Basalt Brown

Writers: Aaron, Halyonix
Date Posted: 15th September 2024

Characters: K'don, M'trel
Description: M'trel talks with K'don about being a full-fledged rider
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 1, day 10 of Turn 12

K'don

Notes:
~~~~~~~

M'trel remembered being a weyrling.

There was the indescribable moment of Impression. Which faded in the coming days, replaced by bone-weary exhaustion as taking care of a baby dragon took every waking (and not waking) moment. Eventually, one got used to it, recovered some energy. And, towards the end, there was a shared, excited hope, a longing for the end of training, an elation over joining into the Wings. Every weyrling looked forward to that day when the Wingleaders selected the newly graduated.

And then, the next day, the thrill was gone and reality settled in. Graduation meant a lot more responsibility. A lot more. And even though the official age to join the Wings was sixteen, as though a number determined maturity and the ability to handle that responsibility, M'trel knew very well otherwise.

"A moment, K'don," he interjected quickly as practice was ending.

K'don was tired, of course, but he was still riding high on finally having been deemed capable of joining the wings.

"Of course, sir. What can I do for you?" He hoped he had not attracted the wingthird's negative attention.

"Nothing for me," M'trel said. He offered K'don an encouraging smile. "Something I can do for you. Being a brownrider, that is." Noruith landed nearby, sensing his rider's intent, and squared up next to Maciath. Though Noruith was still slightly bigger in size, there was a shared stockiness between the two dragons. "So, brown dragons," M'trel said, nodding his chin at the two. "Somewhere in the middle of dragon sizes, correct?"

"Uhhh..." K'don's eyes flitted to the dragons. Was this some kind of test? "Yes, sir?"

It was a test, but not a big one. "What are the strengths of the blues and greens?" M'trel asked with a grin.

K'don knew these answers. He had been required to know them when he was a staff assistant for... for his grandfather. Who was gone now.

"Blues and greens are much quicker and more agile in the air," he said. "And the more capable Searchers tend to be greens and blues."

"Correct," M'trel confirmed. He held up a finger. "But let's not discredit our browns just yet. What are the disadvantages of blues and greens?"

K'don's eyebrows rose. He never meant to discredit anyone, surely.

"Um. Well, they lack the stamina of larger dragons, like our browns. But there are more of them, so when they can't last the whole ‘Fall, they can swap out with someone waiting in reserve."

M'trel nodded. "Brown dragons are the anchoring force for a Wing. While the blues and greens are darting about, switching in and out, and the bronzes are calling the shots, brown dragons serve as both grounding point and fulcrum. A place for the other dragons to return to and pivot around." He nodded his chin at Maciath. "What do you feel he's best at up there?"

K'don did not spend much time considering what Maciath was best at, and he could feel the brown rankle a bit at that realization. He usually simply considered him to be steady and reliable at whatever needed doing. But that was the brown stereotype, of course.

"He works hard to be good at whatever the wing needs from him in the moment," said K'don.

}:A witty buyback,:{ said Maciath, feeling mollified.

"Do you find him doing something more often than not?" M'trel asked. But he held up a finger again. "If you don't have an answer to that just yet, that's fine. Sometimes it takes a while of flying together in order to figure that out. But eventually, you'll discover that Maciath is better at something. Like Noruith is good at leadership, figuring out the strengths of other dragons and how to work those into the Wing the best."

"I... we haven't really been flying for real long enough for me to notice." K'don blushed, embarrassed at having failed one of M'trel's questions. "I'd been focusing too much on the infirmary while we weren't allowed to, I guess..." The idea of focusing even less on the infirmary made his heart sink.

M'trel's face softened. "Your craft?"

"Oh." Of course, M'trel did not know every little thing about him. "Yes, sir, I'm a dragonhealer's apprentice." He simply had to smile. He was too proud of his craft not to, lowly apprentice though he was.

The older brownrider's smile widened. "Wonderful! Maciath will be a great help with keeping injured dragons calm while you work. What's your favorite thing about the craft?"

K'don was relieved to see M'trel mirror his smile.

"Well, I don't do much important work yet... But I still love helping. It's like... we get to give people back a little bit of something that Thread steals away. Maybe that's too corny..." He wrinkled his nose, but he was still smiling.

M'trel smiled even as he was shaking his head. "It's never corny, having a reason for doing something like that. I spent a few Turns as a beasthealer before Noruith picking me so I know what's like to help, to gain something back from helping." Which gave him a thought. Tilting his head, he said, "Maybe that's your strength. Instead of it being during Threadfall, maybe it's there. As a dragonhealer."

"I want to do whatever the Weyr needs us to do. I was learning to be beasthealer before Maciath, too," said K'don.

"I think you've found your path then," M'trel said. "Now, how about we work on getting Maciath up to some of those tighter turns up there. Noruith can coach him through it. Did you ever do dragon races in your weyrling class?"

"Maciath loves races," said K'don. "He's much more worried about being biggest and fastest and strongest than I am..." He chuckled. "He's already excited about the idea."

"Then let's work on that for a bit. We'll watch from down here. Noruith, show Maciath some of your tricks."

Last updated on the September 23rd 2024

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Basalt Brown