Morning Watch {open}

[slush]

T'val was stewing.  This was not unusual.  What was atypical, however, was that Neropth was not chiding the man for his brooding.  The ruby was Uncharacteristically silent.  His rider felt somewhat bereft, lacking the bubbly stream of dragon conversation in his mind.  He paced back and forth before the Star Stones, but he did not prod Neropth.  He knew what was wrong with the ruby.  One need only look at the poor beast's hide to see it.  His color--which lacked the sparkle of most of his fellows even at the best of times--was positively ashen.  Of course, most of the rest of the Weyr was no better.  The loss of the veteran queens had taken a harsh toll on the lot of them, the bronzes and rubies in particular.

Who goes there? Neropth suddenly demanded, rising up on his haunches and accompanying his query with an emphatic bellow.

Easy, Nere! T'val counseled, raising a hand to the startled brown that Neropth's outcry had caused to frantically backwing.  He waved his arm, urging the confused rider to continue landing.

I am doing my duty! The ruby countered, stubborn as ever.  Everyone is supposed to announce himself. He did not. 

Yes, T'val began, trying not to let exasperation color his tone, but that is Spoth.  You know Spoth, and his rider.  They are not threats to the Weyr or Destinith.

Neropth shifted uncomfortably, still fixing an eye on the now-descending brown.  He made no reply, but T'val could hear the dragon's retort nonetheless.

"I do appreciate you taking watch duty seriously," the man ventured aloud, pausing in his restless circling to lay a hand on the bleached red hide.  Neropth merely snorted.  As if he would ever take any duty less than seriously.  In truth, T'val couldn't fault his vigilance, not with the way things stood.  The Weyr teetered on the edge of a terrifying precipice, and as a whole they were too sunk in mourning to even begin to think how to pull themselves out.  At least, that's how it seemed to T'val.  But the ruby rider often tread the turbulent waters of depression, so perhaps he was merely projecting.

The man sighed, his shoulders slumping.  He, too, scanned the skies and the ground far below.  Normally, watch duty found him struggling to keep awake, but today he was alert, twitchy even.  He took a swig of water from the skin hanging at his side.  He felt as if he'd spent the night too far gone in wine, but he'd done nothing other than mend riding straps. He shook his head, pushing off from Neropth's flank with an affectionate slap.  The dragon returned his sentiment by nudging his shoulder and buffeting him with a wave of hot breath.

The pair remained thus for the duration of their watch, tension radiating from their taut frames.  T'val was of the private opinion that, should disaster strike again, it would slink in unobtrusively (and certainly not while they remained on high alert), but he wouldn't let it be said that he shirked his duty and let evil sneak in.

[summerrain]

Maki sighed and looked up at the early morning sky. She and Kayami were used to waking early, but there was no reason for them to go hunting here; in fact, it was discouraged. They were warned against leaving the Weyr once their parents had agreed to let them stay as Candidates. Dangers lurked, it was true. But being cooped up behind walls was just unnatural to the Caravanborn girl and her friend. So, to stave off boredom, she decided to check out the spot where one Rider was always on watch. Oh, the Watch Heights, that's what they were called. This morning it was a man and a Ruby dragon, but the Ruby looked... Ill.

"I hope I'm not a bother," Maki said as she walked up to them. "I was told that this was the best place for a view of the whole Weyr." She stood, one hand over her eyes as she looked out at the Weyr below, wind blowing her red-brown hair around. Rosetta was settled on her shoulder, but the little Ruby flit went over to her cousin and rested on the crown of his head, chirping a question at him about his well-being.

"So, I have a question..." Maki said, hesitating. "I know about what happened to the Senior Queens, but... Why are all of the dragons so sick looking? I haven't been in a Weyr for a while, we can sometimes go whole seasons without even seeing a dragon, but even I know that something's wrong with the dragons." She turned to look at T'val. "From what little time our Caravan spent in Ista, Igen, and the other Weyrs, I've noticed that dragons don't usually mourn the way people do..." She was much more observant than some people gave her credit for. "They know that death happens, even when brutality is death's agent... But I've never seen anything like this..." She moved toward Neropth, reaching out a hand toward him, though she did not touch his hide. That was for him to decide. "It isn't natural for a whole Weyr's dragons to do this..."

[slush]

T'val noted Maki's progress long before the Candidate reached his vantage point on the heights.  Black-brown eyes alternated between surveying the Weyr proper and tracking her lone figure.  What she was doing up here he couldn't fathom, but he wasn't about to shoo her off unless she started making trouble.  A more social rider might have hailed her as she approached, but that wasn't his style.  Subdued silence reigned.  He was surprised when the girl addressed him unprompted.  Most Candidates (especially those not weyrbred, and considering he didn't recognize her, he assumed she wasn't native) were too intimidated by ruby riders to do more than stammer polite greetings.

Still, he didn't offer a vocal welcome.  A cordial nod was all the acknowledgement Maki received; he was, after all, a man of few words.  Neropth was preoccupied by Kayami perching boldly on his crown--the dragon's eyes rolled upward as he endeavored to examine the fire-lizard.  He emitted a low reverberation, curiosity piqued.

T'val was startled that the child ventured to ask him a question.  It was a surprisingly apt one, too.  He turned to look fully at her finally, intrigued by her insight.  It would be good information for her to know, he decided.  Luckily, Neropth was too distracted by the Candidate's companion to hear her comments about his condition.  Otherwise, he'd be demanding a thorough bathing and oiling once their watch had ended.  Not that T'val would begrudge him such ministrations, but he'd just had both last night.

"Well," the man began as he appraised Maki, "It's a bit difficult to explain to someone who hasn't experienced it, but I'll try.  Dragons are extremely social creatures.  They cannot survive beyond birth without humans, and a healthy existence also requires the companionship of their own kind. The queens especially are critical. A senior queen is the centerpoint of her Weyr.  Her existence bolsters all the dragons.  The bronzes and rubies in particular have a very deep connection with the weyrqueens.  Often, the health of the Weyr at large is reflected in the queens, and vice versa.  The loss of a queen--particular in such a violent, unexpected manner..."  He trailed off, laying a consoling hand on Neropth's flank.  The ruby had tuned in to his rider's words now and let out a mournful croon.  "It is a profound shock for the dragons.  They lose the supportive balm that the queen provided.  They have short memories, it's true, but even a dragon takes a long time to get over such a grief."  His voice was bleak, with a bit of a catch.  It pained him more than he could express to be utterly unable to ease the suffering of his lifemate.  But that, at least, was not something he would broach with Maki.  It wouldn't due to scare her away from Candidacy, not with the Weyr's dire need.  "The color of a dragon's hide is a very good indicator of his health.  Greying or dullness suggests illness or mourning."  The rote words he'd learned as a Weyrling restored his equilibrium somewhat.

He continued speaking, though his voice was low.  It was almost to himself rather than the girl.  "It's a heavy burden young Destinith and her rider bear now.  I hope they are equal to the task."  The morale of the Weyr was lower than he'd ever felt, or perhaps he so often tread the tumultuous waters of depression that he couldn't quite bring himself to hope.

They will do very well, Neropth asserted, his serene consciousness flooding the rider's mind.  You and I shall help them.

T'val suppressed a small, indulgent smile.  Such smugness was unusual in the ruby.  The ebony must be close to rising, T'val surmised, so his dragon's instincts were all stirred up. 

We'll just see about that, my love.  Just remember, the task of catching Destinith will be nothing compared to what comes after it!


His dark eyes slid back into focus and rested once more on Maki.  "Neropth won't mind if you touch him," he said, noting her reaching hand.  "He particularly likes his headknobs skritched."


The ruby, sensing scratches in his future, swung his head obligingly toward the Candidate after nudging his rider's chest.  Of course, he was careful not to disturb Kayami.

[summerrain]

Rosetta chirped again at the large Ruby dragon, wishing that his hide was just as shimmery as hers, as shiny as it was supposed to be. Surely a Ruby of such size would be a grand sight soaring through the sky!

"It sounds a lot like a hive mind..." Maki said quietly. "Or, maybe more like... A Pack mentality, that's what it is. The other caravans tended to have a number of guard canines, I could see it there too. And the wild ones are the same way." She giggled softly when Neropth's head turned toward her, and she reached her hand up to his headknobs. "Oh, I would like to see you in your full splendor one day," she told him, her voice barely above a whisper. She could easily see the picture that her Ruby flit sent her. A grand sight it was, the sunlight glinting off Neropth's hide in the way it does only with a Ruby.

"My parents were Weyrborn, my mother from Ista and my father from Igen," she admitted. "But, they never had strong ties to their families... I do not quite understand that yet. It is still a foreign concept to me, being unable to see my mother and father every day." She shook her head, putting her other hand on the Ruby King's head as well. She had been hesitant at first, knowing that not all dragons liked to be touched by strangers, especially without warning, but this one... "I bet you'll be the King of Kings when you get back that unique Ruby sparkle. And Rosette would certainly like to fly with you once everything settles down."

[slush]

"Yes, that's an apt analogy.  I suppose it's just stronger in dragons because their intelligence is so much greater than canines.  And because we are so closely linked to them, of course."  He drummed his fingers against Neropth's flank thoughtfully.  The ruby paid him no mind; he was too busy lapping up Maki's attention.  He wasn't typically so sociable, but recent (and impending) events had him all stirred up.  He leaned into the Candidates caresses.

T'val smiled knowingly as Maki spoke of her family.  "I wasn't Weyrbred, either," he told her.  "I grew up in Black Sands Hold, in a mining family."  Shells, but it seemed a lifetime ago.  He'd been such a different person then; his family probably wouldn't even recognize the man he'd become.  Perhaps his younger brother might, but then that was the only one he'd bothered correspond with, these days.  "I can't say I fit in well with my family, truth be told, but even so...should you Impress and remain here, you might be surprised at how quickly you adapt.  Dragons are..."'  He paused, trying to find a delicate way to phrase what some might take as a criticism.  "Well, to be frank, they're all-consuming.  It takes more time and energy than any Weyrling realizes, to care for and coexist with a dragon.  It's hard to devote time to others when the greatest companion of your life is taking up so much space inside."  His voice lowered.  "That's why so many riders have no children, or else they foster.  A child needs more attention than many riders can afford to give.  Neglecting a dragon has consequences just as dire as neglecting a babe..."  It wasn't a reality that was spoken of often, but it was reality nonetheless.  Of course, the dangers inherent in the lifestyle discouraged child-rearing, as well.

T'val fell silent.  He was unloading rather a lot for the poor Candidate to digest.  He didn't want to scare her off, after all.  What he said next was perhaps the truest words he'd spoken yet.  "At any rate, no mater what you may leave behind, if you Impress...it'll be the best of your life that's yet to come, without question."

Neropth snorted.  Whether it was in derision at perceived flattery or genuine agreement, T'val couldn't tell.