Lu'ci and bronze Vivianth

The Road So Far!

It all began at Madellon Weyr for Lucifer – a young man of 17 Turns, dreaming of becoming a bronze rider.

Lucifer was born the son of Wingleader R'yeno and green rider Evie of Madellon Weyr. While he didn't have to be Searched, he was 'given the nod' as a likely dragonrider by the Weyr's most senior retired Search pair – S'rius and his elderly blue Padseth. Having been left standing at a Hatching once before, Lucifer wrestled with the fear that he wouldn't live up to his rider parents' expectations a second time.

As a candidate, Lucifer 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 Lucifer! Backed up by his crony Kestor, Rielat became the thorn in Lucifer's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.

Hatching Day

The dragons' hum woke Soburn and Lucifer 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 Lucifer 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 and the thieving queen

Immediately on leaving the candidate barracks, Lucifer 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 Lucifer to find it. Despite Lucifer'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, Lucifer 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, Lucifer 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. Lucifer even shared the largesse with Zielaph, who then introduced him to Fr'ton – who, having Impressed a bronze in spite of his less than boundless promise, gave Lucifer a certain confidence in his own prospects!

Kitchen diplomacy

Madellon's kitchens – the heart of the Weyr, and domain of Headwoman Crauva – provided Lucifer with the opportunity to show off his work ethic before the Hatching. A round of chores duly pleased Crauva.

A shining example

Coming upon Santinoth – Madellon's biggest bronze – being bathed in the lake, Lucifer was quick to offer assistance to his rider, T'rello. It couldn't hurt to have some close-up experience with a bronze, could it?

Friend request

Conscious of Soburn's bashfulness, Lucifer 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 Lucifer that he wasn't interested in Soburn – or any other men, for that matter. But Lucifer'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!

The Hatching

When it came to the Hatching, Lucifer didn't have to wait too long for his date with destiny. The black-freckled grey egg Hatched out a deep classic-bronze dragonet who told Lucifer his name was Vivianth.

A friend in me

And Lucifer 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?

Sadly, there was at least one fly in the numbweed. Rielat Impressed an impressively proportioned indigo-blue hatchling, making them Lucifer and Vivianth's new classmates. (On the bright side, at least Kestor didn't Impress!)

After the Hatching

"Vivianth" by Chris S. Baily

The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Lucifer on his Impression, but it was old S'rius, delighted to have found yet another weyrling, who stepped in to help with the immediate matter of Vivianth's first meal. That was Lucifer's first opportunity to speak to Soburn, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Vivianth and Aeranth. Soburn also told Lucifer that his new name was to be – perhaps unsurprisingly – S'burn.

It wasn't long before Vivianth's personality started to become evident. The energetic bronze dragonet, the classic shade of his colour, was unusually forceful even for his colour – promising to be a handful for his rider!

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 brother

Another friend Lucifer made along the way – a young Holdbred candidate, Nichen, whom Lucifer had encountered in a hopelessly dishevelled state directly before the Hatching – hailed Lucifer at the barracks – crediting him with his successful Impression of a moon-blue dragonet, Yooth!

Meeting the Weyrleader

As Lucifer 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. Lucifer was proud to introduce Vivianth to the Weyrleader. And after a brief conference with Vivianth, Lucifer gave the Weyrleader his own new name: Lu'ci, rider of bronze Vivianth!

Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Vivianth's and Aeranth's newborn itchiness, Lu'ci 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

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

R'yeno and Evie couldn't have been happier to greet their son as a bronze rider for the first time – though R'yeno couldn't resist making a crack about the new competition for his own bronze. And when the Weyrleaders came to drink a toast to Lu'ci, R'yeno further embarassed his son by insinuating that Gryth would be stiffer competition to Muzzanth in Shimpath's next flight.

The rest of the evening passed in a blur for Lu'ci, 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, Lu'ci 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 Lu'ci's background with him – including much of what he had got up to on the morning of the Hatching – for good and ill. She cleared up an anomaly with his new name, too. She offered Lu'ci 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 Vivianth.

A close encounter

On his way back to the barracks , Lu'ci 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 Lu'ci 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, Lu'ci decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger – though he did give L'stev his new name.

Returning at last to Vivianth – billeted between S'burn's Aeranth and a mucky-looking brown dragonet – Lu'ci 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 bronze beside him – Lu'ci was struck with a deep sense of foreboding. Who was the mysterious dragonrider in the hooded cloak? What was the significance of the strange wooden box? And how had the stranger known Lu'ci's new name?

Lu'ci and Vivianth's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!

Lu'ci'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:
COMPUTER SAYS NO

I changed my name from something unacceptable!

Achievement Unlocked:
THE YIN TO YOUR YANG

Vivianth and I complement each other!

Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY

Vivianth and I agreed on something very important!

Achievement Unlocked:
IN TUNE

Vivianth and I agreed on something quite important!