching already haunting him, 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 – Rielat, a self-important apprentice Weaver – who took a firm disliking to Wavell! Backed up by his crony Kestor, Rielat became the thorn in Wavell's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Soburn and Wavell on 102.03.17. Following a brief run-in with Rielat, 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 Wavell left, Soburn asked him to find out if H'nar, the young Wingleader of the Betweenless Wing, might currently be seeing someone – or not.
The one-armed green rider
Immediately on leaving the candidate barracks, Wavell was flagged down by M'shen – a green rider with only one arm. But whatever he wanted, Wavell never discovered, after making a mean-spirited joke about M'shen's missing hand that – not unreasonably – made the green rider take against him.
Respecting his elders
In the infirmary, Wavell encountered Kisha – a blind old green rider giving the Weyr's Healers a difficult time about taking her medicine. Kisha challenged Wavell to answer three riddles before she would consent to behave. And Wavell rose to that challenge – answering all three correctly, and winning Kisha's grudging respect!
A Masterful order
In the dining hall, Wavell 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, Wavell 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
Wavell 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. Wavell'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 Wavell did annoy Soleigh, who wasn't impressed with him for prolonging Maris' binge by bringing her more wine!
Overkeen to get his hands on the last bubbly pie in the dining hall, Wavell took it – forcibly – from a small child. Not the nicest thing to do – but mmm, pie...
Eggs and baskets
A visit to the Archives led to a meeting with Tarshe, Madellon's Weyrwoman Second. When Wavell 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 – Wavell did!
A blue lady
Coming across T'gala, Pern's only female blue rider, bathing her Heppeth in the lake, Wavell offered his assistance – which T'gala gladly accepted.
Friend request
Conscious of Soburn's bashfulness, Wavell approached the object of his affections – H'nar, Wingleader of the Betweenless Wing – with some circumspection. Still, when questioned, H'nar insisted he had to know who was making enquiries of him. And when he learned the identity of his admirer, he told Wavell that he wasn't interested in Soburn – or any other men, for that matter. But Wavell's agile pivot in questioning revealed that a close friend of H'nar's – blue rider M'rany – might be a viable alternative. Thus encouraged, Soburn began to think more positively of life as a dragonrider – even if H'nar would end up being his Wingleader!
Wherry bad behaviour
Wavell's assorted instances of bad behaviour finally caught up with him. L'stev collared him in the Bowl and gave him an ultimatum – buck up his ideas, or sit the Hatching out. Wavell chose the former, and the Weyrlingmaster sent him to do penance in the wherry hatchery – though Wavell remained on probation, with one more slip promising to rule him out of standing!
The Hatching
When it came to the Hatching, Wavell had to wait for every other dragonet to Hatch and choose a rider before the gleaming blue egg Hatched to reveal the bright indigo-blue hatchling who would choose him, naming himself Bignoth.
A friend in me
And Wavell wasn't the only lucky one. To his delight, Soburn also Impressed, becoming the rider of a slender olive-green hatchling, Aeranth.
Whatever happened to Rielat?
It turned out that making an enemy of Wavell was a very poor choice on Rielat's part. For the low, low price of just three marks, Wavell had Grimes, the shady fellow loitering near the Gather stalls, spread a series of nasty rumours about Rielat. By the time the Weyrlingmaster mustered the candidate cohort immediately before the Hatching, the damage to Rielat's reputation was done – and he was ejected from the candidate pool without ever setting foot on the Sands!
After the Hatching
"Bignoth" by Emily Holland
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Wavell 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 Bignoth's first meal. That was Wavell's first opportunity to speak to Soburn, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Bignoth and Aeranth. Soburn also told Wavell that his new name was to be – perhaps unsurprisingly – S'burn.
It wasn't long before Bignoth's personality started to become evident. The big indigo-blue dragonet, the largest of his colour, showed his alert and serious nature from the beginning, demonstrating a high degree of focus for a blue.
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 Wavell and S'burn 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. Wavell was proud to introduce Bignoth to the Weyrleader. And after a brief conference with Bignoth, Wavell gave the Weyrleader his own new name: W'vell, rider of blue Bignoth!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Bignoth's and Aeranth's newborn itchiness, W'vell and S'burn 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
W'vell and S'burn soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk W'vell 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, W'vell'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 W'vell's behalf, but the damage to his relationship with his grandfather was done.
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for W'vell, 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, W'vell 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 W'vell'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 W'vell 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 Bignoth.
A close encounter
On his way back to the barracks , W'vell 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 W'vell 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, W'vell decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Bignoth – billeted between S'burn's Aeranth and a bright bronze dragonet – W'vell 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 – W'vell 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?
W'vell and Bignoth's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
W'vell'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:
BIRDS OF A FEATHER
Bignoth and I make a very strong match!
Achievement Unlocked:
SNAKES AND SNAILS
I haven't been very nice!
Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY
Bignoth and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
BUM NOTE
Bignoth and I disagreed on something quite important!