D'ran and green Atenith
The Road So Far!
It all began at Madellon Weyr for Dahoran – a young boy of 13 Turns, dreaming of becoming a bronze rider.
Dahoran was born the son of Nelya, a Headwoman's Second at 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. As a first-time candidate with no dragonrider blood, Dahoran looked forward to the Hatching with both excitement and trepidation – fearing he might not have what it takes to Impress, but hoping beyond hope that he would!
As a candidate, Dahoran was assigned a bunkmate – Martom, a confident young Weyrbred lad, 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 – Gydeton, the blustering, entitled son of Lord Meturvian of Kellad – who took a firm disliking to Dahoran! Backed up by his crony Varell, Gydeton became the thorn in Dahoran's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Martom and Dahoran on 102.03.17. Following a brief run-in with Gydeton, 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 Dahoran left, Martom – keen to prove himself by Impressing on his first attempt – asked him for help procuring some additional confidence in the form of some alcohol.
The one-armed green rider and the thieving queen
Immediately on leaving the candidate barracks, Dahoran 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 Dahoran to find it. The quest took Dahoran 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 infirmary, Dahoran encountered Kisha – a blind old green rider giving the Weyr's Healers a difficult time about taking her medicine. Kisha challenged Dahoran to answer three riddles before she would consent to behave. And Dahoran rose to that challenge – answering all three correctly, and winning Kisha's grudging respect!
Southern comfort
Dahoran 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 Dahoran 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 Dahoran some intelligence on the Southern seven, his advice was somewhat garbled! Nonetheless, Dahoran 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, Dahoran 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, Dahoran 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.
Kitchen diplomacy
Madellon's kitchens – the heart of the Weyr, and domain of Headwoman Crauva – provided Dahoran with the opportunity to show off his work ethic before the Hatching. A round of chores duly pleased Crauva.
Eggs and baskets
A visit to the Archives led to a meeting with Tarshe, Madellon's Weyrwoman Second. When Dahoran 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 – Dahoran did!
A shining example
Coming upon Santinoth – Madellon's biggest bronze – being bathed in the lake, Dahoran 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
Given Dahoran's age, finding some wine for Martom proved difficult – the Weyr Vintner, Master Saxton, refused to sell it to an underage candidate. His only other alternative was an illicit purchase from the shady figure of Grimes. And L'stev's warning about getting drunk before the Hatching held weight. The Vintner's offering of alcohol-free grape juice gave Dahoran an idea – and offering it to Martom, none the wiser for the substitution, still had the desired effect of boosting his confidence before the Hatching – without any unwanted side-effects!
Hair today
Mindful of the Weyrlingmaster's orders to be smart for the Hatching, Dahoran visited Madellon's resident barber – green rider Z'fell – for a trim. Very conscious of his dignity, Dahoran ensured he came away with a cut he actually liked.
A breath of foul air
Early in the day, Dahoran 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. The route he chose turned out to be thick with choking toxic fumes from Madellon's volcanic foundation, and Dahoran soon found himself struggling for breath. And then he came across Gydeton – having apparently followed Dahoran into the passageways – lying unconscious and insensible in the fume-filled tunnel.
Perhaps it was the toxic air, or perhaps not – but when Dahoran crawled out onto the Hatching sands, he didn't drag Gydeton out with him – and nor did he tell the Weyrleader about his stricken fellow candidate. Overcome by the ordeal, Dahoran fainted.
Dahoran woke in the infirmary – only to be interrogated by a very grim Weyrleader T'gat and Weyrlingmaster L'stev. Gydeton had been found – dead. And only some very quick talking on Dahoran's part spared him from being thrown out of the Weyr entirely.
The Hatching
When it came to the Hatching, Dahoran had an excruciatingly long wait before the rough-textured cloudy white egg Hatched to reveal the vivid grassy-green dragonet who would choose him, naming herself Atenith.
But Atenith was nearly beaten to Dahoran by another dragonet – a bright golden-bronze hatchling who seemed torn between Dahoran and Martom. Sensing that he wasn't the best match for him, Dahoran stepped aside to give his friend precedence – resulting in Martom's Impression of the little bronze, Kauth.
After the Hatching
"Atenith" by Emily Holland
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Dahoran 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 Atenith's first meal. That was Dahoran's first opportunity to speak to Martom, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Atenith and Kauth. Martom also told Dahoran that his new name was to be – perhaps unsurprisingly – M'tom.
It wasn't long before Atenith's personality started to become evident. The little grass-green dragonet, small for her colour, made up for her size with a fierce, aggressive personality – and very evident teeth!
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 Dahoran and M'tom 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. Dahoran was proud to introduce Atenith to the Weyrleader. And after a brief conference with Atenith, Dahoran gave the Weyrleader his own new name: D'ran, rider of green Atenith!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Atenith's and Kauth's newborn itchiness, D'ran and M'tom 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
D'ran and M'tom soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk D'ran had helped during the day greeted him with warm congratulations as he hunted through the throng – but, at last, he found his family.
D'ran's mother, Nelya, was thrilled by her son's Impression – though perhaps not quite as ecstatic as D'ran's younger siblings, Ashi and Halante. As the first dragonrider in the family, D'ran was keenly aware of what it meant to his brother and sister. And when the Weyrleaders came to drink a toast to D'ran and Atenith, Valonna was particularly delighted for Nelya – one of her most trusted Headwoman Seconds.
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for D'ran, 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, D'ran 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 D'ran'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 D'ran some advice about paying attention to his new classmates and surroundings, lest he fall foul of the Weyrlingmaster's penchant for snap quizzes, advised him to report to Master Isnan before returning to the barracks to get his injuries checked again, and made some observations on Atenith.
A close encounter
On his way back to the barracks (by way of the infirmary, as ordered by Tarshe), D'ran 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 D'ran 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, D'ran decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Atenith – billeted between M'tom's Kauth and a mucky-looking brown dragonet – D'ran 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 – D'ran 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?
D'ran and Atenith's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
D'ran'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:
THEY'RE DEAD, DAVE
I changed my name to respect the deceased!
Achievement Unlocked:
OPPOSITES ATTRACT
I make quite a strange match with Atenith!
Achievement Unlocked:
SUGAR AND SPICE
I've been a very nice person (so far)!
Achievement Unlocked:
PLEASE STATE THE NATURE OF THE MEDICAL EMERGENCY
I returned to the infirmary!
Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY
Atenith and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
BUM NOTE
Atenith and I disagreed on something quite important!
Achievement Unlocked:
RIEN DE RIEN
I left Gydeton to die, and I regret nothing!