Ista Weyr: Feeding Grounds
Enclosed by a multi-barred fence that runs from one point in the bowl to another, this lopsided meadowed area is was created in order to house the weyr's beasts, their deep sounds reverberating off of the weyr walls. The grass is thick and plentiful, a small stream having been worked into the enclosure— also doing the job of providing adequate drinking supplies for the herdbeasts who spend their short lives here.
Shade is provided from the hot, Istan sun by the towering bowl walls, whilst many of the animals seek refuge in the cool mountain water, resting by the inner edges of the enclosure during the hottest of days. The meadow is broad, however, large enough to allow a good number of dragons to feed at once, and there is plenty of space for the herdbeasts to roam about. Wherries often fly overhead, here; the food and water supplies keep them willing guests, providing a second form of meal for those dragons willing to face the feathers. In testimony to this, feathers often scatter the grassy expanse, which is also stained with blood and fragments of bone and hide.
The feeding grounds would seem peaceful this evening had the beasts within the pen weren't milling about, stomping their hooves on the ground and huffing in frustration. A kill had already been made before them, entrails spilled about but hardly touched short of minor morsels here and there. Not much of a meal though a little blood was all this stained glass green cared for as she now makes low, wide circles in the air. Janneth lands on the ground with a thud, walking over towards the creatures, flicking her wings opened and closed to startle them more and more. Talk about being moody. Her rider, on the other hand, is hiding locked in his closet and waiting for this to all be over.
Odeleth arrives with a smooth sweep of dark wings, sending him neatly over the fence into the feeding grounds. Even as he makes a casual hop onto one of the beasts startled toward him, and slashes at its neck, his whirling eyes focus on Janneth. His almost possessive stare is quickly broken as he ducks his muzzle to drink deeply, a low sort of hum briefly escaping his throat. And then it's back to watching the agitated green, tail flicking back and forth methodically.
Lakareth glides in from the general direction of the beach, his hide still dripping with water. At first, it seemed as though the large brown would simply soar on past the feeding grounds, perhaps to the bowl, but something of stained glass green catches his eye. He pauses, then wheels around and heads for the nearest beast, keeping his distance from the moody Janneth for the moment, as he bloods his kill. Lakareth's eyes are on the green as he makes an awful mess of the beast in front of him, his inexperience at this showing already, despite his age. His rider, well, she's probably now looking for her own mate.
Janneth whips around and flicks her wings open towards Odeleth, sending out splatters of blood with her frustrated hissing. Her own tail tip twitches as she hops back a little further, and the pacing begins. Whirling eyes keep watch on the blooding males as she inches further and further towards the other end of the grounds. She bellows, hissing as she opens her wings and leans back on haunches, though she doesn't push off. Only a low rumble emanates from the small green…
Odeleth doesn't expect the sudden shower of splatters that shoots his way, and he emits a low growl in response, partially opening his wings so that they surround him, hunched about him much like a cape. He turns his head slightly to one side, keeping one eye steadily on the green, and the other, on Lakareth and the other males who have slowly begun to gather. As his eyes pick up speed and deepen into a vivid orange, there's little doubt that, by this point, his lifemate has definitely caught wind of his intentions, and most likely begun to seek out Dhonzayth's.
Is there another dragon amongst the others? Why yes. Gizokuth certainly isn't an Ista native, but he's certainly present, having come in all stealthy and ninja-like. The nearly black tinted blue remains low to the ground though, prowling slowly as he drags his blooding beast along in his jaws. Still kicking? Yes it is, even with his jaws fastened tightly about its throat. He watches Janneth though, a quiet growl in his throat as his maw tightens briefly on the herdbeast throat before dropping the obviously dead animal.
She doesn't move away this time, only turning her head to watch the males as she slowly begins to closer her wings. Flickerings of rolling sanguine tones can faintly be seen in the fading light, her kills being sufficient enough, the wind is another matter. The green is silent, only the low rumble remains, her tail flickerings towards the others appearing to cease. There's an occasional jerk of her head as she keeps eyes fixed. Another male, with his mouth full. How rude… or exciting. Janneth lowers herself onto the ground, rumbling deeply and lowering her head with tail swinging widely behind her. Wings are thrown open and the abstract stained glass green pushes herself into the air with a challenging bugle, taking hold of any current that comes within her rising path.
It's with a deep bugle that Odeleth answers Janneth's challenge, tensed muscles releasing in a single movement as he becomes airborne. Wings beating steadily, he quickly grabs a current, and with a snap of his tail, executes several rapid downbeats in quick succession. But that's not all he can do. Eyeing her progress closely, he trails along somewhere behind her. He'll show just what he can do - when the time is right, of course.
Lakareth has been here, honest. Blooding his kill with an almost savage ferocity. It has been a while since he has chased, but he longs to be in the air once more, where his leg makes no difference. He steps back from his kill, limping as usual, before launching up into the sky after Janneth.
Janneth bugles once more now that her chasers are in pursuit behind her. She quickly begins to gain altitude, steadily rising upwards and slipping into low clouds. Those clouds aren't dense enough to hide her glowing form, but a girl can try can she?! The green levels off, pacing herself and keeping wingbeats strong but steady as she sways from side to side widely… Keep up or fall down.
Lakareth rises up into the sky, taking a moment to dive, climb, and generally show off needlessly — and wastefully — before refocusing his attention upon the glowing stained glass green hide of Janneth, shining through the clouds. He is a very different dragon in the air. Perhaps it's the blood, perhaps it's the thrill of the chase, or perhaps it's as simple as the fact that his weaker leg is no longer a hindrance up here. He glides now, conserving his energy, keeping pace with the other dragons in the sky for now. There'll be time enough for more energetic displays later.
Odeleth matches Janneth's movements, although not move-for-move. No, he rises as she does, and moves through the cloud as she does - but being on the smaller side of average for a brown, he can afford to make a daring swoop downwards, still following in her general direction. Moments later, he pulls up and begins to ascend once more, eyes still locked on her glowing form. Of course, his burst of energy and dramatic display are totally wasted if she takes no notice of him, but hey, he can try.
Gizokuth opens his maw fainly in the air. Are there bloody bits hanging in places? Yes. Watch out anyone behind him..really. They might get an eyefull of loose bits falling out. His legs are held up close to his body though as much as possible as he ascends. His wings stretch outward to catch the wind, slender body tilting slightly at an angle. His attention is focused however on the shining jewel..or glass, floating above.
Janneth has plenty of energy, pace yourselves all you want. The green is steadily picking up her speed before she begins to climb once again through the clouds. Dense enough or not, she pushes herself a little harder through the air, tilting her body from side to side while making sudden turns as she uses the sky above as an obstacle course. The glow of the clouds in the night sky highlight her own freshly oiled and soiled hide, slipping around any corner she can. The gren bellows once more, she's not ready to be taken yet.
Odeleth increases the beats of his wings slightly, head snaking forward so that he can better peer after the twisting and turning Janneth. What fine, controlled movements! A low rumble is all that betrays his admiration, for the moment, energy better focused on keeping up with each turn.
Perhaps not ready to be taken, but Gizokuth isn't fond of asking first. Snaking his way through the air is own pace gains speed, mouth snapping shut with a crack. The night sky is the friend of the midnight blue. Wings slice through clouds as he follows suit with the green, a low sound starting to rumble in his throat. No point in announcing his presence too loudly, after all.
Lakareth slips around the cloud, more concerned with keeping his vision clear than following Janneth at this point. Even if flying around is a little more effort, a little more energy that should be saved for the final part of the flight. He is confident, he would not be here if he were anything but. However, he is aware from experience, as the memories have been brought to the fore of his rider's mind, that confidence is no guarantee. So, he flies carefully, keeping near the head of the pack of chasers, though not actually at the head himself.
They're getting too close for this girls comfort, she hisses as she tilts her flight upward and higher into the clouds. She levels out, peering from side to side as she searches for a proper place. Chasing is boring and too easy, she doesn't want a boring male. Time to up the stakes! The green levels out and quickens her pace, flying into the depths of one dense cloud and vanishing into the night. Where could've she gone, this is a big sky! The flash of green down below and another challenging bugle is a dead giveaway as she slips out from below and makes a daring freefall to gain more speed before leveling and heading for the opposite direction now. Her wingbeats are becoming irregular.
Gizokuth hangs in the air for a brief moment as Janneth drops into the cloud and below, a grating sound coming. Gears a-sfhiting? Perhaps. He shifts directions with ease however, entire frame halfway flipping over on itself as the blue changes directions whilst dropping into a tight corkscrew. The stained glass is falling, after all.. What kind of thief would he be if he let it drop? ..And thusly smash into many pieces on the ground. That wouldn't be very pleasant and all. Arrowing out he dives, falling hard and fast toward the green's lowered altitude.
Odeleth is surprised as Janneth simply appears to vanish, but the bugle from below pulls his attention back in the proper direction. With another deep bugle, he folds his wings and follows her freefall - except that his movement is carefully controlled. A daring swoop to the side gives him enough momentum to continue the pursuit, even as she heads off in the opposite direction. Those irregular wingbeats don't go unnoticed, either - determination spurs the brown onward in a fluid flurry of dark chocolate limbs. Nighttime sharpens the senses, after all, and all of his are straining for Janneth. Surrender, sweet intoxication, and succumb to his power.
Lakareth is fired up now, seeing Janneth's increasingly irregular wingbeats, his restraint vanishing with a gleeful roar. It isn't often that he gets to let go of his outward calm like this. He flexes his muscles, even ones seemingly unrelated to flight, then barrels forward and down, towards the green. He has allowed his passion to overtake him, to consume him. Although he is beginning to tire, the release of passion gives him an adrenalin rush, and he barrels forward, and down, on a near collision course with Janneth. Powerful wings — more than making up for his bad leg — seem to reach for her, to entangle her within his embrace.
Janneth has had her fill and maybe a little too much blood in her system. Or she's just being picky at the moment as her strength fades. She rumbles deeply and tries to pull up slowly to gain some altitude as she's a little close to the ground for her comfort. Finally, the green gives in and lets her chosen take her…
Lakareth calls to the stained glass green, half roar, half bugle. He works every muscle in his body almost to the limit, as he struggles to beat the other chasers. And, as it turns out, his 'barrelling forwards and down' maneouver was a good one, as he's one of the closest so far, and he's only getting closer. Closer. Closer… And then, he takes Janneth in his wings, with a triumphant bugle. His confidence seems to have won out in the end.
Odeleth's downward swoop was sadly miscalculated - his momentum carries him right past Janneth, and right toward the ground. With an angry growl, he pulls back up in time to prevent himself from crashing into the ground, and flies off in the general direction of the beach. Next time, he'll obsess himself with a girl that he can actually win. Maybe.
Janneth croons and entwines with Lakareth for the final duration of their fall together before breaking free and gliding smoothly into the sky. She's tired, and demands cuddles.
Ista Weyr: Living Caverns
Large enough to house the entirity of the weyr's population at one time, the cavern set aside to house the very heart of the weyr's life is a grandoise, somewhat circular affair, filled with rows of long tables. Bustling and busy, it is a rare moment indeed when there is not someone at work or leisure in here; the long trestle table by the kitchens is perpetually filled with plates and trays of food, a pot of something always bubbling upon the mahogany hearth, ready to fill the belly of any hungry resident or rider. Although a high table is set aside for seating respected dignitaries on formal occasions, most of the tables here are not designated to any particular group— rather, all levels of Ista's population eat together, intermingled across the broad cavern.
Great tapestries have been flung down the walls, orange and black borders remarking upon Ista's heritage, the age-faded hangings depicting scenes of importance to the Weyr— the erruption of the volcano; the first clutch; the view from the star stones, over forest, dark beach, and glistening waves of blue. Propellor-like fans have been affixed to the ceiling in more modern times, cooling the cavern on the hottest of days. Passageways lead up the stairs to the kitchens, down a second flight of stairs to the lower caverns, and out into the expanse of the broad weyr bowl.
Leona is sitting at a table near the bowl entrance, with a smile on her face. Wait, a smile? She seems to be staring off into space in that way riders do when they're talking with their lifemates, only, Lakareth is still asleep from the night's … excitement. She definitely seems content, as did Lakareth last night.
It's good to know that one person woke up on the sunny wide of the weyr this morning. Unfortunately, one rider didn't. Matter of fact, the door to his hiding place was jammed resulting in two bandaged hands, one discheveled appearance and hair looking like he shoved a fork in a light socket. So much for maintaining his appearance. Ta'sin shuffles into the room, bloodshot eyes shifting from side to side before lingering over to the serving tables. He collects a mug of klah and begins to linger, looking for a place to sit and stretch…
Leona raises an eyebrow, somehow spotting Ta'sin in the breakfast crowd. There are a few that look like they got out of bed on the wrong side, but Ta'sin seems among the worst. Subconsciously, Leona smooths down her own hair, although it was not all that messy to begin with. She has an empty seat opposite her, so she pushes it out with her foot quietly, then sips on her own klah. If Ta'sin takes the silently offered seat, fine. If Ta'sin doesn't, that is also fine.
Followed by a yawn, the greenrider does take the silently offered seat with a nod and Ta'sin gently places his mug down on the table before settling himself. He reaches up and pats the top of his head, frowning slightly and then shrugging. He can take a bath later and fix it. "Good…morning," he says quietly before taking up his mug once again and taking a sip. Thank faranth he's not about to drag the others on wing duty just yet. Last night was bad enough, late morning drills, yes. "I hope Janneth didn't make things…uncomfortable last night for you." Blink, blink, yaaaawn.
Leona shakes her head, quietly frowning at Ta'sin. "Not as uncomfortable as things seem to have been for you." she says, then shrugs. "I managed to find my mate, Karell." she adds, shaking her head. "Lakareth doesn't chase often. Your Janneth must be something special." she says, with a smile. She's glad that Lakareth chased, it seems. She worries about her brown quite a bit.
"More like exceedingly picky. When she's not proddy, she's the most affectionate thing, gives any male cuddles. When she's proddy, it's another matter altogether. She doesn't say why she chose your Lakareth, only giggles alot. Silly girl she is," Ta'sin says with a sigh as he blows the hair from his face as gravity begins to have it's way with his strawberry blond…disaster. "That's good you found your mate, I just hid and waited it out, no mate."
Leona raises an eyebrow. "No mate? Not even a temporary partner? That must be difficult." she says, attempting to be sympathetic, although she hasn't really had much experience with that sort of thing. She's had her mate since she was fifteen. As for the information about Janneth, that puzzles the woman. "No offence, but she doesn't really seem Lakareth's type." and then she starts to worry again. "I had to go and rant about Lakareth not chasing again the other day, didn't I…" she mutters, more to herself really.
"No, no mate. There just hasn't been someone…" Ta'sin just shrugs and lightly tugs on his collar to make himself more comfortable. He sighs and slouches in his chair a bit, resting. "No offense taken, Ja is an odd one. Even though she's a part of me, I still don't think I'll ever understand her." The greenrider actually manages a smile and nods his head a little before taking his mug and tilting it from side to side, letting the liquid swirl about the glass.
Leona nods. "My Lakareth is an odd one. I worry bout him an awful lot, which is quite strange, as I've never worried about anyone or anything else in my life. Not myself, not my mate, certainly not my children." Though she glances around as if checking that her mate and children weren't around to overhear. "He … Well, he seems smarter than some of the dragons I've met, but he also seems far less social. He almost never chases, and he prefers to be on his own." she frowns, and shakes her head. "Dragons." she says, with a roll of her eyes.
"Janneth worries about me," he begins while leaning his head back. "And asks lots of questions. Lots and lots of questions, and sometimes she will ask other people directly without any qualms about it. I do worry about her too, on /many/ different levels." A warm smile manages to slip through the gloominess of this rider, of only it would do something about his hairstyle. Ta'sin reaches up again as he leans back, and proceeds to smooth it down to a little more decent position than before. "Rhalin is going to be so angry at me when I get back. I didn't mean to leave him home alone," he mutters silently. Blue eyes glance about the room, making sure his little brother isn't within eye or earshot.
Leona manages a little bit of a laugh, shaking her head slowly. "I know Lakareth can take care of himself, he's a big dragon, but I worry. He's a quiet confident dragon, but sometimes… He goes too far, you know? He gets overconfident. I'm honestly surprised he hasn't injured himself yet." she shakes her head, then glances over the table at Ta'sin. "Rhalin? I think I've met him. He's at that age where girls are to be avoided? He certainly doesn't seem to get along well with my daughter." Leona shrugs. What, just a shrug? "I've never liked children. If I'd had my way, I wouldn't have had any." Well, that's … honest.
"At this rate I don't know if I ever will. He's a young kid and shouldn't be too exposed to things so young, especially when I run my mouth when proddy. I can be pretty foul. I don't mean vulgar, I mean…angry or scared. Mostly paranoid from what I've been told. I let him go camping with friends of his under the close watch of wingriders until I get myself together. Last night, completely… It was a surprise. I just locked upself in my closet and bit my tongue the best I could and sat still. I don't know if he was awake for any of it. I hope not." Fingertips are tapping at a worried pace by this point. Ta'sin chews on his bottom lip while in thought. "All I know is I owe him for his big time, I'll just talk to him when he wakes up. No point in fretting on whats come and gone." Shrug. Riiiight.
Leona nods slowly. "I admit, I haven't really given much thought to Karona's reactions. Karell has been good about that, though. It's good that at least one of us pays attention to that sort of thing, when I'm under Lakareth's rare influence." she shrugs slightly, her voice slightly strained, as though perhaps this restraint was less welcomed last night. But, from her earlier smile, it would appear that they worked it out somehow. "I grew up alright, though. My parents were both riders, and their dragons always seemed pretty… active. It was interesting at times, as they would find themselves both in competition for the same green." she smiles slightly, and shakes her head.
"Normally I didn't even give it a second thought but since my parents left him in my care, I think about everything all of the time. Making sure he has a good upbringing, my parents gave me their best. Now it's up to me to give my little brother the best I can. It's all I can do. This I can tell you, is good practice should I ever have kids of my own sometime… in the future." Tas pauses for a moment and then nods his head as he lifts his mug and drains it of the remaining contents. The glass is slid across the table slowly from one hand to the other.
Leona nods, and shrugs. "If you're interested in taking care of kids, I've got a teething toddler you could look after." she says, utterly serious. She doesn't really know Ta'sin particularly well yet, but that doesn't even seem to enter into her mind. "Nothing like a teething infant to take your mind off of things." she rolls her eyes, then adds, "Like sleep." with a yawn. Although, it wasn't the kid that kept her up, at least, not last night.
A combination of the kid and other things would've made for an interesting night indeed. Hopefully, that wasn't the case! "I'm afraid I'll pass, I'm having enough on my plate as it is with my brother and my lifemate." Ta'sin leans back and stretches, joints popping and cracking with every movement until the tension is gone. His mother would cringe at that. "Getting up in the morning is bad enough."
Leona shrugs. "Well, if you ever change your mind, I'm sure Karell would only be too happy to not have to watch little Leonell." she says, simply. What, she doesn't even help? Apparantly sharing the same weyr with the kid is enough for her. "Luckily we managed to find someone to babysit last night. Karell's off picking the kids up now, most likely." she shrugs again, and leans back in her chair. "I'm not particularly a morning person either, to be honest." she says, yawning.
"Duties are duties I suppose," he says before pressing his lips in a fine line and glancing about the room. More and more people begin to pile in, searching out any availible seat they can get to and settle down for their first meals of the day. "And this is the only reason why I get up early, to beat this mess." Ta'sin rises from his seat and straightens out his shirt, tugging it into a decent fashion. "I best be off, I need to get ready and call the wing out for the days drills. Pleasure speaking to you, uh?" Did they ever exchange names?
Leona glances up as Ta'sin stands, and nods. "I've got deliveries to make, myself." she agrees, though she doesn't move just yet. "Leona, rider of lucky brown Lakareth." she says, with a grin. "And nice speaking to you, as well." she says, nodding slowly. After a brief pause, in which she is apparently 'feeling' for her lifemate, she says "/Lazy/ Lakareth, too. He's still asleep." she rolls her eyes.
"If only we all had that luxury, I'm Ta'sin. Sporratic green Janneth's rider." He offers one last nod of the head and gathers his mug and himself before turning to the entrance way. The mug is dropped off and he lingers in the doorway while waiting for an opening in the masses. As soon as a way out opens up, he vanishes into the crowds and out into the mornings brighter light.