You go through a long and twisting tunnel, the one with the Honshu Weyr Badge above it and the game "SouCon" next to it's entrance. You eventually emerge, after many twists and turns, into a rather large weyr with several shelves along the walls and a table with a few chairs in a corner, where a young woman in her 20's sit.
You approach the woman who is reading some hides with the help of a glowbasket and drinking from a mug. She hears your approach and stands with a startled look on her face. "Oh, you scared me. Roketh didn't mention anyone coming, and speaking of that dragon..."
She looks towards the large opening to the ledge and sees a blue tail sticking in the weyr, moving back and forth in a relaxed way. "Silly dragon." She looks back at you and shakes her head, "I'm sorry, introductions. I'm Shava, WingLeader of the Swiftstrike Wing, and rider to that blue out there, Roketh." You see her eyes phase out for a moment then return, with a response for then the tail disappears and a blue head appears from outside, obvious the other half of the dragon.
She grins and suddenly a minature dragon flies out of a tunnel leading into the rider's alcove. "Oh, Nightfall, you silly thing, I thought you were still asleep. I've had him for Turns." She sighs as the blue settles onto the table and starts messing up the hides. "You better be happy I'm not a recordkeeper any more you, otherwise I'd be really mad."
You look at her with a rather confused look and she grins, "I was a recordkeeper here before I was Searched, which it was actually my third time having gone through it. Finally, my lifemate was there." She looks lovingly at Roketh's head, well actually tail since he's gone back to sunning himself, and a small smile appears on her face. "We have the rest of our lives together, and after over 4 Turns, I still can't imaging what it'll be like. And after a whole thing with the Flamestrike Wing, I was surprised that I managed to become a Wingsecond, sort of giving me the chance to show my skills."
Again you have a confused look on your face and she sighs, "I was asked to be WingSecond of another wing, but no one informed the 'higher-ups' about it, and after a whole thing with also my WingLeader being demoted, I managed to become a WingSecond. But because of the replacement WingLeader, the first was replaced, and now we have a new Weyrleader and Weyrwoman and with this things have been changing around. My former Wingleader became the Weyrlingmaster and I was chosen as her replacement. Things are going to be interesting for a while." She shakes her head and rolls her eyes to what seems to be herself, but with the dragon, you never know.
She sighs again and looks back at you. "In any case, I need to finish doing my sweep report over Suweto before the next drills, though I'm almost done. If you would give me a moment I can take you down the cliffs and you can go see the rest of the weyr." You decline though, not exactly up for a ride on a dragon. Shava shrugs, "Very well, I'm sure you know of the way you arrived and can leave safely." You nod and return down the tunnel you emerged from and the bluerider returns to her seat and her report.
All references to the worlds and characters based on Anne McCaffrey's fiction are copyright Anne McCaffrey 1967,2000, all rights reserved, and used by permission of the author. The Dragonriders of Pern(r) is registered U.S. Patent and Trademark Off, by Anne McCaffrey, used here with permission. Use or reproduction without a license is strickly prohibited. For more information, visit the Worlds of Anne McCaffrey. All images are copyright of Anne McCaffrey and drawn by Tigress.
