Kimberly and blue Basamith
The Road So Far!
It all began at the Harperhall at Kellad Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Kimberly – a young girl of 13 Turns, dreaming of becoming a blue rider.
Kimberly was born the daughter of two Harpers at the Southern Harperhall, Kellad Hold. Surrounded by music, she was apprenticed to the Craft when she came of age. But she never excelled in any discipline, and it seemed as if an unremarkable career as a mid-level journeyman likely lay ahead for her. And then, in early 102, J'kel – a dragonrider of Madellon Weyr – came to Kellad Hold in search of candidates for the new clutch hardening on the Sands of Madellon Weyr. Kimberly caught the attention of J'kel's blue Hozrath. And a sevenday later, Kimberly arrived at Madellon Weyr, joining the candidate pool for senior queen Shimpath's first clutch by her new mate Muzzanth.
As a candidate, Kimberly 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 Kimberly! Backed up by her crony Berrin, Thippia became the thorn in Kimberly's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Jopha and Kimberly 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 Kimberly left, Jopha – whose Impression robe was sadly overlarge for her petite frame – recruited Kimberly'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, Kimberly 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 Kimberly to find it. Despite Kimberly's best efforts, though, she didn't manage to complete and return the jewellery set before the Hatching.
Respecting her elders
In the Weyr's kitchen gardens, Kimberly encountered R'hren, a former Weyrleader of Madellon, now peacefully retired to potter among his beloved plants. R'hren asked Kimberly to help him track down the ingredients for a warming salve to help his elderly bronze, Staamath, with his arthritic forepaws. Kimberly 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, Kimberly offered it to old S'rius, who was equally appreciative of the gift. And while Kisha, the blind old green rider Kimberly encountered in the infirmary, would have nothing to do with one of R'hren's concoctions, she too grew to approve of Kimberly – especially after she solved all three of her fiendish riddles!
Southern comfort
Kimberly 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 Kimberly 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 Kimberly some intelligence on the Southern seven, his advice was somewhat garbled! Nonetheless, Kimberly unravelled Archidath's confusing suggestions and got the right packages to the right dragons – without being growled at!
A Harper born
Kimberly's Harper training came in handy when Carleah, the Weyr Singer, asked her to play a set with her ensemble in the dining hall. They played to a rapturous reception that gave Kimberly's confidence – and her mark purse – quite a boost!
Hot stuff
Madellon's kitchen was the source of the hotfruit R'hren had sent Kimberly to find for his warming salve. Headwoman Crauva handed one over immediately she asked for it, pleased to be helping such an august figure as the old Weyrleader.
A blue lady
Coming across T'gala, Pern's only female blue rider, bathing her Heppeth in the lake, Kimberly 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 Kimberly didn't want to pass up.
Friend request
Knowing of Jopha's chequered history with Shookana, mistress of the Weyr's mending room, Kimberly approached the task of having her robe adjusted with considerable caution. Realising that falsehood would be the wrong approach, Kimberly went to Shookana with the truth – and a gift of popcorn. And while Kimberly 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, Kimberly had to wait for every other dragonet to Hatch and choose a rider before the green-clouded blue egg Hatched to reveal the dark steel-blue hatchling who would choose her, naming himself Basamith.
A friend in me
And Kimberly 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?
Thippia's victimisation of Kimberly had serious consequences – for Thippia. Not everyone would have tattled on her the way Kimberly did, but her complaints about the other girl, together with L'stev's already thin opinion of Thippia, had the desired effect. Directly before the Hatching, L'stev ejected Thippia from the candidate pool!
After the Hatching
"Basamith" by Emily Holland
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Kimberly on her Impression, but it was J'kel, thrilled that Hozrath had finally found a successful candidate after so long without, who stepped in to help with the immediate matter of Basamith's first meal. That was Kimberly's first opportunity to speak to Jopha, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Basamith and Deimoth.
It wasn't long before Basamith's personality started to become evident. The dark blue dragonet, among the smallest of his colour, turned out to be of an endearingly shy and modest character, rather requiring of encouragement.
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 Kimberly made along the way – a young Weyrbred candidate, Brithie, whom Kimberly had encountered in a sudden crisis of confidence directly before the Hatching – hailed Kimberly at the barracks – crediting her with her successful Impression of a tiny bottle-green dragonet, Epatanth!
Meeting the Weyrleader
As Kimberly 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 in particular to remark upon Kimberly's unusual Impression of a blue. T'gat further enquired if Kimberly would like to elide her name, as T'gala had done, or not. Kimberly elected not to elide her name – content to remain Kimberly, rider of blue Basamith!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Basamith's and Deimoth's newborn itchiness, Kimberly 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
Kimberly and Jopha soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk Kimberly had helped during the day greeted her with warm congratulations as she hunted through the throng – but, at last, she found her family.
Kimberly's Harper parents were absolutely delighted to find themselves the mother and father of a blue rider and happier still to learn that Kimberly had already brought her musical skills to the Weyr. And they were even more delighted to drink to Kimberly and Basamith when the Weyrleaders arrived to toast them!
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for Kimberly, 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, Kimberly 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 Kimberly'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 Kimberly 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 Basamith.
A close encounter
On her way back to the barracks , Kimberly 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 Kimberly 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, Kimberly decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Basamith – billeted between Jopha's Deimoth and a pale green dragonet – Kimberly 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 blue beside her – Kimberly 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 Kimberly's Impression here. Kimberly and Basamith's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
Kimberly'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
Basamith and I complement each other!
Achievement Unlocked:
SUGAR AND SPICE
I've been a very nice person (so far)!
Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY
Basamith and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
IN TUNE
Basamith and I agreed on something quite important!