Great idea, horrible execution (Open)

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

3076.02.15 | Late evening (after dark)

The Fire Heights, near as Kelradek could determine, were completely deserted. Of course, it would take some exploring to be completely sure of that fact, but… With a grimace, the boy recalled how the Healers and LifeWing riders had assured him that both his and Belegurth’s memories would come back, but a small, repressed part of him wished that that hadn’t been the case. No matter, he owed the people who’d sent him here, and that was the end of it.

Besides, he reminded himself, it’s not as if you have any proof these people aren’t just playing with you. They haven’t done anything out of their own way for you, and the odds that they would have done it had they realized the truth…

Kel snorted. That didn’t seem overly likely, but in this case, his purpose was simple. Blend in. It was for that purpose that he was here, on the Fire Heights, maneuvering his way towards the area set aside for firestone practice. Casually, he glanced around once more. No one was there.

Belegurth, all clear. Kel felt the Midnight’s assent and stepped back slightly. In about seven seconds, the Midnight was standing in the middle of the practice area, right in front of his rider.

Kel picked up a small piece of firestone and offered it to the dragon. Belegurth chewed it, then swallowed and moved his neck around, trying to solicit a flame. Nothing happened. The Midnight tried a couple more times, then looked back over at Kel.

“Maybe you need more,” Kel suggested, offering a much larger chunk of the stone.

The process was repeated several times, each with no result. Belegurth finally moved over to one of the firestone stacks and ate another ten good-sized chunks of stone. This time, something happened. However, instead of the small flame they’d both been expecting, a burst of fire fully the length of the Midnight’s body roared out from between his jaws.

“What the…!”

“Who’s up there!”

We are so Thread-bait. Kel turned, nudging Belegurth. The Midnight started to crouch, then belched again, and another blast of flame, even more out of control and undirected than the first, issued forth.

I don’t feel so good.

That said, Belegurth lowered his head, retching. A few seconds later, there was a pile of ash in front of him, in which were fist-sized chunks of the stone, which rather than grinding, he’d just swallowed.

[Moo]

Ever since Chantrea's kidnapping, L'ras had made nighttime walks of the entire Weyr, in addition to the Weyrling quarters, a habit. It was a habit that cost him a fair amount of sleep, but it kept him slightly reassured that at least if he was vigilant, then perhaps there would be less of a chance of another kidnapping.

As it were, there had been little that occurred during these walks. In fact, it was mostly older Riders he came across, catching up on work or planning with their higher-ups or even taking quiet, leisurely strolls. Everything else was strictly monitored by the night watches, and it was very little that escaped the attentive eyes of a watchwher.

But when a sudden gout of fire lit up the Fire Heights, and a shout sounded a second later, L'ras frowned and quickly made for the stairs -- apparently, he had found what little had escaped them.

Teth, be at the ready. There's something on the Heights. I'm going to take a look.
Understood. Be careful.

Intimately aware that no one should be up on the Heights, let alone flaming anything at this time of night, L'ras took the stairs two at a time to quickly reach the top of the Heights. His mind raced with the possibilities that had long lingered in his thoughts. Was the flame a signal to another Rider? Were they the same ones behind Chantrea's kidnapping? What would he do if it were a Rider from another Weyr? Once he reached the top, he paused and assessed the situation, his muscles tense and his breathing controlled, ready for whatever was to come next.

Out of everything, however, he hadn't anticipated he would find a Weyrling pair.

L'ras resisted the urge to berate himself for his earlier thoughts.As fanciful as they had been, worrying was as much a part of his job as anything else. But now he had an entirely new task at hand -- and by the looks of it -- a sick dragon to attend to.

Stepping forward from the shadows, L'ras cleared his throat to alert the pair of his presence. And once he did, he realized it wasn't just any pair: it was K'rad and his Midnight Belegurth, and they weren't Weyrlings -- young as they were, they were Wingriders.

At least it explained why the watchwhers hadn't noticed them -- a Midnight at this time of night? Even he had a hard time focusing on the small dragon. As he examined the dragon and what he had thrown up, L'ras reached out to his own dragon.

Teth, try and rouse one of the healers, or even a Lifewing. We might need one on hand.
Why's that? Are you hurt?
No, no, nothing like that. Belegurth was practicing his flaming...looks like he took a lot in.
Ahh...the Midnight? Yes, point taken. Mmm. I'll alert someone promptly.

Once he had gotten a handle on the situation, L'ras spoke to K'rad.

"You know, if you had wanted to practice with firestone, I would have preferred you come to me first. At least then you could have spared your dragon some discomfort. Do you mind if I look at him?"

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

Kel whirled around at the sound of approaching footsteps, but before he could even think of a way to leave the scene undetected, the Weyrlingmaster was stepping out of the shadows, an embarrassing foot away from where Kel had thought the intruder was, and examining the scene. Kel rotated his arms, trying to distract himself so that he wouldn’t start squirming at the man’s silent examination. Of course, he did find himself examining the ground — as if the stones beneath his feet were fascinating — once L’ras addressed him. There was something about it, like he’d failed at some basic task, but without a great deal of anger attached…

These people are strange.

He hesitated for a second, not wanting to give L’ras the opportunity to learn more about him or Belegurth. However…

Agreed. The word ended with Belegurth jerking his head. He tried to keep the gesture unnoticeable, but since he immediately vomited forth more ash, this consisting almost completely of chunks of fire-stone about half the size of a fist, he might as well have saved the effort.

Kel flinched, his gaze flickering from L’ras to Belegurth, concern lining his face. He shook his head mutely, then added: “Please, sir, if you wouldn’t mind…”

Belegurth turned towards the Weyrlingmaster, lowering his head so that his neck was stretched straight out, clearly trying to make an examination as easy as possible. His stomach hurt. It didn’t make any sense, chewing firestone wasn’t supposed to be this hard.

[Moo]

As soon as K'rad gave him permission to approach, L'ras wasted no time doing so. He moved on swift legs toward Belegurth, who was waiting both patiently and bravely for his help and diagnosis. Then a thought hit him, and instead of continuing toward the dragon, he walked over to the pile Belegurth had regurgitated.

"Ahh...well. That was simple enough."

Though it was dark out, it was plain enough for him to see that Belegurth had hardly chewed the firestone! That was his problem. L'ras crouched beside the large chunks of stone, one hand extended high above the pile; he did not want to touch it. The stones themselves radiated heat and fizzed with stomach acid, but their undigested state kept them from flaming as soon as they reached air.

And now that he had his answer, L'ras stood up and walked back to K'rad. For a Wingrider, the boy didn't know much at all - and that was dangerous for everyone involved.

"See, this is one of the reasons why we have such an extensive fire training course -- one I highly recommend you revisit, K'rad. The firestone that Belegurth ingested wasn't properly chewed, if it was chewed at all. No dragon could ever handle something like that."

The answer for the problem was found simply enough -- but he wanted to get an idea of just how much Belegurth had consumed, and if time was the most appropriate course of action. It was the size of the stones that concerned him the most. He was no healer, but with unchewed firestone that size, it didn't take one to imagine what damage it could cause inside soft organs. A punctured secondary stomach was something he didn't want to think about.

Teth, have you reached someone yet?
I have decided upon a Lifewing, actually. I will try and reach Kiyosh and Cr'wean. Is that suitable? Is it an emergency?
Not yet, though there are no burns I can see...but what I'm concerned with is internal damage.
I will let Kiyosh know immediately.

"Now, I'm going to feel along your stomach and see how much you've taken in," L'ras spoke gently to Belegurth. "Let me know the moment anything hurts, alright?"

He continued with his examination a moment later. His fingers lightly pressed alongside the dragon's chest and sides and stomach, taking care not to push too deeply and upset his stomach even more.

From his weyr, Teth reached out to the immense Lifewing bird and her Rider, hoping at least one of them would be awake enough to process his message. If not, he would simply keep trying. Cr'wean and Kiyosh, the Weyrling Master requests both of your presences on the Fire Heights. It is not an emergency yet, but there is a young dragon, Belegurth, who has swallowed whole firestone. L'ras is concerned it may cause damage internally...Will you assist?

As he moved his hands further along the dragon's side, L'ras couldn't help but frown. The palpation revealed no new information to him other than what he already figured: that there was still a lot of firestone left to be regurgitated. But how much more, he could not give a specific answer.

"Try and relax," he said to the Midnight, removing his hands from the dragon's hide. "If you feel the need to vomit, go ahead and do it. There's nothing more I can do or recommend but wait for it all to pass."

L'ras stood up and gave Belegurth a sympathetic glance. "A Lifewing should be arriving soon. They'll be able to better help you than I. Now...K'rad. I have some questions for you." He turned his attentions back toward the boy. 

"You don't mind if I ask a couple of questions, do you?"

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

Kel had stood silent, unmoving, as L’ras examined the stone. He had resisted the urge to twitch, instead nodding gravely in response to L’ras’s mention of revisiting the course. Of course, he wasn’t sure that “revisiting” this class would be such a great idea, but, perhaps he’d be able to come up with a reason why he needed to. After all, the truth was not an option.

Belegurth stood, head and neck both hanging, as L’ras examined him. None of it really “hurt”, at least, not any more than any other part did, so he just remained silent. He wasn’t about to admit how little he’d known, since that would only reveal the true extent of his weakness. He could acquire knowledge by observing. He would just have to observe better.

L'ras stood up and gave Belegurth a sympathetic glance. "A Lifewing should be arriving soon. They'll be able to better help you than I. Now...K'rad. I have some questions for you." He turned his attentions back toward Kel, who once again had to throttle the urge to twitch.

"You don't mind if I ask a couple of questions, do you?"

Kel had the distinct impression that he wasn’t being asked a question. Not that there was much new there, he didn’t think he’d ever encountered an authority figure who genuinely meant that particular question as a question. With that understanding, he gave the only possible answer:

“No sir.” It wasn’t a truthful answer, Kel had a duty to the people that had taken him in and trained him, had protected and insured the welfare of his family, and he would (almost) rather have been flogged till he had no skin left than have to face the possibility of tipping this man off to that duty. On the other hand, refusing the questions would also serve as a tipoff, and a large one.

Stepping forward slightly, Kel forced his shoulders further back, so that they were no longer pulled forward defensively.

[Shoki]

“Sfarding mergeshies.” Cr’wean’s face was directly down into a pillow and his blankets were over his head. The Brown dragon’s message had to come on the ONE NIGHT HE HAD OFF. Of course. Every time.

Oh get up you. You weren’t really asleep. A pillow flew at the Lifewing’s head. Typical. We will be there presently. The Vulture peered down at her rider and a low, amused hiss escaped her as she scooted further toward his bed. It would be one of those days.

Sometime later Cr’wean was dressed, armed with gear and wearing the biggest frown Kiyosh had seen from him for a long time. “I don’t do dragons.”

Not very well, but we DO know who would be better if it does get a little more of an emergency. Cr’wean mumbled something that Kiyosh didn’t answer and he got on her back and they were off to the fire heights. When they landed Cr’wean scowled even more. It was that kid again. This was going to get on his nerves. He slid off and moved toward the humans, while Kiyosh turned toward the Midnight. With no fanfare she opened her mouth and a rich, reedy note came out, and she began her little investigation.

“Why does this surprise me not at all?” Cr’wean grumbled and eyed Kel (as his sister persisted in calling him) with suspicion.

[Moo]

L'ras dipped his head in acknowledgement of the boy's consent. Good, he thought. At least he's being cooperative. Better than putting up a fight, especially considering the situation he put himself in.

"It's nothing to worry yourself over, K'rad," he said, and gave the boy a reassuring smile. "I'm not going to punish you for what you've done. I'd say you already did that yourself with what you've done to Belegurth. No, what I'm curious about is this: which Wing and Wingleader do you fly under? I'm afraid it's something I haven't paid much attention to recently."

Kiyosh is on her way...What are you planning, L'ras? Something with the boy?
If he agrees to it, yes. All depends on his answer though.
Ahh. I think I know what you're thinking...you take too much on, I think, but you know your limits. Anyway, let me know in the morning what's to happen. I'm going back to sleep, unless you need me for anything else?
No, nothing else. Sleep well.

While waiting for K'rad's answer, L'ras looked back to Belegurth. By his own standards, the Midnight was still a young dragon, comparatively speaking -- but old enough to have graduated from Weyrling status. So how did he not know the proper way to approach flaming? From the looks of those scars, it was more than a distinct possibility. Accidents were common in training, but those scars were...intense. A flame would have to be very hot to make such deep scars like those. What Weyr allowed that to happen? They were transfers, he knew that much, but where exactly, he was not certain.

As he was mentally making a note of finding that out, out of the corner of his eye, he spied a shape floating toward them. L'ras turned around and, once he realized who it was, breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"Thank you for coming, Cr'wean, Kiyosh," he said, nodding to each in turn. "I apologize for the hour, but I wouldn't have called you if I didn't think it was important."

When Kiyosh began her examination of the little dragon, L'ras lowered the volume of his voice. He didn't know if it helped at all, to be quiet while she worked, but he would try his best to stay out of her way while she did. And so, he turned his attention back to Cr'wean and K'rad.

"Sorry, but why does this not surprise you?" L'ras interjected. "Has this happened before?"

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

A younger Kel probably would have, at least initially, refused to answer L’ras. However, that was an impulse that he had learned to ignore almost a decade before. Besides which, L’ras could get the answer by asking any of the riders in the Wing, and probably any number of the Wingleaders would know as well.

“Skyjumpers. T’kar.”

Not but a couple seconds after he’d spoken, a LifeWing landed, letting its rider off before walking over towards Belegurth. Unfortunately, the rider was one Kel recognized. Had he not been well aware of how foolish such action would be, he would probably have taken several steps backward. Naturally, of all the LifeWing riders available, it had to be that one. He didn’t let himself stare at Cr’wean; he didn’t want the man’s assessment of him to change.

Small, helpless, fragile. Vulnerable.

Belegurth snorted mentally. His rider might be small, but so was he, and neither of them were “vulnerable”.

Kel huddled slightly, choosing to ignore how he felt safer like this, shoulders drawn forward against the world.

[Shoki]

The Lifewing rider let himself relax a little bit. L’ras at least didn’t really rub him the wrong way. So he took the thanks for him and Kiyosh with an even nod. Kiyosh was busy with her work, but kept her head up a little higher as she probed. It took longer than it would with a human. Fortunately, it was not (at least initially) appearing to require immediate assistance. Cr’wean, after the Weyrling Master asked, frowned a bit more and motioned to Kel.

“This one has already graced the Aerie and made quite an impression for what I would call reckless behavior.” Between how Kel had got to the Aerie and how he acted as a patient, yeah, that’s how he would sum him up. “Hasn’t had this exact thing happen, but he sure jumped into the fires before he knew what he was doing. Really, kid, I would lay off the fire for a while, it doesn’t seem to like you.” His head whipped back to Kiyosh, who had taken a step back.

Tsk. The mental sound was paired with a brief hiss. Not great, but not bad. He will want a look over from Gesh. Kiyosh liked Gesh. He didn’t have a rider, but was good at handling the inner workings. In other words, something that human hands couldn’t help with anyway. He should be around in a few moments.

“Kiyosh is recruiting another Lifewing, but I suspect it’s just because she thinks that there might be something that might cause complications further down the line rather than anything serious now. Best get it stamped out while you have the help around.” And he had better not have just woke up for nothing.

Don’t worry Belegurth, this should take no time at all Kiyosh seemed pleasant in her mind voice, though she seemed more interested in eyeing the humans. So cute.

[Moo]

L'ras would have replied instantly to K'rad, had he not already turned the conversation over to Cr'wean. But he made a mental note of what the boy had said: that he was part of the Skyjumpers Wing, and that meant he flew under T'kar.

Good, that was good. T'kar was a man who could be reasoned with.

"Reckless behavior?" L'ras repeated, glancing from the Lifewing Rider to K'rad and back. Well, he had to admit, it didn't seem entirely false. The boy and his dragon did appear to have a problem with fire of any type, and judging by the intensity of those scars...it was a problem that needed to be fixed as soon as possible.

"Yes, I'd say that statement rings true. Avoiding fire might be the best course of action, all things considering." He was about to speak again, this time to K'rad, were it not for Kiyosh's sudden hiss and Cr'wean's explanation a moment later.

"Well then," he sighed, glancing up at the skies for the telltale shape of another Lifewing, "I'm glad that it's not as serious as it seems to be." He looked to Cr'wean. "Thank you, again, for coming over. Your help and Kiyosh's is always appreciated in these matters."

After a comfortable pause, L'ras left the Lifewing pair to their work and turned his attentions back to K'rad. He walked over to the boy and gestured, slightly, for him to follow and move away from the Lifewing Rider. As much as he valued Cr'wean for his skill, it was obvious that him and K'rad were much too abrasive together, and this was a conversation he would prefer only the boy hear.

"K'rad, listen...I know it might not be my place anymore, but I have a proposition for you, if you're willing to listen and try. It's clear that you and Belegurth need to revisit the basics for firestone and flame control, and that poses a danger not only to yourself and your dragon, but to your Wing as well. Now, unless T'kar is aware of this problem and is already taking action...Would you and Belegurth be averse to meeting with Teth and I to work on your technique?"

[Ghost of Fire (Fëanáro)]

Belegurth remained where he was, essentially unmoving as the LifeWing did her work. He’d been a bit unnerved by the large birds when he and his rider had first been brought to the Aerie, but he’d quickly figured out that they were not dangerous in the least, though he was puzzled by their emphasis on healing. One couldn’t gain any power through healing.

Kel opened his mouth angrily. He’d been trying to rescue a child! The man had no call to… Silently growling, he closed his mouth, careful not to let it snap. He felt attacked, longed to attack back, but that was not, never had been, an option. He was here for information, because the people who’d saved him had asked him to get it, and that was the end of things. Besides, the LifeWing rider ranked him, so it wasn’t likely that L’ras would listen if he protested.

Belegurth listened to Kiyosh’s words. He was glad it wouldn’t take long, but he was annoyed at it having to happen at all. He was a dragon grown! An adult! He wasn’t supposed to be helpless or without power to change the situation, not even for an instant. He watched the human, WeyrlingMaster L’ras, approach his rider and lead him away, but they didn’t go out of sight.

Kel too, was keeping an eye on L’ras. The man was giving off no danger signals, not yet, at any rate, but better too cautious than not cautious enough. Then the man made his offer. Lessons. However, he could probably keep the man from checking his story too carefully, and lessons sounded a whole lot better than some kind of interrogation. He shook his head mutely, eyes flicking up at L’ras. He just hoped he got good enough that he could participate when the Wing did firestone drills in a few days. He’d only been flying with them for a couple days, and by good fortune those two days had been lighter practice and had not included firestone.

[Shoki]

Cr’wean gave a brief nod and returned to Kiyosh who was looking up. Within a few moments a black, which and beige Lifewing came into view, alighting next to Kiyosh. Gesh has a small bill and webbed feet, indicating he preferred fish and swimming to her diet of red meat. They conversed briefly before Gesh began his song, Kiyosh adding her voice only to aid him. His song was clearer than her reedy voice, but they harmonized well. The Lifewing rider watched quietly, glancing back at Kel once. That kid needed to be straightened out before he got him or his dragon hurt again. The Weyrlingmaster was probably good for that though. However, he was likely going to raise his voice if he ended up having to patch him up again.

As promised, soon enough the song ended and the Lifewings sent out a little probing song. Gesh nodded before addressing the Midnight. If you have any irregularities or have trouble flaming, you should return for another check. However, as for now you should put off attempting to do so until tomorrow. Otherwise, your treatment is complete.

Thank you Gesh. The Vulture looked pleased, at least to Cr’wean. She was going to socialize with the other Lifewing for a bit, he could tell. Feh.