Vasyoz

The melody of the song rang out through the air for miles and miles around. The notes were clear and flowing and the song was a familiar one. The musician was obviously very skilled in the pipes and thoroughly enjoyed playing. The man put down the pipes and laid a hand on his mare's neck. "Too bad there's no one around to hear, eh Treaj?"

The horse seemed to whinny an agreement as she slowly continued along the path. Although the man on her back was quite large, she didn't seem to mind the burden. Her cream coat glistened with a fine sheet of sweat, but she was far from done. Treaj was a runner of high breeding, and was far from tired. She could go all day at a steady pace and be fine for another day of hard riding in the morning. Her black mane whipped in the wind and she tossed her head. How Vasyoz acquired a beast of such fine breeding as Treaj was of some debate.

Vasyoz himself never bothered himself with such difficult things as trying to remember where he picked up Treaj, he was just glad he had the mare. And although she could do much better, Treaj seemed to enjoy Vasyoz as well. Vasyoz stretched and put the pipes back to his lips as he continued the song.

The day was beautiful, as gorgeous as any could hope a day to be. The sun shone down out of a perfectly blue sky, but did not raise the temperature to an unseemly high. Even though he was out in the sun all day, Vasyoz never worried about getting sunburnt, his skin was already just a shade shy of black. His eyes were a soft brownish hazel and his hair was a very light shade of blonde, though the hair itself was amazingly thick. He kept it long and in dreadlocks, occasionally bothering to pull it back into a ponytail. He didn't much care for his appearance, as he didn’t really seem to care for anything else. He was a very relaxed person, travelling from Hold to Hold and Weyr to Weyr, singing for his supper.

Treaj, deciding that it was about time for a midday meal, headed off the path into a meadow to snack on some flowers. Vasyoz didn't even seem to notice, he just continued his song. When Treaj wanted to roll in the grass for a while, he finally dismounted and pulled the blanket off her back. He never rode with a saddle, or a bridle or anything. Most people were amazed that he managed to tame a spirited horse like Treaj without them, but animals always seemed to get along with him, his natural calmness putting them at ease.

As Treaj enjoyed a good roll, Vasyoz stretched and yawned, the bright sun making him sleepy. He stood a good six and a half feet tall and had a muscular build from days of traveling and working wherever he could for a few marks. "It's the type of day you just want to lay on your back and sleep away, isn't it?"

The horse nickered and climbed to her feet. She reared and went racing around the field once or twice to stretch her legs. Vasyoz smiled. "You missed your calling beauty. I should have let you race."

Treaj sprinted back to her owner and nuzzled him. She seemed a lot smarter than you'd expect your average horse to be. Vasyoz rubbed her neck and offered her a sugar cube pulled from his pocket. "But you love me too much to leave me eh?"

"You really have a way with animals." Ehzeia smiled as she approached the man.

Vasyoz turned to her, with a matching grin on his face. "Ehzeia! How many passes since I last saw you?" He spread his arms wide.

She laughed as she stepped into his embrace. "Too many Vasyoz, too many. What brings you back to Adanuk?"

"So I'm near Adanuk, am I?" The tall, dark-skinned man probably honestly didn't know that he'd been anywhere near the Weyr. He always 'travelled with the blowing wind'. Ehzeia smiled. Whatever that means.

"You came back just to see me right?" She hadn't seen Vasyoz in over 6 turns, but she knew him well enough. He was a friendly guy who didn't really seem to have any purpose, aside from making music. No one knew where he came from or where he was planning on going to next.

"Treaj must have missed you." He put one hand on the horse's back and she whinnied. "She loves seeing old friends."

Ehzeia laughed. "Of course." She knew the horse really didn't remember her, but she also knew that it was a miracle Vasyoz remembered her. He had a very selective memory, only seeming to remember the good things. "You have to come back to the Weyr with me. A lot of things have changed in six turns."

"Things are always changing. The wind blows different things to everyone." Vasyoz climbed to Treaj's back.

"Of course." It was always best to agree with him when he said odd things like that. "I've impressed you know Vasyoz." She thought she'd mention the fact as he helped her mount the runner in front of him. "A dark forest green. Her name's Letaemyth. I'm sure she'll love you."

Vasyoz clicked his tongue and Treaj started off at a quick trot down the road towards Adanuk Weyr. "A beautiful dragon for a beautiful young girl."

She smiled, mentally warning Letaemyth to warn Weyrwoman Magika. She knew Vasyoz probably wouldn't even remember the fact that Ehzeia was with him by the time they reached the Weyr.

Magika raised a brow as she watched the man sit on horseback and begin to play a lively tune in the middle of the Weyrbowl. "He's insane."

Ehzeia grinned. "I know. But he's harmless, and he's a good musician."

"Was he a Harper?" Magika watched as several Weyrfolk stopped to wonder what was going on.

"Who knows? He barely remembers what he did two days ago, let alone when he was much younger. I was amazed when he remembered me from six turns ago." Ehzeia smiled. "My mom'll be glad to see him again. Since he doesn't remember anything bad ever happening to him, he's a very optimistic person. He cheered my mother up a lot when we met him at Gini Hold."

Magika smiled. "So you expect me to keep a crazy person here?"

"Only for a few days. He can't stay in one place long, it's impossible for him." Ehzeia tried to give Magika her best puppy-dog eyes. "Please?"

Magika laughed. "Fine. But you're responsible for him. Make sure he doesn't wander into anywhere he's not supposed to be."

"No problem." Ehzeia smiled and went to tell her mother about Vasyoz's return.

There was probably a good reason why Vasyoz was in the middle of a group of people atop a horse playing the pipes, but he couldn't remember it. He just continued playing happily and watching the people move past him. They were such a swirl of colours it completely amazed him.

"Vasyoz." A strange girl that he was sure he'd never met before approached him. "C'mon. My mother wants to meet you."

"I'd be happy to meet anyone and talk for awhile." He dismounted the horse and rubbed it's neck. He almost remembered the runner's name then, but it was hidden behind a veil of clouded memories. "You seem to know my name, may I have yours?"

The girl smiled. "Ehzeia."

"Pleased to meet you Ehzeia. It was a lovely chat, but I think I'll have something to eat now. See you later miss." He turned and walked away from the girl and the horse towards what his nose told him were the kitchens.

Ehzeia shook her head and rubbed Treaj's mane. "I knew it was too good to last. He forgot me." The horse nickered sadly. "Don't worry. I'm sure he'll remember you, eventually."

Vasyoz happily wandered the beach, wondering where Treaj was. He knew she'd be back, she always was, but for now he thought he'd better at least look for her, otherwise her feelings might be hurt. "Treaj! Where are you? You wouldn't want me to leave without you…" It was an entirely empty threat, but it might scare a runner into returning. "Treaj! I mean…oh…" He was stopped by the sqwaking from a golden firelizard on the sands. She was guarding a large pile of sand that even Vasyoz could assume were her eggs. He smiled, Treaj forgotten for the moement, and knelt beside the mound. He held his hand out tentatively towards the flit and was not at all surprised when the wild queen rubbed his hand with her head and started to hum underneath her breath.

"You know you're beautiful, your Majesty." He smiled at the tiny creature. "Much more friendly than territorial dragons. They're always guarding their masters, even when their masters don't want to be guarded. But you, you're much more intelligent aren't you?" He continued to stroke the wild queen's head. "Yes, your Highness, you are."

He stopped smiling for a moment as all became clear. He had these moments every now and then, so he knew it would pass. He just had to remain calm and the pictures would go away. They couldn't be his memories anyways, they were somebody else's and he was accidentally invading them. He'd never impressed a dragon, he'd never been a Wingleader, he'd never watched his dragon burned to pieces by Thread. He sat in shock, not moving as the little firelizard queen rubbed her head against his hand, sensing something was wrong. He felt tears fall down his cheeks as the pictures continued to pass before his eyes. The rider had once been an apprentice Harper, but he'd been Searched and left to impress his lifemate. They'd been very happy together, the rider and dragon, but the dragon had been too loyal. The dragon had sacrificed himself for the rider. The dragon's body had been torn to pieces by Thread while the rider had watched, but been helpless. The rider'd lived. He'd returned to the Weyr. He'd somehow survived the death of his lifemate.

Vasyoz smiled as the false memories faded. "No. Those are wrong Your Majesty." He returned his attention to the firelizard, who seemed relieved that he was okay. "You see I died that day when my dragon did."

"There you are Vasyoz!" Ehzeia smiled as she approached him. "Treaj and I have been looking for you. You know who I am, right?"

Vasyoz smiled. "Of course Ehzeia. How could I forget your face?" He hugged her again and then hugged his horse. "How is your mother?"

"What's in the bag?" Ehzeia knew answering the question was pointless, since he probably wouldn't remember the answer, or even that he'd asked the question.

The tall man grinned. "A gift from the queen."

The rider raised a brow. "The queen?" He opened the bag and showed her the egg that the wild firelizard had let him leave with. "A firelizard?" Ehzeia wasn't sure if she should let him keep it.

"I told her a story and sang her a song and she gave me her royal approval." Vasyoz smiled and took the bag back from Ehzeia. He mounted Treaj and turned back to her, a smile still on his face, but a completely different look in his eyes. "I'm much obliged to you miss. You must leave me your name and I will send you a greeting."

"Valyoz! Wait!" Ehzeia called after him, but he'd already given Treaj the signal to go and go she did. Ehzeia was left shaking her head in Weyrbowl. "He'll probably forget he has the flit." She watched Treaj disappear onto the horizon. "There goes the craziest man you'll ever meet."

"You're too high Gaevo." Vasyoz sat atop Treaj's back and was trying to teach his two-turn flit to sing.

The flit was slightly annoyed as he knew he'd hit the right note, Vasyoz had just forgotten what note he'd been aiming for. Gaevo leapt from Treaj's back and flew a few yards ahead of the horse for a while, before returning to Vasyoz's shoulder.

"Did you scout out the road ahead my little friend?" He asked the flit. "Can you tell me what to expect?"

Gaevo cheeped and sent Vasyoz all sorts of pictures, half of them memories from other Holds. Deeply involved with his conversation with Gaevo, Vasyoz didn't notice the structure looming in front of him.

"Hold!" The watchdragon's rider called out. "Who's that?"

Vasyoz looked directly at the stone wall of the Weyr, wondering who spoke. He turned to Gaevo. "We must have travelled a good long distance while you spoke friend. We have come to a land where walls speak."

The watchman smiled. "It's just Vasyoz." He informed his partner. He'd been on watch at Talor Cliff Weyr many times and he'd seen the crazy wanderer more than once. He quickly let the gates open, knowing that the man probably just wanted something to eat.

As soon as he was within the walls, Vasyoz's smile faded. He barely acknowledged the watchman and let some drudge lead Treaj away. The horse nipped the boy once or twice in anger at being left once again. The beast couldn't understand her master's problem. Gaevo had a better grasp of the situation, but even he couldn't help. He sat on his master's shoulder and rubbed his head against Vasyoz's.

The man seemed angry now and strolled quickly towards the sands. There was no one in the Weyrbowl, and he soon learned why. A large hatching was in progress. "I can't let this go on Gaevo." Vasyoz explained to the flit. "I can't let these rotten beasts hurt anymore people. I can't let anymore people die like poor Vasyoz." He walked right out onto the Sands, startling everyone. "They shouldn't be allowed to make people fall in love with them. They shouldn't be so loving." He glared at the new hatchlings, uncertain of how to stop the menace that had ruined the person whose memories he had's life. A couple large drudges were sent to remove him, but he was a tall man, and well muscled he fought to stay on the Sands a little longer, knowing that he had to do something to fix the problem. His eyes filled with tears as Vasyoz witnessed his second hatching from the vantage point of the Sands. "They shouldn't be so perfect…"

Vasyoz is a candidate at Talor Cliff Weyr.
Treaj's picture is from Beach Shards Weyr.
Gaevo's picture is from Keandyn Weyr.
Background from Morion Designs.