Retilka and green Apodanth
The Road So Far!
It all began at Madellon Weyr for Retilka – a young woman of 16 Turns, dreaming of becoming a dragonrider.
Retilka was born the daughter of Nelya, a Headwoman's Second at Madellon Weyr. While she didn't have to be Searched, she 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, Retilka struggled with both her modest upbringing as a Weyr child with no rider blood, and her fear that she wasn't dragonrider material.
As a candidate, Retilka was assigned a bunkmate – Erilde, a quiet young woman from the Lower Caverns fearing a second unsuccessful Hatching, 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 – Auciet, a snobby and superior Holdbred girl – who took a firm disliking to Retilka! Backed up by her crony Cedranne, Auciet became the thorn in Retilka's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Erilde and Retilka on 102.03.17. Following a brief run-in with Auciet, 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 Retilka left, Erilde asked her to make enquiries about any dragonrider heritage she herself might possess, to give her confidence a boost before the Hatching.
The one-armed green rider and the thieving queen
Immediately on leaving the candidate barracks, Retilka 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 Retilka to find it. The quest took Retilka all over Madellon, from kitchens to lake to infirmary – but in the end she succeeded in reuniting the Weyrwoman's jewellery set, to general acclaim.
Respecting her elders
In the Weyr's kitchen gardens, Retilka encountered R'hren, a former Weyrleader of Madellon, now peacefully retired to potter among his beloved plants. R'hren asked Retilka to help him track down the ingredients for a warming salve to help his elderly bronze, Staamath, with his arthritic forepaws. Retilka 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, Retilka offered it to old S'rius, who was equally appreciative of the gift. And while Kisha, the blind old green rider Retilka encountered in the infirmary, would have nothing to do with one of R'hren's concoctions, she too grew to approve of Retilka – especially after she solved all three of her fiendish riddles!
Southern comfort
Retilka 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 Retilka 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 Retilka some intelligence on the Southern seven, his advice was somewhat garbled! Nonetheless, Retilka 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, Retilka met her 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, Retilka 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. Retilka even shared the largesse with Zielaph, who then introduced her to Fr'ton – who, having Impressed a bronze in spite of his less than boundless promise, gave Retilka a certain confidence in her own prospects!
A rising problem
Retilka 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. And while Retilka did manage to get G'tron excluded from the flight – not to mention another blue rider, G'pellas, who was needed in the Harper ensemble – she still ultimately failed to reconcile the star-crossed green riding lovers!
Kitchen diplomacy
Madellon's kitchens – the heart of the Weyr, and domain of Headwoman Crauva – provided Retilka with the opportunity to show off her 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 Retilka to find for his warming salve.
Eggs and baskets
A visit to the Archives led to a meeting with Tarshe, Madellon's Weyrwoman Second. When Retilka expressed an interested in looking up some Weyr records, Tarshe offered her the loan of a glowbasket – on the proviso that she return it afterwards. But with one thing and another, Retilka didn't bring it back – earning the Weyrwoman Second's ire!
A blue lady
Coming across T'gala, Pern's only female blue rider, bathing her Heppeth in the lake, Retilka 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 Retilka didn't want to pass up.
Friend request
Seeking knowledge of Erilde's parentage, Retilka visited the Weyr's Archives and sought advice from Weyrwoman Tarshe, the Weyrwoman Second. While Tarshe could find no evidence that Erilde's father had been a dragonrider, she suggested Retilka might construct a story about a long-dead rider. Retilka delved into Madellon's records and unearthed a brown rider, B'get, deceased some Turns ago, but of the right age to have fathered her friend. Bringing this plausible white lie to Erilde may have been a tad devious – but it had the desired effect on her belief that she could, in fact, possess the ability to Impress a dragon!
Hair today
Mindful of the Weyrlingmaster's orders to be smart for the Hatching, Retilka visited Madellon's resident barber – green rider Z'fell – for a trim. Very conscious of her dignity, Retilka ensured she came away with a cut she actually liked.
A breath of foul air
Early in the day, Retilka found out about a secret way into the Hatching Ground via storeroom that might allow her 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, she crawled into a confusing maze of passages. The route she chose turned out to be thick with choking toxic fumes from Madellon's volcanic foundation, and Retilka soon found herself struggling for breath. And then she came across Auciet – having apparently followed Retilka into the passageways – lying unconscious and insensible in the fume-filled tunnel.
Perhaps it was the toxic air, or perhaps not – but when Retilka crawled out onto the Hatching sands, she didn't drag Auciet out with her – and nor did she tell the Weyrleader about her stricken fellow candidate. Overcome by the ordeal, Retilka fainted.
Retilka woke in the infirmary – only to be interrogated by a very grim Weyrleader T'gat and Weyrlingmaster L'stev. Auciet had been found – dead. And only some very quick talking on Retilka's part spared her from being thrown out of the Weyr entirely.
The Hatching
When it came to the Hatching, Retilka had an excruciatingly long wait before the spotted green and cream egg Hatched to reveal the vivid sea-green dragonet who would choose her, naming herself Apodanth.
A friend in me
And Retilka wasn't the only lucky one. To her delight, Erilde also Impressed, becoming the rider of an inquisitive teal-green hatchling, Shaldeth.
After the Hatching
"Apodanth" by Emily Holland
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Retilka on her Impression, but it was old S'rius, delighted to have found yet another weyrling, who stepped in to help with the immediate matter of Apodanth's first meal. That was Retilka's first opportunity to speak to Erilde, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Apodanth and Shaldeth.
It wasn't long before Apodanth'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 Retilka made along the way – a young Weyrbred candidate, Brithie, whom Retilka had encountered in a sudden crisis of confidence directly before the Hatching – hailed Retilka at the barracks – crediting her with her successful Impression of a tiny bottle-green dragonet, Epatanth!
Meeting the Weyrleader
As Retilka and Erilde 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. Retilka was proud to introduce Apodanth to the Weyrleader – and to give him her full new name: Retilka, rider of green Apodanth!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Apodanth's and Shaldeth's newborn itchiness, Retilka and Erilde 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
Retilka and Erilde soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk Retilka had helped during the day greeted her with warm congratulations as she hunted through the throng – but, at last, she found her family.
Retilka's mother, Nelya, was thrilled by her daughter's Impression – though perhaps not quite as ecstatic as Retilka's younger siblings, Ashi and Halante. As the first dragonrider in the family, Retilka was keenly aware of what it meant to her brother and sister. And when the Weyrleaders came to drink a toast to Retilka and Apodanth, Valonna was particularly delighted for Nelya – one of her most trusted Headwoman Seconds.
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for Retilka, 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, Retilka 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 Retilka'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 Retilka some advice about paying attention to her new classmates and surroundings, lest she fall foul of the Weyrlingmaster's penchant for snap quizzes, advised her to report to Master Isnan before returning to the barracks to get her injuries checked again, and made some observations on Apodanth.
A close encounter
On her way back to the barracks (by way of the infirmary, as ordered by Tarshe), Retilka 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 Retilka 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, Retilka decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Apodanth – billeted between Erilde's Shaldeth and a pale green dragonet – Retilka 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 – Retilka 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?
Retilka and Apodanth's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
Retilka'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
Apodanth and I complement each other!
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
Apodanth and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
BUM NOTE
Apodanth and I disagreed on something quite important!
Achievement Unlocked:
RIEN DE RIEN
I left Auciet to die, and I regret nothing!