J'nar and brown Celastrath

The Road So Far!

It all began at Jessaf Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Jonar – a young man of 16 Turns, dreaming of becoming a brown rider.

Jonar was born to unusual privilege – a grandson of Winstone, Lord of mighty Jessaf Hold. Jonar 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, Jonar 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 Jonar 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, Jonar left to begin his candidacy at Madellon Weyr.

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

Hatching Day

The dragons' hum woke Soburn and Jonar 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 Jonar 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, Jonar was flagged down by M'shen – a green rider with only one arm. But whatever he wanted, Jonar 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 Weyr's kitchen gardens, Jonar encountered R'hren, a former Weyrleader of Madellon, now peacefully retired to potter among his beloved plants. R'hren asked Jonar to help him track down the ingredients for a warming salve to help his elderly bronze, Staamath, with his arthritic forepaws. Jonar 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, Jonar 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, Jonar 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.

Hot stuff

Madellon's kitchen was the source of the hotfruit R'hren had sent Jonar to find for his warming salve. Headwoman Crauva handed one over immediately he asked for it, pleased to be helping such an august figure as the old Weyrleader.

Eggs and baskets

A visit to the Archives led to a meeting with Tarshe, Madellon's Weyrwoman Second. When Jonar 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 – Jonar did!

Backhander backfired

Seeking an easy way to slip into the Hatching Ground for an early peek, Jonar encountered H'nar – Wingleader of the Betweenless Wing – on guard at the entrance. It may have seemed like a good idea to offer him a few marks for safe passage – but Jonar hadn't reckoned on H'nar's incorruptible nature. H'nar rejected the money with outrage, and word of Jonar's attempt to bribe him made its way back to the Weyrlingmaster!

A blue lady

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

Friend request

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

Hair today

Mindful of the Weyrlingmaster's orders to be smart for the Hatching, Jonar visited Madellon's resident barber, Z'fell, for a trim. But he 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 his expense!

Wherry bad behaviour

Jonar'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. Jonar chose the former, and the Weyrlingmaster sent him to do penance in the wherry hatchery – though Jonar remained on probation, with one more slip promising to rule him out of standing!

The Hatching

When it came to the Hatching, Jonar had to wait a little while before the grey-mottled tan egg Hatched to reveal the cool dusty-brown dragonet who would choose him, naming himself Celastrath.

A friend in me

And Jonar 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 Jonar and Celastrath's new classmates. (On the bright side, at least Kestor didn't Impress!)

After the Hatching

"Celastrath" by Chris S. Baily

The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Jonar 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 Celastrath's first meal. That was Jonar's first opportunity to speak to Soburn, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Celastrath and Aeranth. Soburn also told Jonar that his new name was to be – perhaps unsurprisingly – S'burn.

It wasn't long before Celastrath's personality started to become evident. The dusty-brown dragonet, while neither the largest nor the most handsome of his colour, proved to make up for both with his calm and helpful character immediately endearing him to all around.

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

Meeting the Weyrleader

As Jonar 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. Jonar was proud to introduce Celastrath to the Weyrleader. And after a brief conference with Celastrath, Jonar gave the Weyrleader his own new name: J'nar, rider of brown Celastrath!

Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Celastrath's and Aeranth's newborn itchiness, J'nar 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

J'nar and S'burn soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk J'nar 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, J'nar's grandfather, was grudgingly satisfied with Celastrath's colour, if clearly disappointed that his grandson hadn't managed to Impress a bronze – a criticism that the Weyrleaders were quick to cut short in their toast to J'nar and Celastrath.

The rest of the evening passed in a blur for J'nar, 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, J'nar 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 J'nar'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 J'nar 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 Celastrath.

A close encounter

On his way back to the barracks , J'nar 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 J'nar 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, J'nar decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.

Returning at last to Celastrath – billeted between S'burn's Aeranth and a bright bronze dragonet – J'nar 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 brown beside him – J'nar 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?

J'nar and Celastrath's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!

J'nar'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

Celastrath and I complement each other!

Achievement Unlocked:
SNAKES AND SNAILS

I haven't been very nice!

Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY

Celastrath and I agreed on something very important!

Achievement Unlocked:
IN TUNE

Celastrath and I agreed on something quite important!