Br'man and Risth's Record
At the Top The stone steps led up to a lonely weyr near the top of the cliff. Why someone had bothered to carve them from the rock face that far up was a mystery, for it certainly didn't seem logical. As I climbed, they become rougher and rougher. Reaching the top, I turned to gaze out at the panorama before me. I could see everything from here: the hatching sands, the queens' weyrs, the Lower Caverns. Now I understood why someone would take the time to carve these steps.
I then turned back towards the view, this time appreciating how big the lake really was, as well as the Weyr herds. Smiling, I noticed the Weyrlings gathering for practice. Together they lifted into the air. When they have gained sufficient altitude, the group winked between. "I'm going to be in a weyrling wing one day," a voice said behind me. Again, I whirled around, almost losing my footing. A young man was standing there with the brown fire-lizard on his shoulder. He was tall, lean, and physically fit. His hair was a dusty blonde and his eyes were a soft brown. His loose-fitting clothes made me wonder if his mother made them with room to grow into. By my guess his was somewhere between 17 and 18 Turns old. "Sorry if I startled you," he apologized. "That's o.k.," I said introducing myself, "I'm just admiring the view." "You have discovered the reason I choose this weyr," he said extending his hand in greeting. "I'm Braman. This little brown is Astar." Covering his hand with mine, I noticed how clean it was. Not many kept their hands that clean. Seeing my surprise, he asked, "Is something wrong?" A bit embarrased, I answered, "It's just that I don't usually see hands that clean." "I was about to start a new painting. They're always clean before I start. Just wait till I get going. Then they will be far from clean." he said with a smile. "Do you paint a lot?" I asked. "Before I was Searched, I painted all the time. My mother was a painter. She was the best artist at Keroon, where I grew up. Now I'm here, I have to squeeze in time to paint between chores and feeding Astar. He's only a few sevendays old. I impressed him in the Lower Caverns just after I got here." "I thought he looked young," I commented. "So, would it be possible to see some of your paintings?" "If I had brought them to the Weyr with me, yes. All I have to show right now is one blank canvas. I plan to paint my view of the Weyr, and then, if I Impress, I'll paint one of my dragon." "Excellent ideas," I said, nodding in approval. During our conversation, Astar left Braman's shoulder and was doing interesting flips and turns in the air. "I don't think I'm going to get much done with my painting today," Braman sadly admited. "It's about lunch time for Astar. Want to help?"
Hatching! The day of the hatching was almost unbearable. Br'man paced back and forth in his weyr followed by Astar as he let his mind wander in circles. Would he impress? Would a dragon want him? Later, on the sands, Br'man watched each dragon choose someone but never him. He was getting impatient. When would it be his turn? Finally, one of the last to hatch chose him. As he looked down into those blue-green swirling eyes of Risth, he knew it was worth the wait!
To Paint a Dragon... After climbing the long flight of stairs carved into the rock face, I paused to catch my breath before visiting with Br'man and his blue dragon, Risth. His was probably the highest weyr accessible on foot. Nearing the cave entrance, I overheard a very frustrated dragonrider. "Risth! Please hold still. I'm almost done. Then you can go swim in the lake with Aster... Yes, Aster will have his turn too. When I'm done with my painting of you, I'll paint the fire-lizard, but it will have to wait till next rest day.... No, Risth I'm not going to paint you with yellow eyes....Aster! please! not the orange paint!"
Realizing that this was a really bad time for Br'man to receive visitors, I hastily retreated back down the long staircase to visit someone else.
The Ride "Br'man and Risth will take you there," the cheerful headwoman's voice decided for me. "In face, here he is now." At the entrance stood a young dragonrider, just back from weyrling practice. "Br'man, will you take Kirina to Ista?" she asked sweetly. Clearly annoyed that she had volunteered him, he opened his mouth to protest. Cutting him off, she said, "and when you come back, we'll have that cake I promised you for your birthday." Quickly, his mood softened and with a wave of his hand motioned for me to follow.
Emerging from between, I couldn't help but ask, "So how many turns are you?" Grinning broadly, he replied, "18 today. It's too bad you couldn't stay for cake!"
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