This is insane. Jeremy stood beside his friends and couldn't help thinking that he should be finding some way out of here instead of trying to get closer the the massive dragons. I know everyone keeps saying that they're friendly, but if they're friendly why is that hydra thing here and why is everyone avoiding it?
The first eggs began to rock and crack and Jeremy felt the breath leave his body as he saw the first hatchlings. Maybe I will stick around for a while... He tried to move to get closer to Candy, maybe grab her hand, but suddenly his girlfriend bolted from the group and ran to one of the hathlings. What is she doing?! Jeremy debated going after her, but he soon saw that she was in no danger. He heard her declare the dragon Akarath and smiled as he watched her happily leave the sands with her new partner. Maybe there's more to this impression stuff than we've been told...
Minutes after Candy spoke to her dragon, Sammy found his. Jeremy laughed as Sammy even cracked jokes about this, about something even he had the sense to realize was amazingly important. But then again, that's Sammy. If he didn't crack a joke something would be wrong. Michelle found her partner next, a tiny (compared to the other dragons) purple and she seemed just as pleased as the others were. Darien happily went to meet a large bronze and seemed to have lost all wariness of the dragons. I must really be missing something... Rebeka had inched closer to one of the other people from earth who'd shown up here, a group they'd only met briefly. She laughed as a black dragoness put her head under her arm. She seemed amazingly pleased with herself. Sara was next, actually arguing with the small green who chose her. Jeremy was happy for his friends, but was beginning to become slightly nervous that he would be standing here all day while they left with their dragons. Only Chris, Kyosei and Mark still stood with him. He brushed a piece of hair out of his eye and accidentally touched his black eye. He winced as the bruise was still causing him a bit of pain. He felt anger spark inside him momentarily. Stupid faker...I'm tempted to go back to earth just to deck him!!
His angry thoughts were interupted by a query from the crowd. "What's wrong with him?"
Jeremy looked around to find who they could be speaking of and found that in his anger he'd missed the hatching of a beautiful copper-orange. Nothing is wrong with him! He is quite the fighter... Jeremy wondered where the voice came from and how it managed to echo in his ears. The new hatchling roared and and rammed a large gold/black whom Jeremy assumed was his mother. The hatchling creeled angrily as the voice pounded his mind again. Go over there. The boys and girls you want to look at are over there.
Jeremy was amazed when he could hear the hatchling respond. I do not need them! Don't you want me?
I do. But you need them more than me. You shall see. Just go and see. The mother dragon nudged the brightly colored male off to the group of boys who had come over to see if there was something they could do. Jeremy was near the front of the pack, he felt sorry for the dragonling, his mother didn't want to keep him.
I did not think that humans came in those colors The hatchling spoke directly to Jeremy. He seemed to have realized that he didn't really want to stay with his mother after all. It is kind of the wrong color, really. If it were more blue...
Jeremy shook his head almost to try and shake the fleeting sound of his dragon bond’s mind from his own. It would never work, of course. His hand went to his swollen face, and he laughed. "Yeah, it’s a little dark right now Ushik, but you’ll get to see it change colors..."
The hatchling seemed amazingly excited at this prospect as Jeremy left the sands with him. What kind of colours?
Jeremy rubbed Ushik's head. "Pretty much just back to normal, but we could always watch someone else's eyes turn blue..."
Ushik reared and nudged Jeremy in the back with his head. I could take anybody!!!
Jeremy, now face first in the sand, tried to catch his breath as the wind was knocked out of him. "I believe it! I believe it!"
The copper-orange hatching smiled. Just wait until I get bigger.
"Ugh!" Jeremy collapsed into his bed. "This is worse that football."
Ushik, almost a month old and already a lot bigger, hopped onto the bed beside his rider...actually, he was mostly on top of his rider. The bed creaked under the added wait and Jeremy moaned. "Ushik!! You're getting too big for this!!"
Sorry. The copper-orange crawed from the bed and sat on the floor.
"You have a dragoncouch!! The Weyrlingmaster says you're supposed to sleep on the dragoncouch!" Jeremy sat up, holding his bruised side.
I said I was sorry. Ushik nudged him with his head. And I don't like the dragoncouch.
"Why not?" Jeremy rubbed Ushik's head.
Ushik's eyes whirled blue. You're more comfortable.
"You're too big to sleep on me! That was okay when you were still a tiny hatchling, but it's not okay now." Jeremy sighed. "Sorry to snap at you."
I think you're just getting weaker. All tendorized from this weyrling training. Ushik walked over to the dragoncouch and hopped on.
"Weak?" Jeremy snorted and fell back onto his back. "I don't know how Rebeka or Michelle are living through this."
Ushik smirked. Weakling.
Jeremy glared. "You try lifting that bloody dragonsaddle!"
I do lift the bloddy dragonsaddle! It's on my back! The copper-orange had a point.
"You're bigger than I am!"
Not by much! The copper-orange had a point.
Jeremy sight. "At least I don't have to worry about getting out of shape."
Ushik stretched, tired from weyrling classes as well, though he'd never admit it. I won't let you.
"Shhh..." If he'd had the strength to bring his finger to his lips he would have. "Bed now."
For about five minutes silence quilted the room while exhausted rider and dragon dozed off. Jeremy...
The teenager grunted. "Sleeping Ushik."
I know I'm sleeping and I know you're sleeping, but your firelizard egg isn't. Ushik was staring at the rocking pot by the fireside.
"Tell it to go back to bed." Ushik paused a few seconds to let Jeremy's tired mind catch up with the conversation. "What?!?" Jeremy fell out of bed.
You might want to go get some meat, remember? Ushik crawled from his dragoncouch and sat down watching the egg.
Jeremy ran from his room to the kitchens, explained his predicament and ran back to his room all within two minutes. He quickly plopped himself down beside the now violently rocking pot and waited for the egg to hatch. He didn't have to wait long. A blue head thrust itself from the shell and creeled loudly. The firelizard pulled the rest of himself out of the shell and stared at Ushik. It creeled again before ramming the copper-orange with his head.
Jeremy laughed as he fed the creature. "Remind you of somebody else's hatching?"
If he wasn't so cute I'd have shown him who to ram. His words were threatening, but it was obvious to Jeremy that Ushik couldn't hurt the little creature any more than he could hurt Jeremy himself.
The firelizard took the meat from Jeremy's hand, creeled and butted Jeremy with his head. This time Jeremy swore he felt the creature's mind touch his and his. He smirked. "Bovis." He announced the blue's name. "Because you're more of a bull than he is."
Hey! If you weren't right I'd take offense to that. Ushik touched his nose to Bovis'. He's cute.
"I think you're cute." Jeremy rubbed Ushik's head.
You won't say that when I get bigger.
"Whoa. He's big." Magika sat in the Weyrbowl of Adanuk Weyr, Jeremy and his large copper-orange Ushik in front of her.
Jeremy grinned. "I know. I have to bathe him." Jeremy looked around for any of his friends. They'd all been assigned to Adanuk Weyr to fight this Thread stuff that people kept telling him about, but he arrived after the rest of them. He'd stayed around at the Healing Den for extra training on how to maneuver such a large dragon in normal wing formations.
Bovis creeled from his shoulder and then popped between. Jeremy wondered breifly where his firelizard took off to, but knew that he'd be back so he didn't have to worry.
Magika, catching his gaze, smiled. "Your friends are around here somewhere. You can go see them later. I know Candy's gonna be with me in a few minutes for training." The Weyrwoman rolled her eyes. "She's the one who should have stayed for extra work on flying in wing formations." She waved at a drudge who approached quickly. "Find M'slin. Tell him to come here and meet his new Wingthird."
Jeremy, although not knowing an incredible amount about this new planet, knew what Wingthird meant. "Me? But I'm new!"
Magika grinned. "I saw you and Ushik in the air. You can handle it."
Yeah. We can do it! It's just like handling your football team! Ushik rethought that concept. Only it's in the air, involves fire and is a life or death situation.
"Thanks Ushik." Jeremy moaned as Magika left him and the drudge went off to find M'slin.
I'm sure we'll get to practice before they just throw us into the air. Ushik was phsyced about the Wingthird position and wanted to make sure that Jeremy didn't back out.
"I know." Jeremy leaned against his lifemate. "If someone had told me a year ago that I would be accepting this amount of responsiblity I would have told them they were crazy."
"Jeremy?" A man, presumably M'slin, approached the two. He was short, coming up only to Jeremy's shoulder, but he was well built. A long brown braid hung down his back and his eyes were bright blue and obviously missed nothing. A large bronze followed him as he approached Jeremy.
I'm bigger than that bronze brute. Ushik stretched to his full height.
Please! Jeremy pleaded. Do not get in a fight. "That's me. M'slin?"
The bronze-rider smiled. "That's me. The bronze is Enojoth."
Jeremy smiled back. He had a feeling he was going to like M'slin. "The copper-orange is Ushik."
M'slin clasped Jeremy's hand. "Welcome to Ikusa wind, Wingthird." Jeremy blushed slightly. "You'll be happy to know that Rebeka and Sammy are both accepted into are wings, although they won't be flying under you. They're with A'diar and Mik'len. You'll meet them soon. I'll show you to your room..." M'slin trailed off.
"What?" Jeremy could tell that it was something serious.
"You'll meet them in a few seconds. Thread. Move." M'slin headed took off for his weyr at full run.
"Where do we meet?" Jeremy ran after him. At least now I know where Bovis went. For a stubborn little thing he sure pops out of sight fast when he knows Thread's coming.
"South Weyrbowl." M'slin turned a corner and disappeared.
Since Ushik was already saddled-up, Jeremy quickly mounted and they headed for South Weyrbowl. By the time they got there, chaos was unfolding. Jeremy'd been in a lot of training, but nothing compared to the frenzy of actually preparing for a fight.
"Hey!" Sammy waved as he climed to his blue's back. "Nice to see you Mr. Wingthird."
Rebeka waved too. "Congratulations Jeremy!!"
Another blue approached from behind him. "I'm M'thew, welcome to the weyr."
The two remaining riders, mounted their respectful dragons. "I'm Mik'len and don't worry it's not always this chaotic."
"Yeah." The other rider smirked. "It's usually worse. I'm A'diar."
"And now that everyone's introduced," M'slin's voice roared over the rest of them. "We fly!" Enojoth leapt into the air.
This is crazy! We've never flown with these people before! I'm going to screw up! Ushik leapt into the air and beat his wings, rising gracefully into the air.
"No pressure." Jeremy smiled through his teeth. "We'll do fine."
I can't believe you're so calm! Although he was inwardly panicking, outwardly he behaved just as a good Wingthird dragon is supposed to. Flying in formation came naturally to him.
"You were the one who wanted this job!" Jeremy watched M'slin and Enojoth, making sure that Ushik followed the Wingleader's lead. "Stop being such a big baby."
Ushik smiled. You won't say that when I'm bigger.
Jeremy almost fell out of the dragonsaddle. "Tell me you're kidding. You're already huge!!"
Ushik seemed to laugh as he flamed his first Thread. I didn't mean bigger as larger physically. He moved gracefully for something his size, throughly enjoying his job. I meant when I'm so big that everyone on Pern knows I'm the best!
Jeremy smiled. "What happened to the butterflies in your stomach?"
I flamed them.
Go Back...
Jeremy impressed Ushik at The Healing Den.
Bovis is a special halloween flit from The Healing Den.
Background from All Hallow's Eve Backgrounds.
