A Place That Doesn't Exist Anymore

Writers: Estelle, Devin
Date Posted: 24th March 2024

Characters: R'ayl, R'lor
Description: R'lor supervises R'ayl's weyrling group on their first jump /between/.
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 12, day 24 of Turn 10
Notes: Corrected date

R'lor

R'ayl made a final adjustment to Delorth's riding straps, trying his
best to ignore the rapid beating of his heart as they waited for the
Weyrlingmaster. Today was the day that he and his lifemate would go
/between/ for the first time, and while their first flight had been
pure excitement and joy, this was different. He'd only made that jump
once before, with the rider who'd Searched him, but he remembered the
deep, bone-chilling cold all too well. As the date had approached in
their training, he'd woken more than once from dreams of that endless
black, gasping. What if he and Delorth never came out? What if they
were trapped there, forever?

}: I will be with you, :{ Delorth reassured him. His eyes whirled,
anxious yellow mingling with their usual green.

**I know.** The blue weyrling rested a hand on the warm hide. It was
something to know they'd be together, but he couldn't help looking
around the now-familiar Weyrbowl and feeling the warm breeze on his
skin as if this might be the last time.

"Good afternoon, weyrlings," R'lor said. "Your group has been assigned
to me for your first jumps/between/. You will go one pair at a time.
I know many of you have been looking forward to this day, as it marks
your graduation to Senior Weyrling, but I urge you not to be
overeager. You'll need to be focused, and your visualizations will be
thoroughly checked by both me and Kularth before you're allowed to
make a jump. That being said, would anyone like to go first?"

The weyrlings glanced at each other. They were a quieter group, and
no-one immediately volunteered. R'ayl usually hung back and waited for
his older classmates to go first when they were trying something new,
but today Delorth had other ideas. The blue was too excited to wait,
and nudged his rider, causing him to step forward almost by accident.

}: We should go first! :{

**Delorth!** R'ayl's cheeks felt hot and he was sure everyone was
staring at him, but it was too late now. Slowly, he raised his hand.

"R'ayl and Delorth." R'lor smiled, surprised the shy young lad had
volunteered, but it might have been at his dragon's urging. "Good to
see you taking initiative. Mount up and then sent Kularth a visual of
the star stones." It was the first landmark all the weyrlings
memorized.

"Yes, sir." R'ayl reached up and gripped the riding strap, trying not
to let his hands shake. His heart was racing as he climbed up to
Delorth's back, and he tried to breathe slowly as he settled himself.
Closing his eyes, he thought of the star stones. He had been to see
them up close, like most of the weyrlings, and remembered the texture
of the stone, smoothed by so many Turns of wind and rain, the shadows
they cast in the sunlight and the glimpse of sky through the Eye Rock.
Then, he imagined how they looked from far overhead, if he was flying
over the Weyr with Delorth, with the cliffs falling away beneath them
towards the sea.

**Can you see that?** he asked the blue. **Show Kularth, like we
practiced before.**

Kularth checked the image, then passed it to his rider. }:This looks
clear to me.:{

R'lor agreed with his dragon. "Very good, R'ayl and Delorth. You may
fly up to a safe height, then send us the image again to ensure you
have it firmly in your minds." R'ayl looked a bit nervous, which was
common and even sensible, and R'lor watched him carefully to see if
the boy's anxiousness grew strong enough to become a concern.

As Delorth crouched, preparing to take off, a wave of panic began to
rise in R'ayl, and for what seemed like an endless moment he froze,
gripping the riding straps tightly. Delorth turned his head to look up
at him, worry in his glowing eyes. }: Rider? :{

The boy closed his eyes and remembered the first exercises they'd done
together as a pair. He focused on their bond and the love he felt for
his lifemate. **The Weyrlingmaster said our image was good. We'll be
fine. You're the best dragon on Pern, you can do this.** He let
himself relax. **Let's go.**

Delorth's eyes cleared and his tail twitched in excitement, and then
he leapt into the air. R'ayl's heart lifted with the remembered thrill
of flight as they rose higher, until their clutchmates appeared no
more than brightly colored dots, scattered far below. He almost forgot
to be afraid. The blue soared on warm air, keeping his position with
slow wingbeats, and R'ayl began to focus on the star stones again. It
was easier from this height to imagine how the Weyr would look below
them, and the image appeared in his mind, sharp and clear. **Do you
see it? Now show Kularth again.**

R'lor had been a moment from having R'ayl stand down, but the
youngster seemed to recover and Kularth let him know the blue's worry
had passed. He checked the image and it was just as sharp as the first
time. }:Remember that you were made for this, and your rider sees well
in his mind,:{ Kularth told Delorth. }:You may go /between/.:{

R'ayl drew in a deep breath and focused as intently as he could on the
image of their destination. **I'm ready.**

The sunlit scene winked out, plunging them into absolute darkness, and
all at once, the choking panic returned. He couldn't see, hear, feel
anything but the bone-chilling cold, not even Delorth's back under
him...but he could sense his dragon's mind, that familiar, comforting
presence. He thought even harder of the star stones, as if like
Delorth, he could draw them through the strange space that was
/between/. Then they burst out again into the light, with the Weyr
below them. R'ayl gulped in a deep breath of utter relief, then let it
out in a yell of delight. **We did it! We did it, Delorth! You're
amazing!**

}:It wasn't that hard,:{ Delorth replied, sounding a little surprised.
}:I saw where I had to go, and I went.:{

R'lor sighed in relief as the blue and his rider appeared above the
star stones. Some of the other weyrlings clapped and cheered, and a
few looked a little less nervous now that one of their classmates had
made a successful jump.

}:Very good,:{ Kularth told Delorth, }:Now fly back down here.:{

R'ayl could tell Delorth wanted to try again and felt his dragon's
reluctance to return to the ground, but they couldn't disobey Kularth.
They descended and landed neatly in the spot where they'd taken off,
the young weyrling grinning widely.

"You did well." R'lor smiled at the pair and then turned to the rest
of the class. "Now, who wants to go next?" Hopefully things would go
as smoothly with the other weyrlings.

R'ayl's legs were shaky with relief as he dismounted, but he couldn't
help but feel a swell of pride at the praise from the Weyrlingmaster.
Delorth couldn't wait to go again, but he definitely needed time
before repeating the experience. He watched as two of his older
classmates, both greenriders, stepped forward together, then laughed
nervously at each other. **I hope they'll be okay.**

}:They will. They are good at making images. But not as good as us.:{
Delorth's voice sounded more than a little smug.

**We still have a lot to learn.** R'ayl remembered seeing the class
from the clutch before his drilling with jumps/between/, flickering
in and out of a wing pattern as it shifted in formation. That seemed
like it would be much more difficult. Still, he could take pride in
what they'd achieved today, and he rested a hand on Delorth's blue
hide, sharing that feeling as they watched the first of the greens
take to the air.

The rest of the group made it through with a few minor issues, and
R'lor had one pair sit out when they couldn't get the visualization
right. The rider looked upset and embarrassed, but better that than
losing a weyrling pair that wasn't ready.

"All right, we have enough time for everyone to try another jump,"
R'lor said. "R'ayl, would you and Delorth like to go first again?"

"Yes, please, Weyrlingmaster." R'ayl sounded more enthusiastic this
time. While his classmates had been making their own jumps, he'd had
time to daydream about where he might go with Delorth when they were
allowed to do so, places he'd heard the older riders talking about but
he'd never seen. Bustling sea holds at Gather-time, deserts and
mountain lakes and hot springs... "Should we do the same as before?"

R'lor nodded. "Exactly the same. Send the image to Kularth, get to a
safe height, then confirm the image with me and Kularth again." He was
pleased to see R'ayl seemed more confident.

R'ayl remounted and focused on the image of the star stones as he had
before. It came a little easier this time, now that he knew they could
do it, and soon they were cleared to take to the air. He could sense
Delorth's excitement as they rose above the Weyr with steady
wingbeats, and a little impatience.

}: I wish we could go somewhere else. It really is very easy. :{

**Like where?**

Delorth paused, appearing to be considering the different
visualizations they'd practiced. }: What about here? :{

R'ayl closed his eyes briefly as a familiar image filled his mind. It
was a memory of the place he recalled most clearly before he'd come to
the Weyr; the little cothold he'd shared with his family. He had
dreamed about going back there often in his short time at the Weaver
Hall and while he'd been a Candidate. An icy chill ran down his spine
as the implications of trying that jump occurred to him. **Delorth, we
can never go there. It doesn't exist any more.**

He felt the young dragon's confusion and distress, and did his best to
comfort him. **Besides, if we go anywhere else than where we're told,
the Weyrlingmaster won't let us go anywhere together any more. Let's
just do the same again, all right? We have plenty of time.**

}: All right. :{ Delorth sounded a little subdued. The moment of
sudden fear he'd felt from R'ayl must have had an effect. Together,
they visualized the star stones, then sent the image to Kularth.

}:Delorth was afraid for a moment but the image is clear,:{ Kularth
told his rider. }:He is more calm now.:{

Another bout of jitters? Maybe R'ayl had remembered the warnings of
what could happen if a jump went wrong. But the image was good and
R'lor passed along permission to go/between/.

The second jump didn't seem to take so long, though it might have been
that they now knew what to expect. The pair blinked out and appeared
above the star stones, and if they weren't quite as exhilarated as the
first time, R'ayl was still grinning as Delorth landed beside his
classmates. The moment of doubt in the skies appeared to be forgotten.

"Excellent," R'lor told the pair before turning to the rest of the
group. "Once everyone has made another successful jump, you can all
head out and celebrate your graduation to Senior Weyrlings."

R'ayl watched, gently scratching his blue's eye-ridges, while the
others made their second jump. If any of them or their dragons had the
same thought as Delorth about trying a different destination, they
didn't go through with it either. One by one, each took to the air,
held their position, then disappeared and reappeared over the star
stones.

Once the last jump was completed, the weyrlings were dismissed. R'ayl
hung back as the others hurried off in the direction of the lower caverns,
their voices loud with relief and pride at having made it through this
milestone in their training. "Weyrlingmaster?"

R'lor turned from congratulating the other weyrlings. "Yes?"

The blue weyrling waited until the others were out of earshot before
he spoke, his voice soft and nervous. "I - when Delorth and I were in
the air the second time, we..." He glanced up at the blue, who lowered
his head. "What would happen, if we tried to jump somewhere
that...isn't there any more?"

"Oh." R'lor's eyebrows went up. He'd wondered if R'ayl might ask about
going somewhere he wasn't supposed to but R'lor hadn't been expecting
that. "That could be . . . very bad. You might be lost /between/
forever."

"It was the place where I used to live with my family. A cothold. It
burned down," R'ayl confessed, his voice soft. "Delorth must have seen
it in my memory, somehow. I didn't think it would work."

R'lor put a hand on his shoulder. "Never try to go there, not the way
you remember it. I'm sorry, lad."

Delorth crooned and nudged his rider gently with the tip of his snout,
and R'ayl reached up to stroke the warm hide, reassured. "I won't, I
promise." He managed a tentative smile. "I like it here." Life at the
cothold had been hard. It was the thought of the few good times there,
with his family, that he sometimes felt homesick for.

"Your mother and sister are here now too, right?"

"Yes, they both are. It's just..." R'ayl's gaze dropped. Even if he
could go back to the cothold, his brother wouldn't be there, and his
mother had said they shouldn't talk about him, not at the Weyr. "It
doesn't matter."

"I'm here to listen if there's anything you want to talk about." R'lor
wanted to help the lad in any way he could.

R'ayl was tempted for a moment, but he remembered what Alyena had told
him. It wasn't wise to remind anyone whose brother he was. "Thank you,
sir."

R'lor considered him for a moment, but then smiled. "Now go celebrate
your graduation to Senior Weyrling."

Delorth whuffed a warm breath over his rider, and the boy looked up at
him, relaxing. "Thank you, Weyrlingmaster." With that, he jogged away
to catch up with his classmates, his worries apparently forgotten for
now.

Last updated on the March 22nd 2024

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A Place That Doesn't Exist Anymore