Post by Eisu on Jun 15, 2009 14:35:22 GMT -5
Character Info
Name: D'tas (Deldtas)
Gender: Male
Age: 35
Orientation: Hetero
Origin: High Reaches Weyr
Rank: Ingenuity Wingleader
Family:
Grandmother - Nalli - Deceased - Green Rider @ Highreaches Weyr
Grandfather - Delvorin - Deceased - Journeyman Smith @ Crom Hold
Father - Deldonal - 61 Turns - Blue Rider @ Highreaches Weyr
Brother - Donorik - 43 Turns - Journeyman Miner @ Crom Hold
Brother - Onalor - 38 Turns - Lower Caverns Worker @ Highreaches Weyr
Sister - Nalla - 30 Turns - Green Rider @ Highreaches Weyr
Grandmother - Mellora - Deceased - Unknown Rank @ Keroon Hold
Grandfather - Tasin - Deceased - Bronze Rider @ Telgar Weyr
Mother - Melltasi - 67 Turns - Cook @ Highreaches Weyr
Sister - Mellina - 40 Turns - Wife of a Journeyman Harper @ Telgar Hold
Sister - Tella - 36 Turns - Green Rider @ High Reaches Weyr
Brother - T'sor - 32 Turns - Brown Rider @ High Reaches Weyr
Brother - A'sin - 29 Turns - Green Rider @ Telgar Weyr
Sister - Vallasi - 26 Turns - Cook @ Harper Hall
With his own fair share of children as any good bronzer has, D'tas has only played a small hand into his children's lives. Going so far as to know their names, D'tas knows the importance of mixing blood for strength and so has made a point of flying his children to their foster parents once they were decided - in a sense leaving his mark with their first flight as well.
Daughter - Eldra - 17 Turns - Gold Candidate @ Highreaches Weyr
Daughter - Tasse - 16 Turns - Wife of a Journeyman Smith @ Highreaches Hold
Son - Meldtas - 12 Turns - Candidate @ Highreaches Weyr
Daughter - 9 Turns - Foster Child @ Benden Hold
Daughter - 8 Turns - Foster Child @ Keroon Hold
Daughter - 5 Turns - Weyrbrat @ Highreaches Weyr
Daughter - 2 Turns - Foster Child @ Ista Hold
Appearance:
A first glance at D'tas and anyone can tell you that the sweaty, dust covered and firestone smelling man is a dragonrider. That much is easy enough to tell as he is rarely seen outside of his riding leathers or a bag of firestone over his shoulder. Standing an even 6'2" the man also has the build of a dragonrider in the time of threadfall as his body is well shaped and formed. While he is not as finely chiseled as some riders can boast, he still has a solid frame.
Black hair is kept long enough to run fingers in, though it rarely happens as his own hands are kept busy with work and he rarely keeps the company of a woman longer than a night. While his face boasts a strong chin, his jawline is a little lacking according to the lower cavern women. It is also whispered that he does not have a gentle touch though after Turns of dealing with dragons, firestone and Thread, it's no surprise any riders touch might turn a little rougher.
Calloused hands show his work ethic and still in the later stages of his prime, D'tas and keep up with the rest of the Weyr at any task save for needle point which he'll never care to take up. Few scars mark his body, though those that do have stories behind them. Several small and hard scars cover his knuckles telling of a day he had broken into a brawl with a Journeyman Miner. Another, longer line crosses his palm to tell of a night he caught a knife aimed for his oldest daughter. Lastly, a rather grotesque scar runs along his right shoulder blade which reminds all of his dedication to his wing as he and his dived past a tangle of thread to save another pair.
Personality:
As leadership seems to be a distinct trait through all bronze riders, D'tas too was a natural born leader. Quick to step up to the plate, D'tas strives in order. If anything is not running smoothly, he finds the problem and fixes it, whether it is by moving a rider in his wing to a new position or by bringing a problem rider in another wing into his. In his eyes, if something doesn't feel right or doesn't mesh well, then something needs to be changed. He is a strong advocate to change.
Loyalty is another big thing to D'tas, though some would second guess that as his loyalty is not to any one woman. Instead he believes in loyalty at a much larger scale - Loyalty to the Weyr, Loyalty to the Wing and above all, Loyalty to the Dragon. It was a shock to D'tas when he was chosen as one of only three bronzes to be sent to Igen Weyr - so far away and so different from the Weyr his loyalty was so tightly bound to.
Being a male, D'tas has a certain amount of testosterone running through his body. With such comes two more distinct traits; Dominance and Temper. A naturally dominate male, D'tas commands a certain amount of respect from not only his Wing, but the Weyr and Pern as a whole. His rank, in his eyes, was not lightly learned. A man does not become a bronze rider through the luck of the Shell, but by earning the title after being given the chance by his hatchling.
His temper is a rather good one on most days. While D'tas always seems to be working, he is easy enough to coax a smile off of as long as it doesn't disturb his work in the process. He can be pushed, and rather far, before he finally 'breaks'. Once his temper is finally pushed to that point, however, the one who pushed him is not the only to suffer. This bronzer has a bad habit of taking his anger, once found, out on anyone within earshot. Several days later he may regret it, then again he may not.
When it comes to women and children, D'tas will seem almost ignorant of their existence. He rarely looks at a woman as just that; a woman. Instead he sees them as part of the work force. As long as they are doing their part and getting the task completed in a timely manner he tends to ignore them. When it comes to the women in his wing, he will push them to their physical limits; first to find the limits then to teach them to surpass them. But he does the same with his male riders as well, so few feel an injustice is done to them. He is fair to all in his wing.
Pregnancy in his wing is actually frowned upon. Despite the need for children in the Weyr to replace the heavy losses that came with the first wave of Threadfall, he will still argue that the replacement of children should be left to the lowercavern women and crafter women. Dragonriders were born and breed to be on their dragon through fire and fall. He frowns strongly on the woman daring enough to ask him for leave to the queens wing so she may carry her child through to birth. A ride between is quick and painless for all.
When it comes to handling the children moving about by their own willpower, the story becomes a bit different with D'tas. He is not hard or cruel to them, but he will find either simple tasks for them to do to keep them out of trouble or will get a group of them into some game of ball. It is his belief that there physical limits should be built and stretched right from the beginning - it will only make them better dragonriders when it comes there time to fly.
History:
Deldtas was born as most children found in the Weyr were, the product of a greenflight. His father D'nal had been one of many losers of that particular green flight, but with nobody waiting for him in his weyr, the blue rider had gone to find comfort elsewhere. He found it in Deldtas' mother, Melltasi, a lower cavern women and a cook in the WeyrHall.
As most fathers, D'nal shrugged off yet another child and went about his business as a dragonrider without giving Deldtas a second thought. His mother, however, was a different story. While she still devoted most of her time to the kitchens, she at least took the time to name her first son, giving him a mix of her name as well as the blue rider she did not have the chance to sleep with a second time.
Raised by the crèche women, Deldtas was taught the way of the Weyr by living it. When he was not given chores, he was kept busy with physical activities and games. If it came to a lesson on math, it was paired with a game with a points system. Letters were the tricky aspect of learning the Harper had to learn to teach the active weyrbrats. Not all picked them up, but Deldtas stumbled through it well enough between his games of ball.
It was not long after his twelfth turn that Deldtas was given the choice many weyrbrats are offered; stay as a candidate for the eggs, or be apprenticed out of the Weyr. Deldtas took the time to consider his options and decided his life was made by a dragon flight and as such it was destined to be tied to the Weyr.
Staying on as a candidate, he moved into the candidate barracks and out of the crèche as a mark of his new status. More chores and lessons ensued which meant less time for games of ball, but the active boy was rarely found not moving. Often times he put down his studies to instead help a nearby rider bathe his dragon.
It was toward the end of his sixteenth turn that he finally did not walk off the hatching sands without a dragon. Instead, a dark bronze with an unusually long neck and awkward stride left with him toward the feeding tables. Torath was his name, and the newly named D'tas had never been happier or prouder of anything in his life.
Weyrling turns were fairly easy for the only bronze rider of the clutch. A natural leader, he was always willing to be the example. Coaxing his clutchmates to push themselves to be better and above all others, it was clear he was willing to work as a team rather than an individual. D'tas often came out to the bowl extra early or extra late with a clutchmate to help them practice on things they were struggling with.
It was just before graduation that D'tas experienced his first mating flight. A green flight, common around the Weyr, did not spark much interest in D'tas at first as they happened so often, but Torath seemed to think differently. Dragged to the bowl by the desires of his dragon, the young bronze rider found himself circling a group of men (and a few women). In the middle a rather pretty brunette with close cropped hair stood, eyes hazy. It was the young bronze rider who had the pleasure of taking the female green rider back to the nearest weyr.
Graduation came along with the invitation to the Delta Wing. Happily accepting, D'tas had no more time to move in and grow use to the wing drills before he was approached by the green rider once again. News of the pregnancy did not surprise the bronzer, but the idea that she would be keeping the child did. He instantly spoke to her against it, telling her that her first duty was to her wing. The red mark upon his face lasted the rest of the sevenday.
Even before his first child was born, he found his bronze flying in another green flight. Unfortunately the bronze was out maneuvered by a blue. Upon waking the next day, D'tas was pleased to find that he had not been left wanting, waking up by a beautiful blonde he recognized from the kitchens. Apparently that night had been potent too because 6 moons later she too approached D'tas to let him know she was keeping the child.
Both daughters were born healthy and handed over to the crèche. Time went on, with D'tas giving his children about as much thought as his father had given him. He knew them by name, but really couldn't pick them out of a crowd. Four turns later, Torath took wing to his first gold flight. Being the Sr. queen, however, Torath found himself bested by a more experienced bronze. The good natured Torath, however, would not see his rider denied a prize as well and insisted he find a bed partner.
Find a bed partner he did in another brunette from the lower caverns. It appeared the pair seemed destined to be fathers as D'tas impregnated the woman with his first and, thus far, only son. A certain amount of pride came with his son and upon his birth D'tas finally took part in the naming process. Meldtas, to this day, is the only child D'tas could pick out by face as well as name. His little pride of sorts even if he still only watches the young boy grow from a distance as a responsible dragonrider does, allowing the crèche to raise him.
It was the same turn of the birth of his son that D'tas found himself promoted to wingsecond within the Delta Wing. He took the position seriously, pushing the wing to their best physical form yet. The bronzerider took pride in the fact that the wingleader would often turn to him for his opinion as well as solutions to nicks in the wing formation. D'tas grew a reputation for being able to smooth out wing formations.
Three more daughters were fathered to green flights during the next several years with no huge occurrences. One by another greenrider and two by lower cavern women. Ammili, Dallora and Clorin were there names. D'tas didn't see a reason to remember the mother's names.
D'tas remembers the night he first spoke to his eldest daughter - remembers it like a bad dream that returns only to worry a father-who-never-wished-to-be. It had been raining heavy when a scream split across the bowl. Stopping mid-step in his walk to his weyr, D'tas found a figure running toward him. Catching the young girl as she sobbed, he looked up barely in time to react to the knife that slashed her way.
Catching it in the palm of his hand, it was easy to wrench the blade from the young candidates hand. Surprise filled the boys face, then hate before the first swing came. It was the last swing the boy would make at the bronze rider as he pushed the young girl aside and proceeded to knock the boy unconscious. It was only when he turned back to the girl, finding her dressed in torn clothes, that he learned her name was Eldra - the same name of his oldest daughter (at the time only 14).
He proceeded to act the father he should have been that night, replacing the clothes on her back and walking her (and the boy) down to the candidate office. The boy was sent out of the Weyr and the girl enrolled as a gold candidate. While she was still young for the classes, D'tas put his hand in that they really didn't know the next time a gold egg would come anyways and she would be more than ready for it if they would let her begin now.
Two turns later, D'tas was caught off guard when a pretty blonde from the lower caverns came up to him. It was not news that she was with his child that surprised him, but the invitation that she extended to his other daughter's wedding to a Journeyman Smith. Apparently he had slept with this particular blonde before. His surprise left him with yet another red mark that stayed on his face for the rest of the sevenday.
He did, however, attend the gather and the ceremony for his second eldest daughter, Tasse and her new husband. It was a happy occasion and he proceeded to have a good time, drinking quite a bit. Waking up the next day in a red-head's bed left him with a smile on his face, knowing he had defiantly had a good time. The red-head's husband did not see it the same way, however, when he came home only moments later from the mines.
After a rough tussel, both men came out worse for wear. The bronze rider returned to the Weyr and was ordered to the infirmary. Thankfully most of it was simple bruising and nothing serious. The same couldn't be said for his hands at the time. Busted open right down to the bone, it was hard to tell if anything was broken or not due to the amount of swelling and bleeding.
Told to wrap it and take it easy, D'tas was at a loss the first night. Could he fly with useless hands? Would he even be able to care for Torath properly? That night he slept under his dragon's protective wing and fell asleep to the bronze's reassuring whispers. Morning brought a new determination in D'tas. Going straight down to the infirmary, he demanded they make sure all of the bones were straight and intact no matter how much flesh they had to cut out of the way to find out. Bottle of quickal in hand, he bit his leathers through the process.
Several sevendays seen him working his hands constantly, clenching the muscles, moving the fingers one by one and working on his grip and dexterity. Ignoring his wingleaders commands of 'light duty', D'tas was still determined enough to fly with the wing as soon as he could grip his leathers and rebuckle himself in. Thankfully, due to his own stubbornness the healers would say, he healed perfectly fine. While his dexterity is not perfect, its enough for repairing the leathers and writing the wing formations. His grip is stronger than most due to his still continued exercises.
It was six months ago that D'tas found his world given true meaning. Drills done every day of his life since impression were finally put to the test when the first threadfall came to Pern. News of the first fall over Igen's territories came to Highreaches Weyr and the Weyr prepared. Watching their own skys, it was not long before the second fall came in thick and heavy over the farmland of Nabol Hold.
Unprepared. Ask any rider who flew in the first falls, no matter the Weyr and no matter the Wing and they will answer the same. They were Unprepared. The drills, the wing formations, the games between Weyrs - none of them would prepare a dragonrider for the horror of thread and the way it eats through organic life.
To this day, D'tas still relives the dreams of the tangled mass of silver as it hit B'oras and his blue Narth, as the two fell - the blue too terrified for his rider to think clearly enough to jump between. D'tas will not remember the words he spoke to Torath, or the orders he shouted back to the wing, but he will remember that stomach clenching dive. Wings pumping to push them groundward faster. They caught the pair, bronze wings straining against the weight and gravity to pull them between - but not before the second tangle of thread hit them.
Breaking out from between barely above the ground in the Weyr, they crashed to the ground with their momentum, a tangle of blue and bronze - their already pain filled minds filled with the cries of dragons all across the Weyr. D'tas and B'oras were out of commission for the next sevenday, their minds tortured with the sounds of the rest around them. D'tas had come out better than most… only a scar'd shoulder to show, his bronze only slightly bruised from the landing. B'oras' blue would never fly again, but at least the dragon lived, and so did the rider. The two asked to be stationed at the hold for permanent watchduty. Permission was granted.
That day had left the wing with two deaths and B'oras' injury, so three short total. Thankfully, the several other injuries taken healed quickly and only taught the wing more caution while fighting the deadly silver rain. Several more falls were seen by the wing, with less damage taken each time as the riders slowly grew seasoned. Delta Wing grew a reputation for their stamina while during threadfall, taking longer flights and covering other wings. It seemed only fitting that HighReaches, when asked to supply a few riders to help support Igen Weyr who had been worse hit, would chose from the Delta Wing.
The choice to send D'tas was not an easy one. Nobody wished to see their wingsecond leave, but they also knew a leader who had seen the silver rain first hand and survived was needed. With the least amount of bronzes lost, HighReaches would offer their own in the form of D'tas and Torath.
D'tas accepted, regrettably. His ties to the Wing had only been strengthened with the fall of thread. How could he learn to trust other riders with his life the way he trusted Delta Wing? Only time would tell.
Unprepared… That was how Delta Wing had entered Threadfall. D'tas would make sure the new Igen Wings would not be caught so ill fitted.
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Dragon Info:
Name: Torath
Age: 19 Turns
Color: Bronze
Appearance:
A good sized bronze to say the least, Torath is a tribute to good breeding as he is a prime example of High Reaches Bronzes. A dark hide that has a healthy metallic shine to it, his color is distinct - almost a dark copper like an old, but shiny penny. His large, wedge-shaped head holds eyes set slightly forward, marking him as a predator rather than prey.
Long, muscular tail helps him hold his balance while laden with firestone sacks while his wide and admirable wingspan only lends to his stamina during a threadfall or mating flight. A slightly longer neck than normal leaves him with an almost serpentine look, but many of the greens speak of how appealing it is rather than repulsive.
Personality: Torath, while a prime example of how a bronze should look, healthy and in his prime, much more could be said about his personality. Temperamental is the first to come to mind. Unlike his rider, Torath can be pushed right from the first word out of your mouth. Quick to take offense to words spoken in his direction or his riders, the dragon is even quicker to puff up his chest and show any ranked dragon exactly why he was born a bronze.
While he temper is the first impression just about anyone gets from the bronze upon meeting him, his pride and vanity tie for a close second. He is not above wallowing in the sun with the greens or making sure his hide is oiled on a regular basis. Respect is one thing he will always demand, but unless he can get a fight to break out, he'll demand that respect after his bath.
History:
There was the egg - and mother! Oh what a lovely mindspeach she sang to us in.
Then there was the sand, it was very hot but it lead me to D'tas.
D'tas was skinny, but I would help him fill out.
Clutchmates were fun, I liked living with my clutchmates and theirs.
Delta Wing is family. When will we return?
Gold flight was fun! Next time I will win so both of us will have a prize.
The silver rain. We will fight it again, we will avenge our wingmates.
Igen is warm, I like the sun but there is far too much sand.
A new wing? As long as they respect us like Delta did. We will make them family too.
Clutch: HighReaches - Gold Roarath X Bronze Thesoth
Hatching Order: Second to hatch from a clutch of thirteen.
Wing: Ingenuity Wingleader
Name: D'tas (Deldtas)
Gender: Male
Age: 35
Orientation: Hetero
Origin: High Reaches Weyr
Rank: Ingenuity Wingleader
Family:
Grandmother - Nalli - Deceased - Green Rider @ Highreaches Weyr
Grandfather - Delvorin - Deceased - Journeyman Smith @ Crom Hold
Father - Deldonal - 61 Turns - Blue Rider @ Highreaches Weyr
Brother - Donorik - 43 Turns - Journeyman Miner @ Crom Hold
Brother - Onalor - 38 Turns - Lower Caverns Worker @ Highreaches Weyr
Sister - Nalla - 30 Turns - Green Rider @ Highreaches Weyr
Grandmother - Mellora - Deceased - Unknown Rank @ Keroon Hold
Grandfather - Tasin - Deceased - Bronze Rider @ Telgar Weyr
Mother - Melltasi - 67 Turns - Cook @ Highreaches Weyr
Sister - Mellina - 40 Turns - Wife of a Journeyman Harper @ Telgar Hold
Sister - Tella - 36 Turns - Green Rider @ High Reaches Weyr
Brother - T'sor - 32 Turns - Brown Rider @ High Reaches Weyr
Brother - A'sin - 29 Turns - Green Rider @ Telgar Weyr
Sister - Vallasi - 26 Turns - Cook @ Harper Hall
With his own fair share of children as any good bronzer has, D'tas has only played a small hand into his children's lives. Going so far as to know their names, D'tas knows the importance of mixing blood for strength and so has made a point of flying his children to their foster parents once they were decided - in a sense leaving his mark with their first flight as well.
Daughter - Eldra - 17 Turns - Gold Candidate @ Highreaches Weyr
Daughter - Tasse - 16 Turns - Wife of a Journeyman Smith @ Highreaches Hold
Son - Meldtas - 12 Turns - Candidate @ Highreaches Weyr
Daughter - 9 Turns - Foster Child @ Benden Hold
Daughter - 8 Turns - Foster Child @ Keroon Hold
Daughter - 5 Turns - Weyrbrat @ Highreaches Weyr
Daughter - 2 Turns - Foster Child @ Ista Hold
Appearance:
A first glance at D'tas and anyone can tell you that the sweaty, dust covered and firestone smelling man is a dragonrider. That much is easy enough to tell as he is rarely seen outside of his riding leathers or a bag of firestone over his shoulder. Standing an even 6'2" the man also has the build of a dragonrider in the time of threadfall as his body is well shaped and formed. While he is not as finely chiseled as some riders can boast, he still has a solid frame.
Black hair is kept long enough to run fingers in, though it rarely happens as his own hands are kept busy with work and he rarely keeps the company of a woman longer than a night. While his face boasts a strong chin, his jawline is a little lacking according to the lower cavern women. It is also whispered that he does not have a gentle touch though after Turns of dealing with dragons, firestone and Thread, it's no surprise any riders touch might turn a little rougher.
Calloused hands show his work ethic and still in the later stages of his prime, D'tas and keep up with the rest of the Weyr at any task save for needle point which he'll never care to take up. Few scars mark his body, though those that do have stories behind them. Several small and hard scars cover his knuckles telling of a day he had broken into a brawl with a Journeyman Miner. Another, longer line crosses his palm to tell of a night he caught a knife aimed for his oldest daughter. Lastly, a rather grotesque scar runs along his right shoulder blade which reminds all of his dedication to his wing as he and his dived past a tangle of thread to save another pair.
Personality:
As leadership seems to be a distinct trait through all bronze riders, D'tas too was a natural born leader. Quick to step up to the plate, D'tas strives in order. If anything is not running smoothly, he finds the problem and fixes it, whether it is by moving a rider in his wing to a new position or by bringing a problem rider in another wing into his. In his eyes, if something doesn't feel right or doesn't mesh well, then something needs to be changed. He is a strong advocate to change.
Loyalty is another big thing to D'tas, though some would second guess that as his loyalty is not to any one woman. Instead he believes in loyalty at a much larger scale - Loyalty to the Weyr, Loyalty to the Wing and above all, Loyalty to the Dragon. It was a shock to D'tas when he was chosen as one of only three bronzes to be sent to Igen Weyr - so far away and so different from the Weyr his loyalty was so tightly bound to.
Being a male, D'tas has a certain amount of testosterone running through his body. With such comes two more distinct traits; Dominance and Temper. A naturally dominate male, D'tas commands a certain amount of respect from not only his Wing, but the Weyr and Pern as a whole. His rank, in his eyes, was not lightly learned. A man does not become a bronze rider through the luck of the Shell, but by earning the title after being given the chance by his hatchling.
His temper is a rather good one on most days. While D'tas always seems to be working, he is easy enough to coax a smile off of as long as it doesn't disturb his work in the process. He can be pushed, and rather far, before he finally 'breaks'. Once his temper is finally pushed to that point, however, the one who pushed him is not the only to suffer. This bronzer has a bad habit of taking his anger, once found, out on anyone within earshot. Several days later he may regret it, then again he may not.
When it comes to women and children, D'tas will seem almost ignorant of their existence. He rarely looks at a woman as just that; a woman. Instead he sees them as part of the work force. As long as they are doing their part and getting the task completed in a timely manner he tends to ignore them. When it comes to the women in his wing, he will push them to their physical limits; first to find the limits then to teach them to surpass them. But he does the same with his male riders as well, so few feel an injustice is done to them. He is fair to all in his wing.
Pregnancy in his wing is actually frowned upon. Despite the need for children in the Weyr to replace the heavy losses that came with the first wave of Threadfall, he will still argue that the replacement of children should be left to the lowercavern women and crafter women. Dragonriders were born and breed to be on their dragon through fire and fall. He frowns strongly on the woman daring enough to ask him for leave to the queens wing so she may carry her child through to birth. A ride between is quick and painless for all.
When it comes to handling the children moving about by their own willpower, the story becomes a bit different with D'tas. He is not hard or cruel to them, but he will find either simple tasks for them to do to keep them out of trouble or will get a group of them into some game of ball. It is his belief that there physical limits should be built and stretched right from the beginning - it will only make them better dragonriders when it comes there time to fly.
History:
Deldtas was born as most children found in the Weyr were, the product of a greenflight. His father D'nal had been one of many losers of that particular green flight, but with nobody waiting for him in his weyr, the blue rider had gone to find comfort elsewhere. He found it in Deldtas' mother, Melltasi, a lower cavern women and a cook in the WeyrHall.
As most fathers, D'nal shrugged off yet another child and went about his business as a dragonrider without giving Deldtas a second thought. His mother, however, was a different story. While she still devoted most of her time to the kitchens, she at least took the time to name her first son, giving him a mix of her name as well as the blue rider she did not have the chance to sleep with a second time.
Raised by the crèche women, Deldtas was taught the way of the Weyr by living it. When he was not given chores, he was kept busy with physical activities and games. If it came to a lesson on math, it was paired with a game with a points system. Letters were the tricky aspect of learning the Harper had to learn to teach the active weyrbrats. Not all picked them up, but Deldtas stumbled through it well enough between his games of ball.
It was not long after his twelfth turn that Deldtas was given the choice many weyrbrats are offered; stay as a candidate for the eggs, or be apprenticed out of the Weyr. Deldtas took the time to consider his options and decided his life was made by a dragon flight and as such it was destined to be tied to the Weyr.
Staying on as a candidate, he moved into the candidate barracks and out of the crèche as a mark of his new status. More chores and lessons ensued which meant less time for games of ball, but the active boy was rarely found not moving. Often times he put down his studies to instead help a nearby rider bathe his dragon.
It was toward the end of his sixteenth turn that he finally did not walk off the hatching sands without a dragon. Instead, a dark bronze with an unusually long neck and awkward stride left with him toward the feeding tables. Torath was his name, and the newly named D'tas had never been happier or prouder of anything in his life.
Weyrling turns were fairly easy for the only bronze rider of the clutch. A natural leader, he was always willing to be the example. Coaxing his clutchmates to push themselves to be better and above all others, it was clear he was willing to work as a team rather than an individual. D'tas often came out to the bowl extra early or extra late with a clutchmate to help them practice on things they were struggling with.
It was just before graduation that D'tas experienced his first mating flight. A green flight, common around the Weyr, did not spark much interest in D'tas at first as they happened so often, but Torath seemed to think differently. Dragged to the bowl by the desires of his dragon, the young bronze rider found himself circling a group of men (and a few women). In the middle a rather pretty brunette with close cropped hair stood, eyes hazy. It was the young bronze rider who had the pleasure of taking the female green rider back to the nearest weyr.
Graduation came along with the invitation to the Delta Wing. Happily accepting, D'tas had no more time to move in and grow use to the wing drills before he was approached by the green rider once again. News of the pregnancy did not surprise the bronzer, but the idea that she would be keeping the child did. He instantly spoke to her against it, telling her that her first duty was to her wing. The red mark upon his face lasted the rest of the sevenday.
Even before his first child was born, he found his bronze flying in another green flight. Unfortunately the bronze was out maneuvered by a blue. Upon waking the next day, D'tas was pleased to find that he had not been left wanting, waking up by a beautiful blonde he recognized from the kitchens. Apparently that night had been potent too because 6 moons later she too approached D'tas to let him know she was keeping the child.
Both daughters were born healthy and handed over to the crèche. Time went on, with D'tas giving his children about as much thought as his father had given him. He knew them by name, but really couldn't pick them out of a crowd. Four turns later, Torath took wing to his first gold flight. Being the Sr. queen, however, Torath found himself bested by a more experienced bronze. The good natured Torath, however, would not see his rider denied a prize as well and insisted he find a bed partner.
Find a bed partner he did in another brunette from the lower caverns. It appeared the pair seemed destined to be fathers as D'tas impregnated the woman with his first and, thus far, only son. A certain amount of pride came with his son and upon his birth D'tas finally took part in the naming process. Meldtas, to this day, is the only child D'tas could pick out by face as well as name. His little pride of sorts even if he still only watches the young boy grow from a distance as a responsible dragonrider does, allowing the crèche to raise him.
It was the same turn of the birth of his son that D'tas found himself promoted to wingsecond within the Delta Wing. He took the position seriously, pushing the wing to their best physical form yet. The bronzerider took pride in the fact that the wingleader would often turn to him for his opinion as well as solutions to nicks in the wing formation. D'tas grew a reputation for being able to smooth out wing formations.
Three more daughters were fathered to green flights during the next several years with no huge occurrences. One by another greenrider and two by lower cavern women. Ammili, Dallora and Clorin were there names. D'tas didn't see a reason to remember the mother's names.
D'tas remembers the night he first spoke to his eldest daughter - remembers it like a bad dream that returns only to worry a father-who-never-wished-to-be. It had been raining heavy when a scream split across the bowl. Stopping mid-step in his walk to his weyr, D'tas found a figure running toward him. Catching the young girl as she sobbed, he looked up barely in time to react to the knife that slashed her way.
Catching it in the palm of his hand, it was easy to wrench the blade from the young candidates hand. Surprise filled the boys face, then hate before the first swing came. It was the last swing the boy would make at the bronze rider as he pushed the young girl aside and proceeded to knock the boy unconscious. It was only when he turned back to the girl, finding her dressed in torn clothes, that he learned her name was Eldra - the same name of his oldest daughter (at the time only 14).
He proceeded to act the father he should have been that night, replacing the clothes on her back and walking her (and the boy) down to the candidate office. The boy was sent out of the Weyr and the girl enrolled as a gold candidate. While she was still young for the classes, D'tas put his hand in that they really didn't know the next time a gold egg would come anyways and she would be more than ready for it if they would let her begin now.
Two turns later, D'tas was caught off guard when a pretty blonde from the lower caverns came up to him. It was not news that she was with his child that surprised him, but the invitation that she extended to his other daughter's wedding to a Journeyman Smith. Apparently he had slept with this particular blonde before. His surprise left him with yet another red mark that stayed on his face for the rest of the sevenday.
He did, however, attend the gather and the ceremony for his second eldest daughter, Tasse and her new husband. It was a happy occasion and he proceeded to have a good time, drinking quite a bit. Waking up the next day in a red-head's bed left him with a smile on his face, knowing he had defiantly had a good time. The red-head's husband did not see it the same way, however, when he came home only moments later from the mines.
After a rough tussel, both men came out worse for wear. The bronze rider returned to the Weyr and was ordered to the infirmary. Thankfully most of it was simple bruising and nothing serious. The same couldn't be said for his hands at the time. Busted open right down to the bone, it was hard to tell if anything was broken or not due to the amount of swelling and bleeding.
Told to wrap it and take it easy, D'tas was at a loss the first night. Could he fly with useless hands? Would he even be able to care for Torath properly? That night he slept under his dragon's protective wing and fell asleep to the bronze's reassuring whispers. Morning brought a new determination in D'tas. Going straight down to the infirmary, he demanded they make sure all of the bones were straight and intact no matter how much flesh they had to cut out of the way to find out. Bottle of quickal in hand, he bit his leathers through the process.
Several sevendays seen him working his hands constantly, clenching the muscles, moving the fingers one by one and working on his grip and dexterity. Ignoring his wingleaders commands of 'light duty', D'tas was still determined enough to fly with the wing as soon as he could grip his leathers and rebuckle himself in. Thankfully, due to his own stubbornness the healers would say, he healed perfectly fine. While his dexterity is not perfect, its enough for repairing the leathers and writing the wing formations. His grip is stronger than most due to his still continued exercises.
It was six months ago that D'tas found his world given true meaning. Drills done every day of his life since impression were finally put to the test when the first threadfall came to Pern. News of the first fall over Igen's territories came to Highreaches Weyr and the Weyr prepared. Watching their own skys, it was not long before the second fall came in thick and heavy over the farmland of Nabol Hold.
Unprepared. Ask any rider who flew in the first falls, no matter the Weyr and no matter the Wing and they will answer the same. They were Unprepared. The drills, the wing formations, the games between Weyrs - none of them would prepare a dragonrider for the horror of thread and the way it eats through organic life.
To this day, D'tas still relives the dreams of the tangled mass of silver as it hit B'oras and his blue Narth, as the two fell - the blue too terrified for his rider to think clearly enough to jump between. D'tas will not remember the words he spoke to Torath, or the orders he shouted back to the wing, but he will remember that stomach clenching dive. Wings pumping to push them groundward faster. They caught the pair, bronze wings straining against the weight and gravity to pull them between - but not before the second tangle of thread hit them.
Breaking out from between barely above the ground in the Weyr, they crashed to the ground with their momentum, a tangle of blue and bronze - their already pain filled minds filled with the cries of dragons all across the Weyr. D'tas and B'oras were out of commission for the next sevenday, their minds tortured with the sounds of the rest around them. D'tas had come out better than most… only a scar'd shoulder to show, his bronze only slightly bruised from the landing. B'oras' blue would never fly again, but at least the dragon lived, and so did the rider. The two asked to be stationed at the hold for permanent watchduty. Permission was granted.
That day had left the wing with two deaths and B'oras' injury, so three short total. Thankfully, the several other injuries taken healed quickly and only taught the wing more caution while fighting the deadly silver rain. Several more falls were seen by the wing, with less damage taken each time as the riders slowly grew seasoned. Delta Wing grew a reputation for their stamina while during threadfall, taking longer flights and covering other wings. It seemed only fitting that HighReaches, when asked to supply a few riders to help support Igen Weyr who had been worse hit, would chose from the Delta Wing.
The choice to send D'tas was not an easy one. Nobody wished to see their wingsecond leave, but they also knew a leader who had seen the silver rain first hand and survived was needed. With the least amount of bronzes lost, HighReaches would offer their own in the form of D'tas and Torath.
D'tas accepted, regrettably. His ties to the Wing had only been strengthened with the fall of thread. How could he learn to trust other riders with his life the way he trusted Delta Wing? Only time would tell.
Unprepared… That was how Delta Wing had entered Threadfall. D'tas would make sure the new Igen Wings would not be caught so ill fitted.
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Dragon Info:
Name: Torath
Age: 19 Turns
Color: Bronze
Appearance:
A good sized bronze to say the least, Torath is a tribute to good breeding as he is a prime example of High Reaches Bronzes. A dark hide that has a healthy metallic shine to it, his color is distinct - almost a dark copper like an old, but shiny penny. His large, wedge-shaped head holds eyes set slightly forward, marking him as a predator rather than prey.
Long, muscular tail helps him hold his balance while laden with firestone sacks while his wide and admirable wingspan only lends to his stamina during a threadfall or mating flight. A slightly longer neck than normal leaves him with an almost serpentine look, but many of the greens speak of how appealing it is rather than repulsive.
Personality: Torath, while a prime example of how a bronze should look, healthy and in his prime, much more could be said about his personality. Temperamental is the first to come to mind. Unlike his rider, Torath can be pushed right from the first word out of your mouth. Quick to take offense to words spoken in his direction or his riders, the dragon is even quicker to puff up his chest and show any ranked dragon exactly why he was born a bronze.
While he temper is the first impression just about anyone gets from the bronze upon meeting him, his pride and vanity tie for a close second. He is not above wallowing in the sun with the greens or making sure his hide is oiled on a regular basis. Respect is one thing he will always demand, but unless he can get a fight to break out, he'll demand that respect after his bath.
History:
There was the egg - and mother! Oh what a lovely mindspeach she sang to us in.
Then there was the sand, it was very hot but it lead me to D'tas.
D'tas was skinny, but I would help him fill out.
Clutchmates were fun, I liked living with my clutchmates and theirs.
Delta Wing is family. When will we return?
Gold flight was fun! Next time I will win so both of us will have a prize.
The silver rain. We will fight it again, we will avenge our wingmates.
Igen is warm, I like the sun but there is far too much sand.
A new wing? As long as they respect us like Delta did. We will make them family too.
Clutch: HighReaches - Gold Roarath X Bronze Thesoth
Hatching Order: Second to hatch from a clutch of thirteen.
Wing: Ingenuity Wingleader
