The current time for zone 0 is: 2683.12.21 14:15:55
Xanadu Weyr - Meadow Ridge
The meadow continues its gentle rolls and dips, grass tall and short waving in the slightest of breezes. Each hill seems to grow a bit higher, a bit steeper, as eventually, the meadow works up to a large ridge, the top flattening out at its new elevation.
From the top of the ridge, the view is certainly something to be admired - higher than the majority of the trees, one can look out over the rest of Xanadu Weyr proper. The houses in the lower meadow - each roof a different color - and the clock tower peeking upwards from the its forest surroundings are all visible, as is the cliff that houses the Weyr Caverns themselves. And yet, the ridge also holds an amazing view of the night sky - horizon to horizon - unaffected by the light pollution of the more heavily traveled regions.
Settled upon the ridge is a rather distinctive looking building - nearing three stories tall, circular grey walls have carefully been erected, and a large dome is settled upon this solid foundation. Large panels make up the roof, aside from one section which remains open, and from which the telescope the struction houses peeks out. Sitting adjacent to the tower is a long, low building, meant to serve as offices, record rooms and dorms for those who man the observatory, as well as providing a handy platform for those who seek to use smaller, hand-held 'scopes.
The sun filters weakly through the low hanging clouds, being well on it's way to setting, but still a couple of hours away. Hair still damp from a recent bath, Tecoah reclines back on the ground with her head pillowed on one arm. Her other hand rests on her stomach, a young, long tailed, blue firelizard resting with his back touching her fingertips. Another, even smaller, green is curled up in the center of her chest, her chin pillowed on the runner crafter's right breast as the trio take advantage of a warm winter afternoon to relax under the sky.
Interrupting all that relaxation perhaps: the shadow of a large bronze dragon who cruises by overhead, then swings back around and comes to a landing a short distance away. From his back, a shaggy-haired rider slides down to the craggy spine of the ridge, pausing to give the dragon a good drubbing behind the headknobs with a fond hand. D'son pulls away a few steps after a moment or two, fingers unclapsing the fastenings of his jacket, the metal clips jingling a little as he does so. "It's a great place to chill out, isn't it?" he notes to the young woman lying there draped in lizards.
A shadow coming between her and the sun has Tecoah opening her eyes and squinting up at the sky. She watches as the bronze lands nearby, but doesn't move more than her head so that she won't disturb the sleeping 'lizards, "It really is." She watches him for a moment, the green, aparently a lighter sleeper than the blue, lifting her head to chirr first at her favorite bed, and then at the dragon and rider. The runner moves her hand to tap the smaller firelizard lightly on the top of the head and shushes her quietly.
Inimeth streeetches out once D'son has stepped away and then curls onto the ground, looking out at the view, nostrils flaring to sniff the wind. "This is one of my favorite spots in the whole Weyr," Dels notes with a grin and sweeps shaggy bang back out of his face. "D'son," he introduces himself next. "And that's Inimeth over there. Been up here long?"
Tecoah crains her neck to look at the bronze as he settles down, but returns her attention to the rider after only a moment. A small smile pulls at the corners of her mouth, "I think I'm getting to like it fairly well, myself. It's almost as good as the trace between Fort and Ruatha Holds up north." She gives the green an absent scritch as she settles back down to sleep again, "Tecoah. Runner on loan from the Telgar Station." It's a kind of an introduction, anyway, "And this is Pest and Nuisance." She indicates the green and blue 'lizards respectively, "I'd get up, but…" She's covered in sleeping criters. She shakes her head at the question, "Just long enough to get comfortable, really."
"Yeah? You know, I've never been on a trace though I've been on plenty of other random paths through things," D'son says thoughtfully, holds out his hand to shake Tecoah's leaning down within reach. "Well met Tecoah, and that's okay. Don't want to wake them up. They might get fussy." He nods towards a patch of ground nearby. "Mind company then? I mostly came up to sit and think for a bit."
"That's my favorite route. There's rarely more than one person and it gives you time to just think." Tecoah reaches up for his extended hand and gives it a quick shake, "Yeah, they get a little… irritating… when they're woke up." She gestures for him to sit, "Help yourself. That's really all I was doing." Thinking. And possibly heading the direction of a nap.
Plunking his bottom down in the wake of that invitation, D'son sheds his jacket and folds it across his lap. His hands drop down behind him and his face tilts up to the sun. "Yeah, I was just telling Rished the other day about how I used to live in a weyr with a bunch of wild lizards living on this little overhang above the ledge. They drove me plumb crazy sometimes."
Tecoah offers a wince of sympathy for that, "Ew… I can well imagine how that must have been." She looks down at the two sleeping on her, "I'm still not entirely sure how I ended up with Nuisance… It's not like I ws trying to lure him over or anything…" She makes a face, "That's what I get for trying to have a snack while watching a bunch of eggs crack, though. I lose my meatroll and get an extra mouth to feed." She may complain, but judging by the way the runs her finger down the little blue's back, she's grown rather fond of him, "And I really think Pest should have impressed to /him/ instead of me since he's the one that knocked his dinner off my lap for her when /she/ hatched."
"It wasn't always awful. I'd get Inimeth to keep them in line if I had to," D'son notes with a wry grin. "But that experience is part of why I've never wanted to impress one." He laughs at the story of how Tecoah's lizards came her way. "I'll take that as a warning to be careful of my food around fire lizard hatchings." Inimeth lets out a massive yawn and swishes his tail back and forth a little, then looks over at the jabbering pair over there. At first, his scrutiny is mild, but then he hunkers down a bit, more intent.
"I think that if I ever see another egg, I'm going to run the other direction as quickly as possible." And since Tecoah's a runner, that's probably pretty fast. She shakes her head a little, not really noticing the dragon's interest, "Well, I just hope I get a chance to train these two before they get too old. It's hard to get a moment to work with them when I'm constantly between places." Nuisance grumbles and lifts his head when she stops stroking him and puts her hand back on her stomach again. First he looks at the offending hand that's /not/ giving him attention, then he looks at the rider, and finally he looks at the dragon; returning the bronze's scrutiny, gaze for gaze.
"Heh, that sounds like a plan," D'son says with a little nod and stretches his legs out in front of him, like a plant drinking up sunshine, he seems. "Mm, probably need to teach them good discipline so they don't drive you bonkers." Inimeth's gaze focuses in on the blue and he sends lavender-scented tendrils of green-hued thought towards Nuisance, carrying with them a sense of interest in the blue lizard's 'pillow'. About that time, D'son looks up and over at Inimeth and draws in a breath. "So … if it was a dragon egg and not a fire lizard egg that you were seeing … would you still run the other way?"
Nuisance cocks his head at Inimeth for a moment, weighing the significance of that interest before he settles back down comfortably. It's only right that the large one would be interested in his person. She is his world and utterly perfect. Tecoah raises up on her elbows and frowns over at the rider, "Oh, I don't know… I've never thought about it before." Pest squawks indignately as she slides from her comfortable spot and down onto the blue, earning a hiss of protest from him, "I'm a runner, though. What dragon in its right mind is going to want me for a rider?"
"Mmm. Seems like a lot of people don't." Beat. "Think about it." But that answer makes D'son laugh, head tipped back and shaggy bangs falling away from his face. A hand lifts, thumb jerking towards Inimeth. "That one, actually. Well okay, he doesn't want you for /his/ rider, because he's got /me/ but he thinks you'd make /some/ dragon a good rider." He looks back over at Tecoah with a smile. "So … think about that for a minute or two. Think you could deal with having a dragon in your head for the rest of your life and maybe having to deal with flights and sweeps and drills and all the other things that go along with being a rider? Because Inimeth would like you to stand for Seryth's clutch."
A puzzled frown creases Tecoah's brow for a moment that only deepens when he laughs. She automaticly looks back at the bronze, her eyes widening in stunned surprise, "Me?!" Her voice rises an octive, "He wants /me/ to stand?" She looks back over at D'son, "Why would he think that /I'd/ make a good rider?" She doesn't mention that the thought of someday having to actually /ride/ a dragon scares her to death. She was born with two feet for a reason and she'd much rather keep them on the ground, thank you.
Creeping closer, Inimeth lets out a quiet croon and noses towards Tecoah's feet. Yes, she does have two feet. For standing! D'son's shoulders lift slowly and he runs a hand through his hair. "I don't know, he just says that your mind feels right. Whatever that means." Breath out and he balances his forearm atop one knee, looks over at Tecoah with a grin. "If you need a little time to think about it, or if you have questions and stuff, take your time. You don't have to answer right away. But it'd really make Inimeth happy."
Still looking stunned, and vaguely panicky, Tecoah sits up the rest of the way, dumping the arguing pair on her stomach into her lap, "I, ah… I'd have to send for a few things… And talk to my Stationmaster." She runs a hand through her tangled brown curls and shakes her head that a dragon would really be wanting her for the clutch on the sands, "Um… Okay… Sure. I mean, I guess so." She looks kind of sheepish at the indecisive answer, "I've been saying I need to keep still for a while to train these two, after all…" And this is as good a reason as any to stay in one spot for an extended stay.
That all makes D'son's grin get all quirky. "You know … quiet time to train lizards … isn't really a good reason to say yes. But you can always drop out if you give it second thoughts," the bronzerider points out. "Just make sure to ask some questions along the way, okay?" Beat. Because Inimeth is now crooning happily and nosing at Tecoah's hand. "Behind the headknobs, just like a firelizard," he notes with a little fond shake of his head. "And then we should probably cruise on down to the barracks, get you signed up on all the lists and stuff."
Tecoah really is in shock at this, "First time I actually see a dragon up close and this happens…" She pauses for a moment while she reaches up to scritch Inimeth like she would one of her two arguing little ones, "I think there must be something wrong with me…" Or maybe right since she seems to attract their smaller cousins easily, too. She nods and can't help but smile at the dragon in responce to his croon, "Alright… And I promise that I'll ask questions as soon as they come to me." That sort of sounds like a threat…
"You look just fine to me," D'son says cheerily and drops his hands down behind him again, relaxed while Inimeth gets his scritch-time. "No problem on the questions," the bronzerider adds and waits a little longer then nods down the slope. "Walk or ride? We just need to head over to the hatching grounds, the barracks are right off there."
"Um…" The thought of riding has Tecoah swallowing hard, "I think I'd rather walk, if it's all the same to you." She smiles a little nerviously, "No sense in making Inimeth carry us such a short distance, right?" She scoops up the tousling firelizards, one in each hand and stands easily, "I'm really not familiar with where the hatching grounds are…"
That peaks D'son's brows upward and he pushes to his feet, picking up his jacket. "Uh … sure. Though if you're not keen on flying, that might be something to deal with before the hatching rolls around," he points out with a curious little look her way. "Anyway … c'mon, race you down?" Oh silly man. She's a /runner/. "That way," he points in the right direction.
"It's not that I'm not comfortable with it," Though she really isn't, "It's that I'd just rather keep my feet on the ground for the moment, is all." Tecoah's protest sounds weak even to her and she winces a little, but nods in resignatio at the thought of having to at least /try/ to fly before the hatching. She grins at his offer of a race and nods, "Alright…" She holds the two firelizards up to look in their faces for a moment, "That means that you two fly." She tosses them lightly into the air and they catch themselves deftly, as though it's something they've gotten used to having to do. Her eyes dance with mischief, "I'll even give you a head start…"
"I'm going to need it, aren't I?" D'son says with a laugh and Inimeth bugles and lifts off, gliding easily below well ahead of the two on foot. Dels takes off then, likely to get caught up any minute, though he's not a bad runner for all that. Just not you know, a /runner/. The race will leave him a bit winded at the end, in need of walking it off as he waves a hand in the right direction for their destination.
A light laugh meets his rueful statement and Tecoah nods, "Most likely…" She doesn't wait long before she takes off after him, her feet barely seeming to touch the ground. She takes a moment to catch up, but then keeps pace easily and slowly passes him, her 'lizards following along beside her, one just behind each shoulder as her hair streams behind her. She slows to a walk moments after he does, barely showing any sign of strain, though she does walk around a little and stretch her legs. It's not good to run like that without taking a moment to warm up first, after all.
Xanadu Weyr - Candidate Barracks
A long, low ceiling room opens off the entrance hall to the arena, one wall slightly curved as it is set against the outer wall of the arena itself. Cots are set evenly the length of the room, in two rows, each with its own small press at the foot, for personal belongings. Wide windows are spaced along the outside wall, letting sunlight in, while other lights are available for the night time hours.
A little flushed still after that run down the slope, D'son leads the way on through to the barracks, though the walk sure helps to dial down from the exertion. "Okay, here we go, just pick out a cot and when you get yourself sorted out, bring your stuff over," Dels explains. "I'll make sure they know you're here and all that."
That wasn't a run. That was barely enough to get warmed up. Tecoah follows D'son into the barracks as her two firelizards flutter up to perch on either shoulder, "Thank you, D'son." She really tries not to look too smug. She is a runner after all, and she runs for a living, "I'll have to see if I can get more than what I just carry with me all the time sent over from the Station. I didn't bring much this run." She nods at his instructions and walks over to flop down bonelessly on an empty cot with an air of 'this one's mine now'.
"You're welcome and if you've got questions, don't hesitate to ask." D'son gives a little wave, then heads out to rejoin Inimeth and notify the powers that be.
Tecoah nods and offers a return wave as the two firelizards jump down onto the bedding and procede to arrange it to their own satisfaction.