Discussing the Future

Writers: Francesca, Paula
Date Posted: 23rd August 2008

Characters: Ednan, Chalzie
Description: Ednan and Chalzie talk about the new Hallmaster and the future.
Location: Dolphin Hall
Date: month 11, day 12 of Turn 4
Notes: Mentor approved.

Chalzie headed straight to the dock after class, wanting to relax a bit before the evening meal. The breeze was refreshing after the stuffiness of the classroom and the setting sun cast a colorful reflection on the water. As she got closer she saw Ednan sitting on the edge of the dock, legs dangling over the edge.

"It's nice out, isn't it?" she said by way of greeting.

"Hi, Chalzie, it is," Ednan replied with a glance and a greeting nod towards the younger apprentice.

She took a seat next to him, letting a comfortable silence fall between them. Her legs swung back and forth, reluctant to stay still even when she was relaxing. As they looked out to sea, she couldn't help but compare the view of the sunset from this location and that visible from Dolphin Cove Weyr, where she had grown up. It was the lack of noise at the Hall that was the real difference between the two places- not the view, which was practically the same. At the Weyr, there was a constant bustle of people, dragons, and firelizards. The Hall was much more peaceful, and she had come to appreciate this.

Then her thoughts strayed to the future, and the imminent arrival of the new Hallmaster. Gossip had been flying around the Hall, and it was often hard to know what was rumor, what exaggeration, and what was actual truth. The general atmosphere, at least among the apprentices, was one of excitement, and curiosity that the Hallmaster was a woman, and from the South.

Maybe Ednan had heard more than the second and third-hand accounts of the Hallmaster that she had been privy to. After all, he had been at the Hall for Turns. "What do you think about the new Hallmaster coming?"
she asked, hoping to glean some new information.

"I'm curious. I heard we are going to have a female Hallmaster, other than that I know nothing of her," he replied with a small shrug. "It's kind of sad see Master Mosler go. I've liked him."

"Really? I never really knew him. What was he like, before getting sick?" She had seen the Hallmaster fairly frequently in and around the Hall, but was a bit intimidated by his rank and had never had a real conversation with him.

"He was really friendly. He could just come over and swim and talk with you," Ednan told her.

"Well, I think it will be exciting to have a female Hallmaster. I heard she's from the South, not the North, so she must have been through a lot," Chalzie said, repeating the gossip she had heard.

"The Hall has got female Hallmasters before," Ednan said. Chalzie hadn't been Hall long enough to meet the previous Hallmasters, but Ednan had. During the past six turns the hall had had several Hallmasters. "I wish we could get a Hallmaster who doesn't get sick, die or otherwise leave," he grumbled.

Chalzie shrugged. She knew that Hallmasters generally stayed in a position for a long time, like Weyrwomen, but found it hard to feel the same emotions about the situation as Ednan did. "Well, hopefully this new one won't be too old or sickly or anything."

"Let's hope so," Ednan agreed.

Silence passed between them again as the sun sank lower and lower, until it began to sink below the horizon. The talk about the new Hallmaster led to Chalzie thinking more generally about promotions. She thought Ednan had studied long enough at the Hall to be up for promotion soon, although she did not want to pry too much by directly asking. So, instead she asked, "Do you know what you'll specialize in when you're promoted to Journeyman?"

"I've kind of set my sights for dolphin healing," Ednan replied slowly. He had almost forgotten she was still there.

Chalzie nodded. While she knew very generally what dolphin healing was, the classes she had taken so far didn't go much beyond dolphin anatomy. She was glad she had Turns before she needed to decide on a specialty. At this point, she had no idea what she would choose. "How long have you known you liked it?"

"Since the hurricane that destroyed Topaz Sea Hold and the previous hall-location. I was assigned to help dolphin healers with injured dolphins. Basically I just was holding them still while the healer stitched wounds. Later I get a chance to work with recovering patients," Ednan told her, seeing and experiencing it all in his memories. The wind's howl, waves crashing against his back, raindrops that felt hard as rocks, holding on to a slippery body while trying to maintain a balance. And the trusting look from young dolphin calf who's side had been slashed open by a reef.

As Ednan spoke, Chalzie's memories turned to the hurricane that had struck the Weyr not long ago. She had been too young to do much to help, but it had been terrifying. It was easy to think of dragons as indestructible. They dodged death every time they fought Thread and could go anywhere in a matter of heartbeats; and yet a hurricane had come close to destroying Nyith's clutch and everything else.

Hallmaster Mosler had been the one to warn the Weyr of the storm. He had given them the precious time needed to prepare the Weyr for the onslaught; time to save as much as they could. It was after the hurricane that Chalzie had begun to think that being a dragonrider might not be right for her. Fighting Thread was just one way of protecting people's lives. Soon after the hurricane, she had apprenticed to the Dolphin Hall, in part because dolphineers could save lives, like Mosler had. Even though she did not know much about the former Hallmaster, her memory of what he had done for the Weyr made her suddenly sad that he was stepping down.

"That's wonderful," she told Ednan, pulling her thoughts back to the conversation. "I'm sure you'll help many dolphins."

"I hope so," Ednan said. ** I just hope I get my personal life pulled back together,** he thought.

Last updated on the August 25th 2008

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Discussing the Future