L'ciwe and green Acostiath
The Road So Far!
It all began at Jessaf Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Luciwe – a young man of 17 Turns, dreaming of becoming a green rider.
Luciwe was born to unusual privilege – a grandson of Winstone, Lord of mighty Jessaf Hold. Luciwe 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, Luciwe 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 Luciwe becoming a candidate – displeased that such a opportunity would ruin his plans for Luciwe's betrothal to a niece of Lord Orfen's. But he grudgingly accepted that, as Luciwe 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, Luciwe left to begin his candidacy at Madellon Weyr.
As a candidate, Luciwe 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 Luciwe! Backed up by his crony Kestor, Rielat became the thorn in Luciwe's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Soburn and Luciwe 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 Luciwe 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, Luciwe 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 Luciwe to find it. The quest took Luciwe all over Madellon, from kitchens to lake to infirmary – but in the end he succeeded in reuniting the Weyrwoman's jewellery set, to general acclaim.
Respecting his elders
In the Weyr's kitchen gardens, Luciwe encountered R'hren, a former Weyrleader of Madellon, now peacefully retired to potter among his beloved plants. R'hren asked Luciwe to help him track down the ingredients for a warming salve to help his elderly bronze, Staamath, with his arthritic forepaws. Luciwe duly located the components of R'hren's salve, winning the old bronze rider's approval in the process.
Gifted a small pot of the salve, Luciwe offered it to old S'rius, who was equally appreciative of the gift. And while Kisha, the blind old green rider Luciwe encountered in the infirmary, would have nothing to do with one of R'hren's concoctions, she too grew to approve of Luciwe – especially after he solved all three of her fiendish riddles!
Southern comfort
Luciwe met G'kalte – a brown rider and Wingsecond, not to mention Weyrwoman Valonna's weyrmate – in the Bowl, and was quickly recruited by him to help with a diplomatic matter. G'kalte had been tasked with delivering two gifts from Valonna to her Southern counterpart Weyrwoman Karika – but he'd been summoned away to collect his own grandmother, Lady Coffleby, for the Hatching.
He asked Luciwe to figure out which of the seven Southern dragons visiting Madellon were the correct pair to hand over Karika's gifts. And while G'kalte's brown, Archidath, offered Luciwe some intelligence on the Southern seven, his advice was somewhat garbled! Nonetheless, Luciwe unravelled Archidath's confusing suggestions and got the right packages to the right dragons – without being growled at!
A Masterful order
In the dining hall, Luciwe 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, Luciwe 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. Luciwe 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 Luciwe a certain confidence in his own prospects!
A rising problem
Luciwe 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. Luciwe'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 Luciwe did annoy Soleigh, who wasn't impressed with him for prolonging Maris' binge by bringing her more wine!
Kitchen diplomacy
Madellon's kitchens – the heart of the Weyr, and domain of Headwoman Crauva – provided Luciwe with the opportunity to show off his work ethic before the Hatching. A round of chores duly pleased Crauva. And the kitchen was also the source of the hotfruit R'hren had sent Luciwe to find for his warming salve.
A shining example
Coming upon Santinoth – Madellon's biggest bronze – being bathed in the lake, Luciwe 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?
Hair today
Mindful of the Weyrlingmaster's orders to be smart for the Hatching, Luciwe visited Madellon's resident barber – green rider Z'fell – for a trim. Very conscious of his dignity, Luciwe ensured he came away with a cut he actually liked.
A slithery customer
Early in the day, Luciwe found out about a secret way into the Hatching Ground via storeroom that might allow him a sneaky peek at the eggs before the Hatching. Successfully entering the combination to the lock on the storeroom door, and suitably equipped with a glowbasket, he crawled into a confusing maze of passages.
By a stroke of ill luck, Luciwe strayed into tunnel snake territory! A huge, aggressive, and potently venomous female tunnel-snake guarded the exit to the Hatching ground. Luciwe was lucky to avoid being bitten. But ultimately he evaded the snake, dodging past it and slipping out onto the Hatching Sands.
Having survived his encounter with the snake, Luciwe crept closer to the clutch – close enough to touch an egg – before beating a hasty retreat from the Hatching Ground! And something about the blotchy pale turquoise egg made him feel strangely certain that he would Impress later that day.
The Hatching
When it came to the Hatching, Luciwe had to wait a little while before the blotchy pale turquoise egg Hatched to reveal the bright olive-green dragonet who would choose him, naming herself Acostiath.
With friends like these...
But Luciwe's Impression of Acostiath came at a cost – to Soburn. Acostiath had looked like she was about to choose Soburn before Luciwe pushed in front of him – claiming the green for himself. It would turn out to be a critical blow to Soburn's confidence. No other dragonet took an interest in him, and he was ultimately among the candidates left standing.
Whatever happened to Rielat?
Rielat didn't turn up for the pre-Hatching muster, and – Luciwe's own suspicions notwithstanding – L'stev guessed that he had probably got himself lost trying to sneak into the Hatching Ground through the dangerous ventilation tunnels. Fortunately – Luciwe supposed – Weyrlingmaster A'len located the missing candidate, but too late for Rielat, who having been found unconscious, was promptly invalided out of standing!
After the Hatching
"Acostiath" by Emily Holland
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Luciwe 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 Acostiath's first meal. That was the first moment Luciwe had truly grasped that Soburn wasn't going to be a weyrling alongside him – a truth that hit hard. In Soburn'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 Acostiath's personality started to become evident. The rather slender olive-green dragonet demonstrated an immediate haughty pride in herself – and in her 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 Luciwe made along the way – a young Holdbred candidate, Nichen, whom Luciwe had encountered in a hopelessly dishevelled state directly before the Hatching – hailed Luciwe at the barracks – crediting him with his successful Impression of a moon-blue dragonet, Yooth!
Meeting the Weyrleader
As Luciwe 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. Luciwe was proud to introduce Acostiath to the Weyrleader. And after a brief conference with Acostiath, Luciwe gave the Weyrleader his own new name: L'ciwe, rider of green Acostiath!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Acostiath's and Destrath's newborn itchiness, L'ciwe 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
L'ciwe and Ch'liam soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk L'ciwe 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, L'ciwe's grandfather, was in a state of high dudgeon about his grandson's Impression of a green. A tense scene ensued, with the Weyrleaders obliged to step in to defend L'ciwe from his grandfather's fury – but the damage was already done.
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for L'ciwe, 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, L'ciwe 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 L'ciwe'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 L'ciwe 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 Acostiath.
A close encounter
On his way back to the barracks , L'ciwe 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 L'ciwe 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, L'ciwe decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Acostiath – billeted between Ch'liam's Destrath and a bright bronze dragonet – L'ciwe 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 green beside him – L'ciwe 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 Luciwe's Impression here. L'ciwe and Acostiath's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
L'ciwe'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
Acostiath and I complement each other!
Achievement Unlocked:
THE PATH LESS TRAVELLED
I pre-Impressed Acostiath by touching her egg before the Hatching!
Achievement Unlocked:
SUGAR AND SPICE
I've been a very nice person (so far)!
Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY
Acostiath and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
BUM NOTE
Acostiath and I disagreed on something quite important!