Vedalia and green Entalth
The Road So Far!
It all began at Jessaf Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Vedalia – a young girl of 14 Turns, dreaming of becoming a green rider.
Vedalia was born to unusual privilege – a granddaughter of Winstone, Lord of mighty Jessaf Hold. Vedalia 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, Vedalia 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 Vedalia becoming a candidate – while conceding that he could spare a younger grandchild. And with Winstone's admonition that she should remember her place as his granddaughter and not make a scene ringing in her ears, Vedalia left to begin her candidacy at Madellon Weyr.
As a candidate, Vedalia was assigned a bunkmate – Jopha, a mischievous young Weyrbred girl prone to getting herself into trouble, 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 – Thippia, a foul-mouthed girl from the Seacraft – who took a firm disliking to Vedalia! Backed up by her crony Berrin, Thippia became the thorn in Vedalia's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Jopha and Vedalia on 102.03.17. Following a brief run-in with Thippia, 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 Vedalia left, Jopha – whose Impression robe was sadly overlarge for her petite frame – recruited Vedalia's help in getting it adjusted by her nemesis Shookana in the mending room.
The one-armed green rider and the thieving queen
Immediately on leaving the candidate barracks, Vedalia 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 Vedalia to find it. Despite Vedalia's best efforts, though, she didn't manage to complete and return the jewellery set before the Hatching.
A rising problem
Vedalia 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. Vedalia'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.
Weyrbrat by name...
A run-in with a Weyrbrat – Terzon, whom Thippia had paid to cause Vedalia trouble – resulted in an unfortunate public incident. All too aware of being shaken down, Vedalia 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, Vedalia 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 Vedalia didn't want to pass up.
Friend request
Knowing of Jopha's chequered history with Shookana, mistress of the Weyr's mending room, Vedalia approached the task of having her robe adjusted with considerable caution. Realising that falsehood would be the wrong approach, Vedalia went to Shookana with the truth – and a gift of popcorn. And while Vedalia doubted if Shookana and Jopha will ever be friends, the restoration of her Hatching robe to a suitable length did a great deal for her self-confidence!
The Hatching
When it came to the Hatching, Vedalia had to wait for every other dragonet to Hatch and choose a rider before the spotted green and cream egg Hatched to reveal the vivid sea-green hatchling who would choose her, naming herself Entalth.
A friend in me
And Vedalia wasn't the only lucky one. To her delight, Jopha also Impressed, becoming the rider of a big emerald-green hatchling, Deimoth.
Whatever happened to Thippia?
Sadly, there was at least one fly in the numbweed. Thippia Impressed a very vocal mint-green hatchling, making them Vedalia and Entalth's new classmates. (On the bright side, at least Berrin didn't Impress!)
After the Hatching
"Entalth" by Emily Holland
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Vedalia on her Impression, but it was Garlan, delighted that her risky choice of Winstone's granddaughter had Impressed, who stepped in to help with the immediate matter of Entalth's first meal. That was Vedalia's first opportunity to speak to Jopha, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Entalth and Deimoth.
It wasn't long before Entalth's personality started to become evident. The sea-green dragonet – ambiguously coloured at first glance, but unequivocally female when asked – proved to have a particularly playful and fun-loving outlook on life.
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 Vedalia made along the way – a young Weyrbred candidate, Brithie, whom Vedalia had encountered in a sudden crisis of confidence directly before the Hatching – hailed Vedalia at the barracks – crediting her with her successful Impression of a tiny bottle-green dragonet, Epatanth!
Meeting the Weyrleader
As Vedalia and Jopha wiped the worst of the blood and sand from their tired new dragonets, the Weyrleader, T'gat, came to inspect both girls' dragonets and to ask after their names. Vedalia was proud to introduce Entalth to the Weyrleader – and to give him her full new name: Vedalia, rider of green Entalth!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Entalth's and Deimoth's newborn itchiness, Vedalia and Jopha 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
Vedalia and Jopha soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk Vedalia had helped during the day greeted her with warm congratulations as she hunted through the throng – but, at last, she found her family.
Lord Winstone, Vedalia's grandfather, was faint with his praise for his granddaughter's Impression of Entalth – suggesting that she should have waited for a chance at a queen. The Weyrleaders were swift to insist that Impressing any dragon was a great achievement!
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for Vedalia, 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, Vedalia 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 Vedalia'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 Vedalia 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 Entalth.
A close encounter
On her way back to the barracks , Vedalia 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 Vedalia 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, Vedalia decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Entalth – billeted between Jopha's Deimoth and a pretty blue-green dragonet – Vedalia 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 green beside her – Vedalia 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?
Vedalia and Entalth's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
Vedalia'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
Entalth and I complement each other!
Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY
Entalth and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
IN TUNE
Entalth and I agreed on something quite important!