T'riella and blue Alinulath
The Road So Far!
It all began at Jessaf Hold, in the protectorate of Madellon Weyr, for Tauriella – a young woman of 17 Turns, dreaming of becoming a blue rider.
Tauriella was born to unusual privilege – a granddaughter of Winstone, Lord of mighty Jessaf Hold. Tauriella 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, Tauriella 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 Tauriella becoming a candidate – displeased that such a opportunity would ruin his plans for Tauriella's betrothal to a nephew of Lord Orfen's. But he grudgingly accepted that, as Tauriella had her majority, she had the right to accept Search. And with Winstone's admonition that she should remember her place as his granddaughter and not make a scene ringing in her ears, Tauriella left to begin her candidacy at Madellon Weyr.
As a candidate, Tauriella 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 Tauriella! Backed up by her crony Cedranne, Auciet became the thorn in Tauriella's side throughout the sevendays of candidacy.
Hatching Day
The dragons' hum woke Erilde and Tauriella 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 Tauriella 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, Tauriella 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 Tauriella to find it. Despite Tauriella'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, Tauriella encountered R'hren, a former Weyrleader of Madellon, now peacefully retired to potter among his beloved plants. R'hren asked Tauriella to help him track down the ingredients for a warming salve to help his elderly bronze, Staamath, with his arthritic forepaws. Tauriella duly located the components of R'hren's salve, winning the old bronze rider's approval in the process.
A Masterful order
In the dining hall, Tauriella 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, Tauriella 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. Tauriella 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 Tauriella a certain confidence in her own prospects!
A rising problem
Tauriella 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. Tauriella'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.
Kitchen diplomacy
Madellon's kitchens – the heart of the Weyr, and domain of Headwoman Crauva – provided Tauriella 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 Tauriella to find for his warming salve.
A shining example
Coming upon Santinoth – Madellon's biggest bronze – being bathed in the lake, Tauriella was quick to offer assistance to his rider, T'rello. Perhaps Tauriella was never going to Impress a bronze – but it couldn't hurt to have some hands-on experience!
Friend request
Seeking knowledge of Erilde's parentage, Tauriella 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 Tauriella might construct a story about a long-dead rider. Tauriella 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!
The Hatching
When it came to the Hatching, Tauriella had an excruciatingly long wait before the gleaming blue egg Hatched to reveal the bright indigo-blue dragonet who would choose her, naming himself Alinulath.
A friend in me
And Tauriella wasn't the only lucky one. To her delight, Erilde also Impressed, becoming the rider of an inquisitive teal-green hatchling, Shaldeth.
Whatever happened to Auciet?
Sadly, there was at least one fly in the numbweed. Auciet Impressed an unusually aggressive grass-green hatchling, making them Tauriella and Alinulath's new classmates. (On the bright side, at least Cedranne didn't Impress!)
After the Hatching
"Alinulath" by Emily Holland
The Weyrlingmaster was the first to congratulate Tauriella 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 Alinulath's first meal. That was Tauriella's first opportunity to speak to Erilde, too, and they introduced each other, with considerable delight, to their respective dragonets, Alinulath and Shaldeth.
It wasn't long before Alinulath's personality started to become evident. The big indigo-blue dragonet, the largest of his colour, showed his alert and serious nature from the beginning, demonstrating a high degree of focus for a blue.
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 Tauriella made along the way – a young Weyrbred candidate, Brithie, whom Tauriella had encountered in a sudden crisis of confidence directly before the Hatching – hailed Tauriella at the barracks – crediting her with her successful Impression of a tiny bottle-green dragonet, Epatanth!
Meeting the Weyrleader
As Tauriella 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 in particular to remark upon Tauriella's unusual Impression of a blue. T'gat further enquired if Tauriella would like to elide her name, as T'gala had done, or not. Tauriella took up the opportunity to rename herself, and after a brief conference with Alinulath, Tauriella gave the Weyrleader her new name – T'riella, rider of blue Alinulath!
Following their audience with the Weyrleader, and the application of oily rags to relieve Alinulath's and Shaldeth's newborn itchiness, T'riella 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
T'riella and Erilde soon went their separate ways to find family and friends. Many of the riders and Weyrfolk T'riella 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, T'riella's grandfather, was outraged by his granddaughter's highly irregular Impression of a blue dragon – calling her aberrant. The Weyrleaders were quick to take T'riella's part, but the damage to her relationship with her grandfather was done.
The rest of the evening passed in a blur for T'riella, 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, T'riella 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 T'riella'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 T'riella 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 Alinulath.
A close encounter
On her way back to the barracks , T'riella 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 T'riella 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, T'riella decided, on balance, not to tell the Weyrlingmaster about the stranger.
Returning at last to Alinulath – billeted between Erilde's Shaldeth and a pale green dragonet – T'riella 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 – T'riella 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 Tauriella's Impression here. T'riella and Alinulath's story will continue in Dragonchoice: Weyrling, coming soon!
T'riella'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
Alinulath and I complement each other!
Achievement Unlocked:
SUGAR AND SPICE
I've been a very nice person (so far)!
Achievement Unlocked:
EBONY AND IVORY
Alinulath and I agreed on something very important!
Achievement Unlocked:
BUM NOTE
Alinulath and I disagreed on something quite important!
Achievement Unlocked:
BFFs
Alinulath and Chanth made friends!