kite
New Member
[M:90]
Posts: 36
|
Post by kite on Apr 3, 2013 16:46:53 GMT -5
Shale chirruped distractedly, warning Malta a bare second before an awful racket erupted nearby. She clapped her hands to her ears, wincing. It sounded as though someone had chosen to play a pot with great enthusiasm and very little skill. Having been in Weyrs most of her life, she was well-aware of the lengths Candidatemasters went to to make their charges miserable. Frankly, she hadn't ever thought to be on the receiving end.
Her morning had begun peacefully, practicing sutures on a piece of wherhide while Shale worried a meatroll to death, neatly scissoring off bites from the pastry held in his foreclaws. He had a definite preference for the messy things, and she'd been of a mind to indulge him, considering their recent upheaval. Changing living situations was one thing, but being Searched was quite another. She really couldn't grasp it. All those Turns working at Fort and Southern, and not one Searchdragon had ever so much as looked at her twice. All of three days at Trelis, and here she was, ensconced in the Candidate Barracks, with a white robe to call her own. Briefly, she wondered if Shale would be upset if she Impressed, before casting the thought away. She didn't really expect to, and that was a wherry to be killed when they came to it.
Malta rose, stretching catlike for a moment, and pulled on a clean tunic. She sent the text on dragonhide she'd found a single, longing look; she'd been looking forward to brushing up on the care of young dragons, though she suspected her Turns with Shale would put her in good stead. Even if she didn't Impress, she'd be expected to treat whatever broke those shells at some point, and she didn't have much experience with hatchlings. A sonorous voice informed her she had two minutes, and she ran a hand through her closely-cropped hair. It wasn't the first time she'd been grateful for the convenience of the shorn strands.
As she took her place with the rest of the Candidates, she had to repress a frown. They were rather a sorry lot, all in all. One boy hadn't even bothered to put clothes on, and several of them were voicing their opinions on the Candidatemaster's tactics. Interesting. After Turns of dealing with Master Dragonhealer Ricter's tricks, the pan at the crack of dawn was hardly the worst thing she could imagine. Then again, she thought it quite likely a fair number of these children had never done anything she'd consider work a day in their lives. She gave Kvothe a quick, considering look as the redhead tore into a pair of his fellow Candidates; she'd been thinking along the same lines. She wasn't nearly so likely to voice her opinions, but she approved, in a general sort of way.
As the Candidates spoke up, either insisting on a specific color or expressing an airy wish for any dragon at all, she carefully noted names and crafts. The Mindhealer got a second look, but for the most part, she found the lack of crafters disheartening. In her experience, Holders didn't do much for her, and Weyrfolk could vary too wildly to be counted on. It was amusing to see how highly some counted themselves, and for no reason that she could see. Where did you find such self-worth when you'd never accomplished anything? Delusions, she supposed. A dark-haired Starcrafter voiced a wish for an intelligent dragon, a sentiment she echoed whole-heartedly. Just as the lesson seemed to be acquiring some kind of organization, a man rolled in and announced that he had a sock. He seemed rather surprised to see them all; Malta freely assumed he was a half-wit, since most of those around her seemed to be ignoring him. He seemed friendly enough, and certainly not threatening, so she followed suit.
The rush of answers began to irritate her. She sincerely doubted C'lior was genuinely interested in their answers, though Zeke's carnal honesty brought a surprised flicker of a smile to her lips. Joskull's immediate criticism of Eir, the Holder-girl, and Dalrian's prompt support, interested her mildly. Keeping an eye on the inner politics of this group could be interesting, and Faranth knew she'd need something to keep her brain occupied during Candidacy.
A short silence fell, and she supposed now was as good a time as any. "I'm Malta, Journeyman Dragonhealer. I expect a Blue or Brown, but anything intelligent will do," her voice was measured, but not particularly expressive. Surreptitiously, she glanced at a few of the girls. Most of them had expressed a desire for a female dragon, but her general misogyny certainly had her leaning towards a male. It might be interesting to be mistaken for a lesbian, but some wicked part of her was monitoring the Holder-girls for shock. Cross-gender Impression, oh my!
|
|
pulp
Junior Member
[M:45]
[screams internally]
Posts: 68
|
Post by pulp on Apr 3, 2013 22:05:07 GMT -5
Oh shells and stars above, most of the other candidates were falling into the lulling comfort of speaking up with oh how they'd be so happy with anything. The comment some girl, did she say her name was Kariss?, made comparing gold dragons to herdbeasts got a small smile on the starcrafters lips. Oh, that was certainly an interesting opinion to have. There was the candidate who stumbled in with a sock in hand and promptly seemed far more interested in getting clothed than to participate in the whole experience. Well, either their perception of what was going on was skewed, or maybe they were higher than a kite on fellis--both options were not his problem.
A small snort was given when the Nyssa girl spoke up, and Bahari did his best to turn the noise into a sort of cough to try and disguise it. Oh! Confidence in spades here! At least she had the stones to state that aloud--although it edged on the side of ignorance when she mentioned worth. Still Bahari managed to still his tongue, even if it meant clamping down on it with his teeth in that wicked little mouth of his. Another laugh-cough was uttered when Zeke spoke up. For a moment the Starcrafter almost sniped a comment along the lines of 'i can confirm you don't need a dragon to do that', but nope, those words were not coming out when his older brother was standing right next to him.
Faranth help him, he was not able to keep it together when Eir spoke up, oh wasn't she an image of privilege. The elbow from his brother got a shake of his head from the brunet, but oh there was a pleased little smile on those lips after his sibling spoke up. A small snort was given to the man who pushed past Joskull, and when he spoke, oh Bahari simply couldn't help himself. He reached up to give Hatsya a scratch, his expression looking like a mix between something tired and something dreadfully bored as he spoke to Dalrian. "I would think that you should go right ahead and lump yourself in with the rest of us when you decide to use the phrase you people, unless you plan on deactivating as a candidate?" The question didn't hang in the air for long, and Bahari pressed onwards in his honeyed tone. "Perhaps before delving into what I'm sure is a fascinating lecture on the details of our supposed need for influence you should point that titillating scrutiny towards yourself. Booming shouts and regarding a group of individuals, who ideally will be your wingmates that you will rely on, with such condescension certainly isn't becoming-- and, if I may say, it looks like you seem to put a great deal of influence in your own beliefs since you decided to share what you believe we should know."
Bahari ended his mouthful with a little shrug and a nonchalant grin, vision flickering briefly to the boy who professed an interest in a garnet--oh why would someone want that?--then to the dragonhealer, Malta who spoke up. The crafter let out a small breath, close to muttering out the next thankful comment. "By the Void, and here I was about to weep that I was the only one who wanted a bit of smarts to keep me satisfied."
|
|
Mystery
Junior Member
[M:130]
[maniacal laughter]
Posts: 67
|
Post by Mystery on Apr 8, 2013 7:16:16 GMT -5
"Shut up, all of you. You realise the candidate master doesn't control the eggs, right? Stop licking his boots."
Oh Kvothe was over it. All these people had everything and they were here because they wanted something more. Kvothe wasn't sure he wanted a dragon, but it had seemed like the rigth thing to do to accept. His parents would have wanted that, he was sure they would have wanted him to do his best no matter what he needed to do or who he spoke to to get it. So here he was, standing. "Wow." And he sounded genuinely impressed for a moment, watching Eir. "What a load of runner crap. You really expect us to believe you, who've had everything since you were small, want anything less than to lead? You probably think you're entitled. Well excuse me if I don't kiss your feet."
Idiots. All of them. Idiots. They had everything and they had the nerve to demand more, as though they truly were entitled just by life. The rest of the candidates were promptly ignored, Kvothe scowling at his feet unhappily. "My name is Kvothe. I'm an apprentice harper. I don't know what I want to Impress, I just want something with brains. Something hard working." He shrugged, lips twisting in a short sneer as he looked at Eir again.
|
|
Mystery
Junior Member
[M:130]
[maniacal laughter]
Posts: 67
|
Post by Mystery on Apr 8, 2013 7:42:32 GMT -5
So a few candidates had brains. Amazing. They saw beyond the hide and to what they were in the group for: A partner. Someone to match them, step for step, someone to match them in every way. Hide didn't matter. If he'd been asking about hide, he'd have made a point to mention colour. Ah well, you couldn't expect everything from a new batch. When Eir spoke up, C'lior's eyes narrowed slightly and he snorted. "No. You're not. You're a candidate. Your birth rank means nothing now and will mean nothing when you Impress. The weyr works differently. You and you," He paused, pointing at Kvothe and Bahari seperately, "Shut up. When I want your opinions in my class, I'll ask for it. That goes for the rest of you too."
Oh shards, Faranth be willing none of them would Impress at this rate. They certainly were a pathetic lot, but he had a job to do in getting them ready. Time to play teamwork. C'lior, personally, hated teamwork games, everyone always whined and bratted on about who they could or couoldn't work with because of who said what about who's nose. Still, the brats needed to learn. "Now if you're all done airing your opinions." He paused again, glaring at them all one by one before he crossed his arms over his chest and sighed. "When you lot are riders, these people you're standing with and bickering with could be the difference between life and death. So. I'm going to pair you up. You're going to do a series of trust exercises, and then you're going to be spending until the next lesson with that person. Outside chores, and I want a report of what you were doing together."
With another pause to allow for the usual dramatic groans, he looked around. "Motoki, think you can comment on my methods? maybe Kite can teach you manners. Pair up. Jisene, Koroniket, you're paired. Bahari, Nyssa, pair up. Laila, Imiika, pair. Chantrea, since you think you're above answering an order, pair up with Gaius. Kariss, Cayin, pair. Kvothe, Lucian, pair up. Emrissa, Zeke, pair, try to keep him clothed. Eir, Dalrian, and Joskull, Malta, you're our final pair." Waving the younger man forward with one hand, C'lior glanced at the pairs. "Now, do I care if you have issues with your pairing? No. You'll learn to at least be able to trust the people at your back, even if you don't like them. You're going to pair up and we're going to start with a simple trust exercise. One of you will close your eyes, and fall back into your partner. Your partner will catch you. Get to it."
Partners
Motoki/Kite Jisene/Koroniket Bahari/Nyssa Laila/Imiika Chantrea/Gaius Kariss/Cayin Kvothe/Lucian Emrissa/Zeke Eir/Dalrian Joskull/Malta
Note: All of these were done through randomiser.
Edit by Lark
|
|
Akira
Junior Member
[M:110]
Posts: 78
|
Post by Akira on Apr 8, 2013 11:47:43 GMT -5
Motoki had been silent since she had been assigned latrine duty. It’s not that she was afraid of the work; in fact, she thought of it as a start to getting her used to the work she would have to face if she impressed. No, she was a little miffed by the way the Candidate Master had treated her, when all she had tried to do was be polite. She took a deep breath and settled herself; there was no point of working one’s self up over something she couldn’t control. Korigain agreed with this and crooned softly to Motoki as he felt her start to relax. Lunete was more interested with all the other firelizards in the room, and crooned and trilled softly to each one she saw.
Motoki wondered what, exactly, C’lior meant when he said “spending time until the next lesson with that person.” Well, at least she wouldn’t have to deal with one of the more “girly” of the candidates. She looked over at Kite, and wondered just who well the two would get along. That’s when she realized who he was. He had been the one that had bowled her over in the Weyrbowl. She relaxed a little, slightly comforted with the knowledge that she knew who she’d be working with, though it seemed to be a double-edge sword when it came to her firelizard’s opinions.
|
|
Thorn
Junior Member
Posts: 74
|
Post by Thorn on Apr 8, 2013 12:15:07 GMT -5
Jisene froze. Did he just... pair her up... with Koroniket...? Her eyes were wide, but not with shock. Her trembling, too, also had nothing to do with that emotion. No, it was pure unadulterated rage.
Koroniket. The mountain of a youth that she didn't want to speak to, not after how she heard him speak to his mother one day. Her eyes narrowed, and her lips thinned as she turned her gaze on the youth in question. Her hand itched to draw her belt knife, but she held in the urge-just. There was a twitch of her fingers, but otherwise nothing.
I swear, just one word, one little word, and I will use him for target practice! Shards, why did Master C'lior pair me with him?! Surely he knows better than that!!! And how am I meant to catch someone that big...?! It was true-Koroniket was several inches taller than she was, and with a much bulkier build, too.
Jisene was strong, yes, but not that strong. And she definitely didn't want him touching her, either. Not that she had a choice in the matter, that is. She narrowed her eyes further as she wandered how she could get him to leave her be... Ah, yes. She had planned to go hunting later.
Maybe she could 'invite' him along, and then show him what it means to travel in the jungles with an archer that knows what she's doing. Maybe that would earn the fool's silence-at least for her ears, anyway. With a huff of annoyance, she strode over to him.
"Well? Let's get started with this torture. Sooner it's over with, the sooner we can get the chores done and I can go hunting."
|
|
taylor
Junior Member
[M:258]
Posts: 51
|
Post by taylor on Apr 8, 2013 14:42:01 GMT -5
Koroniket to Jisene
As C'lior called out the pairs, Koroniket grimaced. He quickly smoothed over the expression, though. As a future bronzerider, it was his job to put on a happy face and lead the lesser candidates onward. Jisene...Jisene. Who was that, again? Probably the blonde walking towards him. He looked her over and frowned. Great. A woman.
He raised an eyebrow at Jisene's words. "Torture? Hardly that. You'll have to do real work if you want a dragon, little lady, and this is nothing. Mind you... it might be best if we ignore his little direction, hmm? I'm sure you think you're strong and tough, but you're a woman. You should go pair up with another girl and let a man be my partner. Otherwise you're liable to collapse the second I touch you." He'd noticed the same thing Jisene had - he was big, much bigger than her, and it was probably going to be tough for her to catch him. While she attributed this to his size, however, he attributed it to her sex and, by extension, her obvious weakness.
He held out his arms. "We can do the first part of this, though. Fall into my arms. I'm sure you're scared but don't worry; I'll catch you."
Kariss to Cayin
Cayin, Cayin, Cayin...hmm. Had she heard that name? Kariss looked around the assembled people, quietly murmuring their names to herself. Process of elimination left her with the sockless wonder. That must be Cayin?
She walked over to him. "Hi Sock Boy. You Cayin?" She offered a hand to pull him up off the ground, since he likely didn't have to be there now that his sock was firmly on his foot. "I'm Kariss. Guess we're buddies."
She looked him over thoughtfully. He was tall, taller than her, but wasn't too bulky. The height difference wasn't outrageous and she had plenty of muscle on her, so this should go okay. Hopefully. "Do you wanna catch or fall first? I don't think I'll send you crashing to the ground." She grinned at him; she was super reassuring, right?
|
|
|
Post by Kitsuneko on Apr 8, 2013 15:05:49 GMT -5
Well, this candidate lesson seemed to be going downhill rapidly. Laila couldn't help rolling her eyes a little when certain candidates kept speaking up to add their opinions about their fellow candidates--what did it matter what other people thought? There was more to Impression than just what the candidate was expecting. Really, she didn't think anything anyone had said was worth arguing about, or making snide remarks about, for that matter. Being the non-confrontational sort of person she was, though, she kept her mouth shut and remained quiet rather than add to the noise.
C'lior was talking about how they would all be expected to work together after they Impressed (if they Impressed). She supposed he had a point, but...well, after listening to some of the candidates around her, Laila wasn't sure she wanted to try working with some of them. Oh, Jisene was alright, when she had met her before, and some of the others seemed sensible enough about taking whatever dragon they got. Even Eir had seemed nice enough when it had been her turn to speak, even if she was the daughter of a Lord.
She didn't know exactly why that had invited disbelieving (and, frankly, rude) comments from the other candidates, Joskull, Bahari, and Kvothe in particular. It was like they hated her just because of how she was raised, and that didn't seem fair to Laila. She was glad she hadn't been paired with any of them, or for that matter, Koroniket and Nyssa, who both dripped with arrogance and conceit. As if metallic dragons were all that mattered! She shot a sympathetic glance to Jisene when she saw she had been paired with Koroniket, but envy her, Laila certainly did not.
With all the candidates paired up and the Candidatemaster's speech finished, Laila looked over at her own partner, Imiika. She tried to keep the sense of skepticism she felt off of her face, though she wasn't sure how successful it was. The other candidate seemed somewhat congenial, if quiet, but Laila wasn't sure about this whole falling exercise. It wasn't a matter of trust so much as logistics. Imiika was very short and very slender, and Laila, as she was well aware, was emphatically neither.
|
|
Zero
New Member
[M:125]
Posts: 49
|
Post by Zero on Apr 8, 2013 21:03:01 GMT -5
His face twisted into a frown as his question of eating went unanswered. That frown quickly turned into a scowl as he glared at the candidatemaster. How the hell did he expect them to cooperate and comingle this early in the morning without something in their bellies? Hell, he’d even settle for a crust of bread at this point. It was then C’lior started to speak again and Gaius was forced to put aside his hunger and listen in.
Pair up? Trust exercise? Fall? What the hell was this crap and who the hell was Chantrea? He groaned out loud. With eyes narrowed he scanned the room. He had made sure to pay attention as everyone stated their names, for just this occasion, but he was absolutely positive no one with that name had spoken. Unless… Cocking his head to the side he eyed the girl standing alone in a corner across the room. What was she supposed to be? Small, quiet, and brooding? Gaius rolled his eyes but he started to cross the room anyways. The quicker they did this stupid trust fall, the quicker he could go eat before getting to the rest of his chores.
“I sure hope you’re stronger than you look because I won’t be happy if my ass hits this floor. Alright then,” he flashed her a lazy grin before holding out his arms. “Let’s go, ladies first.”
[/font]
|
|
Thorn
Junior Member
Posts: 74
|
Post by Thorn on Apr 9, 2013 4:04:53 GMT -5
Jisene could not believe what he'd just said to her. Anger made her eyes narrow as her eyebrows snapped together in a frown, her pale blue eyes turning into chunks of pure ice. "Well, if you think I'm so weak, then that's fine by me. I don't need a male like you messing up my hunting trip anyway. Especially not one that prefers to cook rather than find the food himself. But sure, let's get this task over with, shall we?"
Her voice had turned deadly sweet, and her bluntness was now completely on show-she hated males like this one with a passion, but she still turned her back on him, closed her eyes, and, keeping herself ramrod stiff, let her body fall backwards. Just because she didn't like the guy did not mean she was going to go against C'lior's orders.
|
|
Ace
New Member
[M:75]
Posts: 30
|
Post by Ace on Apr 9, 2013 9:20:35 GMT -5
Joskull began to bristle when C'lior told his brother to shut up. Oh, sure, he was the candidatemaster. That was all well and nice, but it didn't keep the 'older brother protectiveness' at bay. The blond growled under his breath, his shoulders tensing as he watched the brownrider. If he didn't want their opinions, he shouldn't have fucking asked in the first place. They weren't all drones and kiss-asses; it was only inevitable that, eventually, someone would disagree.
And then, then things got one-thousand times worse.
It was one thing to have to work with another candidate for a few days until the next lesson. It was another to be paired with someone who had no personality and no desire. Joskull didn't like other people. It wasn't really all that personal. It happened to most people. He liked his family, and he liked his craft, and that was about it. Giving his brother one last push, and a muttered "Don't get into too much trouble," he trudged over to Malta.
Strun, feeding off his general unhappiness, flared his wings and hissed at the girl. For once, the blond was a bit pleased his creature was an absolute nightmare. "This is stupid," he hissed to himself. "Not everyone is going to Impress. And there's no way on Pern I'm going to magically ~trust~ some sharding girl I met this morning. That's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard."
Strun hissed again, just for effect. Standing up on Joskull's shoulder, he used the man's head to prop himself up, staring over at C'lior. Enemy.
Joskull, meanwhile, glanced over at Malta. "I'm not going to catch you. That just means I'm not an ass, and nothing else. I think this is stupid."
Just in case you missed it the first time. Come on, this wasn't even a useful skill. Being a dragonrider would never require him to catch anyone. (At least not like this.)
|
|
kite
New Member
[M:90]
Posts: 36
|
Post by kite on Apr 9, 2013 9:42:43 GMT -5
Malta's gaze slid to Bahari as he muttered a response to her introduction with no barbs at all, despite the sharp comments he'd sent towards their fellows. The corners of her mouth turned up in a slight smile that had something sly in it as she pointed out, "Perhaps not the only one, but still wildly out-numbered." And out-numbered she certainly considered herself. Out of all of the responses, she could count the ones that had any sense to them on the fingers of one hand. Even C'lior seemed disappointed, if she was any judge of facial expressions.
Kvothe's response made her mentally add another worthwhile Candidate to her tally, and he was a Harper to boot. It was true that she didn't always find value in what Harpers did, but she knew they had useful skills, or were supposed to. She guessed she'd find out soon enough, as C'lior began speaking again. The thought that she'd soon trust her life to any of these people made her distinctly uncomfortable. She was not in the habit of trusting other people with much of anything.
Malta cast Bahari a sympathetic look as he was paired with the girl who thought she could guarantee herself a Golden hide, but even she wouldn't deny the flicker of wicked amusement tucked into her expression. Perhaps the young man's edged tongue might cut some of the uppity girl's arrogance away, though she privately doubted it. If it were going to happen, life would have taken care of it long before now. Her own partner was Joskull, a Glass-smith, if she remembered rightly, who wanted a metallic hide as well. She couldn't necessarily fault him that, and he'd been up against Bahari for long enough that she guessed he had some sense in his head, or the former wouldn't have tolerated him. Perhaps they were lovers? There was, perhaps, some similarity in their features, but Joskull's blonde hair made her doubt they were related.
Her partner was already on his way to her, looking highly displeased. She had no trouble not taking that personally, and thoroughly ignored the hissing Garnet on his shoulder. For a moment, she was glad she'd left Shale in her room; he was a fraction of this beast's size, but she knew that was unlikely to stop him responding to this slight. As far as she could tell, Joskull was talking to himself, though she caught something along the lines of 'ridiculous.' Assuming he was commenting on their assignment, she agreed.
Tipping her head back to compensate for the dramatic height difference between the two of them, she let a touch of wry amusement twist her lips. "And I doubt I could catch you without inviting personal harm, so you'll have no argument from me," she answered easily, "This is stupid. I suppose the real first lesson is to do as you're told." Her dark eyes scanned the room, and her amusement increased. "It looks like our Candidatemaster has set himself up for disappointment," she added quietly.
It was odd. This sort of disobedience would never have occurred to her under Master Ricter, nor would it have been tolerated for a second. She wondered if the Weyr would eject some of them for so small a thing as refusing a Candidatemaster's orders...and then had to wonder if it was really so small a thing. A general resistance to authority was not a good trait in a dragonrider, who would be expected to obey their Wingleader without question in Fall. Then again, some level of autonomy had to remain, or an entire Wing would be paralyzed if something happened to the 'leader and 'second. Well, either way, it mattered little to her. Her value to the Weyr was easily measured, and would remain whether or not a stumbling hatchling Chose her out of this rabble.
Not many of the other pairs seemed eager to leap to the task set to them, and she found that reassuring. On to the second part of their assignment, then. "Do you have any particular task you'd like to work on before the next lesson? I've been surveying plant-life in the area, if you've no objection to wandering around outside. Or if you'd rather not and say we did, we'd better get our stories straight," she said, turning to face Joskull. It didn't particularly trouble her to back out of this second half of the assignment, either. Perhaps rebellion was going to her head.
[/size]
|
|