-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lysseth's Eleventh Flight Date: November 18, 1998 Places: Telgar Weyr's Living Cavern, Southern Bowl, Feeding Grounds, Upper Skyspace, and Guest Weyr Game: PernMUSH Copyright Info: The World of Pern is copyright(c) to Anne McCaffrey l967. The Dragonriders of Pern(r) is a registered copyright. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kassi's Note: If flights just keep getting better all the time like this, I don't think I'm ever going to need to fear burn-out. :) This was a *great* one--fairly serious, but with a few bits of humor worked in, including the obligatory Monty Python and the Holy Grail quotes. ;) Quotes were also taken from Moxy Fruvous songs, and one of Lysseth's poses involved a mangled version of Diane Duane's 'Lost Queen's Ballad'; let credit for those be given where they're due. The log starts in the middle of some Living Cavern RP. Anything prefixed by Lysseth> takes place first in the Southern Bowl, and then follows the usual flight route. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Log: Aurian ummms, "I think its M'kla's." Canus sips his Klah, every once in awhile glancing back at K. Matlin chuckles softly to Dossa. "Ah... Well, it's good anyhow." She takes another sip. Dossa looks over at Aurian and smiles. "No, it's a fresh hazelnut brew. M'kla's is awful." She looks back at Kassima briefly. Aurian peers in the pitcher, "Oh this won't do." Jehrina continues talking with Pierron. She pulls a cloth out of her pocket, folding it this way and that as she talks with the man. Dossa blinks at Aurian. "B-but it's fresh! Don't pour it out!" Kassima shakes her head in vehement denial. "Drank the last of that already. Stuff goes like water. Never be minding, then... 'twill settle for liquor and hope for the best." She keeps her tone fairly level, though it's still edged in faint disgust. Unstoppering a vial of something red- gold in hue, she takes a stab at being conversational: "What's the strongest drink you've ever heard of?" she asks the strange female. That'd be Matlin, by the way. Aurian shakes her head, "I won't dump it out but this won't do." She places it down and starts a new batch, "I'll have to make the stuff we made at Healer." Matlin blinks at the question. She opens her mouth then shuts it. She looks thoughtful for a moment. "Well.." Checks the knot."... Rider. I've never had anything real strong. My mother said it wasn't proper." She hopes it's a good answer... Canus smiles at the innocent Matlin and knows it could be a /long/ night for her. Dossa nods approvingly at Matlin. "Indeed! Ladies only drink wine, and only in modest amounts. One or two glasses, at most!" Canus laugh at Dossa. "As if you follow that rule!" Dossa looks at Canus, and blinks. Her hands begin to tremble. "I'll, go, check on the kitchens," she stammers, and backs away from the serving table. Jehrina throws back her head, and laughs, "You're a wonder, Pierron. I'll do exactly that. He'll be amazed." With that, she turns, moving to the head table and settling in comfortably, "Now, there's nothing at all wrong with a good hard cider, dossa." Canus smiles gently at Dossa, hoping she knows it was meant in good taste. Kassima snorts at the very mention of proper. "Probably nay, at that. Thanks be to Faranth. If'n I thought 'twas a 'proper lady', methinks 'twould go leaping off a cliff; too many restrictions by far. Take this stuff...." She waves her mug around a bit. "Nabolese fire-water, White Lightning, and something M'kla couldn't identify. Nay 'tall proper, but it's got a sharding sight more of a kick than wine. And you should see the Bollian Thread!" Aurian places a mug of viscusly dark klah down in front of Kassima, "Try that." Dossa retrieves her broom by the kitchens and starts sweeping, looking particularly pale and sullen. She looks over at Jehrina, and nods. Quietly, she replies, "No ma'am." Kassima peers into the mug of klah with... could it be interest? "Strong?" she inquires, even as she dumps the entire mug in to mix with her liquor. Canus ponders whether he's in the drinking mood. He gets up and pours himself a flagon of hearty ale. He sniffs it and sighs. Gulp, gulp, gulp. "Ah..." Matlin blinks and looks blank.. Oviously she's never heard of those types. Lysseth> Above, From the Telgar Star Stones, Kl'loh's brick-brown Yoxath rears on hind legs and bugles a greeting to bronze Falsanath and his rider, G'har of Ista Weyr. Aurian nods to Kassima, "Very strong. The kind of stuff you drink to stay up more than all night." She wanders to the redfruit. Matlin takes a drink of her plain ol klah. She's wondering what she's stepped into. Lysseth> Falsanath backwings for a landing. Lysseth> E'vrin walks here from the north. Kassima seems to find instructing someone on 'Why We Should Worship Liquor' to be a useful distraction. "'Tis made from all these weird fermented things, see. Makes you feel like your innards are being dissolved when you drink 'em. Wonderful stuff... oh, so!" The description of the klah seems to please her, if mildly. "Nay quite M'kla's, then, but mayhaps passable. I owe you one." Lysseth> Falsanath bugles brightly to the dragons, coming to a graceful landing. G'har, with a slight shake of his head, slides down the dragon's side. Lysseth> G'har uses Falsanath's conveniently proffered foreleg as a step, and goes from his back to the ground. Lysseth> E'vrin puffs his steamy way through the snow, towards the living caverns' entrance. Lysseth> Kvasith rumbles a greeting to the other dragons. His attention is mostly on Lysseth though. Dossa hmphs, and grumbles, "I happen to like the hazelnut, myself," as she sweeps. Lysseth> E'vrin ignores Lysseth. Ignores the rest of the dragons, too, although he gives G'har a politely friendly sort of look as he disappears inside. E'vrin walks in from the bowl. Lysseth> Lysseth is sleeping at the moment... or dozing, anyway. It's a restless doze. Her tail flicks back and forth, back and forth, rather spasmodically--and pauses for a brief instant as the various greetings disturb her. Unlidding blazingly red eyes, she snarls what *could* be a greeting but is more likely the dragon equivalent of 'Bugger off.' Canus looks back at Dossa, "It's good too, but sometimes you need something, um.. er... stronger. Jehrinashrugs at Canus, "Too much of that can be a dangerous thing, too." She nods in greeting to E'vrin. Canus nods to E'vrin Lysseth> G'har groans quietly as he sees Lysseth. He heads towards Falsanath, clearly intending to leave, but the bronze rumbles a negative, gaze intent on the green. "You planned this," G'har hisses. "Someone told you. -Fal-." It's a protest, but one that is ignored. With a shake of his head, G'har heads for the living cavern, and the inevitible. Matlin stifles a chuckles and nods her agreement to Dossa. But then she shakes her head. "I don't know if I could trust something strong. It would probebly knock me out." Jehrina chuckles, "In some cases, that's the idea." Aurian peels a redfruit, "Telgar's duties." She peers at that redfruit and starts to peel another redfruit. Funny its almost taking on an obsessive quality. G'har walks in from the bowl. G'har calls a quiet, "Ista's duty to Telgar and her queens." Clearly, he wants to satisfy protocol, but he'd be just as happy if nobody actually responded to the greeting. Canus nods to the other rider. He then proceeds to gulp down every bit of his ale and get up for another serving. Matlin looks at Jehrina surprised. "Really? Why would anyone want to do that?" Dossa must be proddy too, because she kvetches at Aurian as she sweeps by. "You plan on eating -both- redfruits, Aurie? I don't like to hear Ofira complain about wasted fruit." Already peeling another redfruit, Aurian glances to the entry, "Telgar's duties to Ista and her Queens." She has a pile of nonpeeled and peeled redfruits. "Probably," Kassi finds the charity to agree after gulping about two thirds of the seriously doctored klah. Maybe that explains why her voice is so raspy. "Probably. Got t'have a *tolerance*. Down side being that if'n you do have one, 'tis bloody hard t'*get* knocked out by the stuff." She grants first the mug, and then the arriving-types a decidedly sour look. "Aye, duties," she replies with some irritation. Canus chuckles at Matlin's innocemnce (or naivety?) "Brings a smile to the ole face." Matlin looks over at Canus a bit confused. "For who.. you or the poor drinker?" Canus laughs. "Both usually." Aurian is contentedly peeling redfruit trying to get the peel off in one continuous piece. G'har stares at Kassima for a moment, then prudently avoids the table where she's sitting, mumbling something about drawings on weyr walls. Jehrina nods to G'har as well, "Telgar's duties to Ista." To matlin, she answers, "In some cases, it dulls grief long enough to allow some rest." Canus chuckles at Aurian, "You've made that an art you have." E'vrin slides in under the cover of others' entrances, aiming at the Lower Caverns; and a wise decision, too, to hear the growls from some quarters. Canus begins to down his second flagon. Kassima, never one to care for being stared at, gives G'har a defiant glare in response. "What brings you to the Icy Wastes, Weyrsecond? Or you, bronzerider?" Uh-oh. She's trying to be social. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath fleets a touch of crystal on stone, flame on ice: an automatic warning of his rider's proximity to those needing it. E'vrin isn't the only bronze rider around. He keeps walking, oh, yes he does. His shoulders are stiff, though, under creaking leather. Dossa looks up from her sweeping. "Klah? A bite to eat, visitors?" She smiles amiably at the two riders, although her eyes are a bit red and puffy, perhaps from crying. Aurian works on another redfruit, the juice staining her fingers as she keeps up her peeling. Jehrina peers over at the brownrider, 'Aurian, are you going to eat that, or just mangle it?" G'har offers Kassi a decidedly nervous smile. "Uh. Well, see, I came to visit Tria. Only she's not here." A nervous chuckle, and he adds, "Rotten luck. That'll teach me not to check, hm?" Matlin starts to respond to the answers given her, but she decides she best not since they are a bit busy, so she settles for a drink of her Klah. E'vrin pauses. Searches. "...Dossa, right?" he tries with a smile. "Maybe later, if that's all right? I'm hunting someone, and..." And he glances around the cavern before returning to her, voice dropped. "And maybe later would be a better time, I think." Aurian glances to Jehrina, "I'll eat them. I always eat them." She sounds rather off as she starts on another one. Dossa blinks at E'vrin. "Hunting? For whom? Perhaps I can help you?" She smiles, leaning on her broom. Lysseth> Sharath senses that Lysseth replies with a similar image, but... twisted. Spikes of black ice guard pools of sluggish, molten lava, their broken edgings as jagged and sharp as knife-points. An unmistakable warn-off. She's not in the mood for socializing tonight. Jehrina grins, "Just makgin sure." Canus has finished off his second and pours himself a third. An odd smile seems to have permanently taken the place of his mouth. E'vrin scoots around to be closer to her (or maybe to the broom; there's /tension/ around). "Found my father," he informs Dossa, still quietly, "thanks to Kassima's help -- remember? Time now for my sister. If you're busy, though..." Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath patently did not get where he is today by playing it safe. Smugly impenetrable, he inquires, << Something amiss? >> Dossa blinks again at E'vrin. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about, sir." Kassima's smile in response is thin and mirthless. "Indeed. Tria will probably be sorry she missed you. I heard she's playing with a new Emasculator design for the Hall that she wants t'get opinions of." Probably a total lie, but she says it so convincingly. ....gulp....gulp...gulp The noises seem to be coming from Canus who has taken a place right next to where the ale is kept. E'vrin's expression slips. "Oh. I'm sorry; I could have sworn..." He backs off, shaking his head. "Pardon me, please. I must have misremembered. I'll -- be on my way." Alyssa walks in from the bowl. G'har can't help but blanch just a bit at Kassi's response. "I'll, uh, be sure to find her. Yeah. Thanks for telling me, Kassi. I appreciate it." And he's lying through his teeth, not nearly as convincingly as Kassi. He smiles, then. Canus smiles. "Emasculators! Now theres a topic I can speak on. Dossa shakes her head. "No, no, it's okay... please, sir. Give me something to recall... I meet so many people every day!" Jehrina glances up again, then peers around the cavern, "It's hardly a topic for a place people eat though, hm?" Lysseth> Sharath senses that Lysseth replies in seething tones, bitter as the dregs of acid, << *Whatever* would give you that idea? >> Couldn't be the glow, could it? Nahhh. Telgar Weyr> Meli really needs to find a picture of an Emasculator and an Elastrator in her vet books and post it webwards sometime. :) Aurian slices the redfruit in half. With that she starts nibbling at last. Canus shrugs. "We've discussed it here before." Dossa frowns at Canus, and sighs. "Not again. He's sharding drunk. Another mess to clean..." Jehrina says "Obviously not while I'm here, then." Alyssa salutes Jehrina on her way past the weyrwoman, adding Benden's duty to E'vrin and G'har alike. That done, propriety served, she continues toward the hearth in her typically unassuming manner. Telgar Weyr> M'rgan found a picture on the web. I'll have to look for the addy again sometime and post it. ;) Maylia enters from the Bowl. Telgar Weyr> Kindre did find a pic of an emasculator on the web :) E'vrin folds his arms, puts his head down. "I visited from Igen a month back," he offers Dossa. "Was hunting family. Let's see ... the wingleader was there. Aurian--" whom he flicks eyes over, just now seeing her, then gets sidetracked "--Drunk?" Canus looks at Dossa. "I'm not drunk, yet. Besides, I'll be more careful this time." If looks could kill, Canus would be... well, he'd be bleeding a lot, that's for sure. "I think the weyrwoman's got an excellent point," G'har says quickly. "Not a suitable topic at all." He smiles towards Alyssa, but still looks just a bit uneasy. Matlin Stays quiet as more people come in. She moves to find herself a place to sit. Aurian offers a peeled redfruit to Maylia, "Want one ma'am?" Telgar Weyr> Meli is prolly still the only one here who's actually used one though. ;) And with that, I despam. Jehrina nods at G'har, then makes a face at Alyssa, "Oh stop that until and unles you're coming here on a more permanent basis, will you?" Dossa says "No emasculators, -please-, Canus." She mutters something, and then smiles politely at E'vrin. "Oh, that! I'm so sorry for not remembering immediately!" Telgar Weyr> Alyssa smooches Woogawoman and at least know what one is. :P Kassima is still attempting to be social, though with somewhat less success. "Try Rhiallya, bronzerider," she tells E'vrin in brief. "She'll probably know. You men are such wusses," she adds disparagingly to G'har, eyeing him. "How d'you manage t'get through the day without fainting a zillion times, I'd like t'know?" At Jehrina's response Alyssa's mouth opens, then, thinking better of it, she seals it shut again. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath rubs a fiery thought against the jags; acid can't eat through crystal immediately. << Normally you are polite, >> he points out. << So E'vrin reminds me, even as he watches your rider ... do what she does. Tonight you are not. Did you have a poor meal? >> Dragon> All dragons sense that Lysseth takes charge of the OOC mic for a moment. << Evening! By my player's watch, blooding for my next flight should begin in, oh, ten minutes or so. Interested parties are invited to hop over to Telgar and join the flight channel. Thanks! :) >> Canus smiles. "Okay, no Emasculators." He starts at K's remark. "Why, if it wasn't for men you women'd not be here right now!" Maylia strides into the living cavern, at a comfortable pace, a rider from Southern Weyr by the looks of the wingseconds' knot beside her. "Klah?" is offered the slightly younger girl, and soon both have mugs and head for the tables. Settling into a seat, Maylia asks Aurian, "Since when d'you call me ma'am?" With a grin, and looks like she's inclined to accept the fruit. Jehrina glances at Canus, "If it wasn't for your mother, you wouldn't be here either." G'har stiffens at Kassima's words, almost as if they're infusing him with backbone. "C'mon, Kassi. I think that's going just a little far, there." E'vrin is still fumbling through apologies. "No problem at all, Dossa; there /are/ a lot of people running around, you're quite right." Kassima gets a wary glance, a scant nod. Evidently, Dossa is the safer territory now. She has a broom, see. Jehrina then turns a grin on Alyssa. Canus looks to Fehrina. "Agreed. Its a cooph, a cop, a cooperatiph thingie." Lysseth> Sharath senses that Lysseth's frost immediately combats flame, steam rising from it in the warning hiss of dry ice. << I'm *proddy*, you lunkhead, >> she snaps, ever-so-helpfully. Dossa giggles at E'vrin. "So you're looking for more family now, sir?" Aurian lets Maylia partake of the fruit, "Since it seemed like fun" "E'vrin," the Igenite protests politely. "I'm not old enough or ranked enough for a 'sir,' I promise you. But yes, I am. It still sounds inane, doesn't it?" Aurian sucks on her redfruit stained fingers. Telgar Weyr> Maylia grins, and brings the puppet Shasta down... she's the one that walked into the LC with May... Canus sips on his Ale. Dossa shakes her head. "Not inane at all! It's important to know your roots. Roots are very important, says my Mum." As an aside, she adds, "She was originally a hold drudge, so I was fortunate enough to grow up with a sense of *decency*." She emphasizes the word, aimed somewhat at Kassima. Dragon> Isadith bespoke Flight with << You go, girl! ;) >> Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath rasps merrily through the steam, safe in his fire, << Oh, I know. At least you aren't trying to sear everyone's minds like a few greens we have at Igen. You have /that/ much on your side. >> He pauses, a slip of blank thought. << ...Unless you are unable to sear? >> Poor green. Jehrina wrinkles her nose at Dossa, though apparently not in rebuke of the girl, "You got lucky. My grandmother .. well." Matlin spots someone at the back of the cavern, as they slip out of the LC. Her face lights up with recgnition and moves after.... Kassima gives G'har a glower in response. So much for being social. "Going a bit far? Oh, nay. If'n I wanted t'do that, I'd have said something exaggerated, and 'twas *trying* t'be somewhat polite." Oookay. She continues to ignore Dossa entirely, of course. Dragon> Juliath bespoke Flight with << SkinnyButt's going up again? Sheesh, good thing she's not gold, right? >> E'vrin peers past Dossa at the new voice and finds a sketched salute for the queen rider. Then he adds, "Too much decency can be constricting, though." Dragon> Kvasith bespoke Flight with << I think its a cute butt >> Dragon> Flight sense that Isadith snorts at Juliath. Jehrina nods at E'vrin. "Truly." Canus softly sings, "Every beast is sacred....." Dragon> Flight sense that Tierth grins. And is puppet Muinyth, the studmuffin brown from Southern Weyr... and he thinks greenbut here's definetly attractive... G'har's lips quirk at the exchange. "Of course, Kassi," he says mildly. Canus's song draws a quick, puzzled look, and a shake of the head. Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth whaps her runnerbeast-reared sibling. << Drop dead, dwiddlydwonk. ;) Mousketeer roll call: how many of you are here to exert your masochistic sides and chase? ;) >> Canus looks down to the floor and seems to be having a conversation with an invisable friend. Dragon> Falsanath bespoke Flight with << Annette! Oh... wait. >> Dragon> Flight sense that Kvasith flutters all his eyelids at Lysseth, << Me oh ME! Lysseth> Sharath senses that Lysseth replies in a flash of ice that's cold enough to burn and leave scars in its wake, << I can do whatever I wish! >> So *there*! Dragon> Flight sense that Juliath does the draconic pthbbtt at Lyss and then shuts up. E'vrin smiles slightly. "My manners," he apologizes to Jehrina. "I'm E'vrin from Igen, Sharath's rider. Good evening." Maylia reaches for the fruit, and nabs the peeling knife from Aurian with a grin, to slice it in half. "Auri, you've met my sister, haven't you?" She asks, indicating Shasta. Who, unfamilliar with Kassima's ways, isn't quite managing to ignore the greenrider as well as her elder sister is. Aurian peers at Shasta, "Um weren't you at a flight?" Dragon> Flight sense that Isadith lols at Falsanath! And Kvasith! Jehrina returns E'vrin's smile, "Welcome to Telgar, then. Don't tell me it' Jehrina .. " It's still too warm during winter there that you had to come freeze here?" SHe grins. With muslin bag aromatically secure within the steaming depths of a mug of near-boiling water Alyssa leans against the supportive edge of a table, stirring the beverage while silently observing the conversation. On the fringe as she is, her participation is from a listening standpoint only. Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth grins and passes out mouse-ears. << Hey there, hi there, ho there! Who has that glowing sheen? P-R-O D-D-Y G-R-E-E-N... okay, I'll behave now. ;) Gents, blooding starts at your leisure; I'll join you in the feeding grounds (CB, FG from the Southern Bowl) shortly. :) >> Telgar-Bowl> Sharath springs into the air for a quick flight over the fence and into the feeding grounds, where he settles again. Dossa resumes sweeping somewhat, E'vrin's attention taken elsewhere. Lysseth> Kvasith pauses and blinks at Lysseth's lovely hide. Yeee haw!!! Lysseth> Kvasith takes flight, using the thermals rising from the bowl to carry him aloft. Lysseth> Above, Kvasith flies towards the north end of the bowl. Telgar-Bowl> Above, Kvasith flies downward towards the feeding grounds. "Dreadfully," E'vrin answers with a nice touch of melodrama. He's still /near/ Dossa, but that attention -- true enough. "No, I'm here on an errand." Aurian chews on her redfruit wedge. Shasta, incapable of paling due to her tan, nods to Aurian. "Southern's duties, I'm Shasta," She introduces, raising her voice so others might hear the duties given. "And hers, I believe," is her response to Aurian's question, with a nod of her chin towards Thunderbolts' wingleader. Kassima purses her mouth, frowning, but can't seem to find anything to whine about in a simple 'Yes, Kassi.' Drat. "My what?" she decides to demand of the Southerner, tone somewhat... strained? Just slightly so. Telgar-Bowl> Above, Muinyth flies downward towards the feeding grounds. Jehrina chuckles, "Well, that's no fun at all." G'har pauses a moment, gaze flickering out of focus. Mumbling something under his breath, he glares at the bowl. "A leash," he asserts. "A big one." Dragon> Flight sense that Isadith hunhs? as she gets Spock ears instead of mouse-ears. Owait. She's female, that must be why. Logical, and all that. Not to mention fascinating ;) Telgar-Bowl> In the Feeding Grounds, Sharath stoops hard to a kill: bronze talons splay, bronze wings tent, and bronze head bends, white, white teeth ripping, gnawing, worrying. His eyes spin through blue into violet into madder, maddened carnelian, and he growls gore at the next-comers. Telgar-Bowl> In the Feeding Grounds, Kvasith snarls as he lands, his wings spreading enough to direct a herdbeast where he wants it to go. He pounces on the thing and latches his teeth into the calf. Chezroth's baby. He suckles happily. Lysseth> Falsanath lumbers north. Telgar-Bowl> Falsanath springs into the air for a quick flight over the fence and into the feeding grounds, where he settles again. Aurian pauses in her redfruit munching, "Sheeeeesh..." Jehrina raises an eyebrow, then grins a bit, "Well, about time." Dossa blinks at the sudden mood-change in the living cavern. She looks from face to face. E'vrin sucks in a breath. He falls back another step, from both Dossa and Jehrina, and his voice attenuates into breathy politesse. "Oh," quoth he, quiet, eyes too wide and dark. "If you ... would excuse me a moment, please?" Shasta glances out towards the bowl, muttering some curse or other under her breath that's cut short. "Uh, g'deve, Wingleader. Your flight. I was here for, or rather your lovely greens?" The picture of respect, and she's learned already not to call Kassi ma'am. Telgar-Bowl> In the Feeding Grounds, Falsanath snatches up a terrified buck even as he lands, sandy-bronze hide remaining relatively neat despite the messiness of his blooding. He munches a bite from the neck, then spits it out (ptooey), the better to get to the blood. Canus seems confused. Dossa's face drains of color. "Oh no. Oh, fardles, no." Sighing, she discards her broom, and goes over to the kitchens. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath's tenor ripples with the cupric salt of gore, the maddening heat of life fading into death. Thoughtforms come and go like islands in a rising tide: << Proddy -- proddy, was it? --Come play. Come feed. Fly-- >> Telgar-Bowl> In the Feeding Grounds, Muinyth folds his wings and plummets down amongst the herd, catching himslef at the last moment with wings flared wide, snapping to catch the wind. He lifts again, a still bawling herdbeast cluched in his talons, legs dangling uselessly below. The medium sized brown carries his soon-to-be kill off a bit, before casually disposing of its life, and blooding it. "Flight," Kassi replies vaguely, eyes unfocused. "Flight. Um. Lovely green. I don't have a lovely green, actually. I have a flamingly wicked wench who's *determined* t'make m'life a living nightmare." By the end of the statement, she's standing, and growling to boot. "Lyss, shardit, you're losing me two marks!" Telgar-Bowl> In the Feeding Grounds, Kvasith sucks the little beast dry and then drops it in a corner. With a savage snarl he reaches for another calf around the same age and clutches it close as his teeth pierce its veins in an almost tender moment. Maylia leans back in her seat, munching on the redfruit with an amused grin on her face. She can't seem to decide who's more entertaining, her Southerner sister, or Kassima. Canuss eyes open widely as he finally understands. The effect of the ale drains out of him. Lysseth> Sharath senses that Lysseth snaps back, black and red flaring together, << I'll come when I'm sharding well good and ready! >> Someone has been listening to her rider too much lately. Telgar-Bowl> In the Feeding Grounds, Sharath's tongue slops like a fat finger around his jaws' reddened rims, catching the flow of blood and sinew; above, eyes whirl to match, to judge and calculate. He backs from the buck he'd downed, a pallid wraith of a dragon, and watches warily. Jehrina snickers, and not exactly pleasantly. "This is not a bad thing." Dossa returns, moments later, with a literal armful of about a dozen wineskins, which she quite robotically sets out on the serving table. Aurian leans her head against her hands, "Kvasith...." Lysseth> Lysseth stirs finally from her drowse, giving a long, sensuous streeeetch... much like a feline, actually. Except much, much better- looking. With a final snarl at the world in general, she leaps into the night. Lysseth> You spring into the air and catch the thermals rising from the bowl floor to carry you aloft. Lysseth> You fly towards the north end of the bowl. Canus looks about in interest, never having seen this before. Lysseth> You fly downwards towards the feeding grounds. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath chimes harsh, dissonant amusement. Fire, ice; smoke, steam; lust, need -- << Come, you'll come -- we wait -- but so few, so small -- /I'm/ here... >> Lysseth> The amazing Falsanath! He slices, he dices, even makes julienne herdbeast! Two gleaming talons reach to snatch a passing herdbeast, then rake along the hide to allow blood to well. His tongue swirls against hide, then better to catch the crimson fountain. Shasta rises to her feet, shoulders back in a rather defiant pose, though not directed at Kassima. "Muinyth, shardit!" A glare is directed at her sister. "Sure. Laugh. Though it could be worse, could be Tierth going up!" Both young women make a face at this - but Maylia responds with "You're assuming your brown could catch her!" Siblings. Silly things. Kassima gives a snarl of disgust that would sound more appropriate from her dragon's throat. "Necklace from talons? I'll tell you what I'm going t'do, you bloody beast! I'll have your eyes for earrings! Giant earrings, d'you hear me? And your bones for a walking stick, and--" The stream of invective continues as she storms her way outside. You walk down the short tunnel and out into the bowl. Telgar-LC> E'vrin trembles full-body, but manages to keep his feet. Skin stretches tautly over the bones of brow, cheek, jaw as he balances towards ... outside. It's cold out there. Cold is good -- even if a hot green rider is out there. E'vrin comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern. Telgar-LC> Dossa winces as Kassima storms past, and starts to cry again. Fighting past her tears, she goes back into the kitchen to fix more wineskins. Lysseth> Adonith flies over the feeding grounds from above the bowl. Telgar-LC> G'har suggests, gaze following after Kassi, "She'd make an awfully nice rug." He shakes his head, getting very carefully to his feet. Moving with taut control, he heads for the bowl. Lysseth> Kvasith glances up from his kill, he warbles towards the green before flicking his tounge over his ruddy stained muzzle. With another leap and bounce he lands on a youthful wherry. A poof of feathers shows his capture, then he lances his teeth into the small avian. Telgar-LC> Jehrinawaves her hands, making shoing motions owards the bowl, "Go on, not like this doesn't happen near on every day." Aurian comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern. G'har comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern. Telgar-LC> Alyssa's head snaps up and, eyes widening, she whispers, "NO, do not, Adonith, no NO..." Aurian mutters, "Sharding dragons." Telgar-LC> Canus chcuckles at the effects its having on the others. Lysseth> Muinyth bloods his kill, blood spurting up across his granite cheek, painting it with obscure pictographs depicting a grisly kill. Umber wings spread wide, as soon as the first kill is drained, he leaps for another - no growls, hisses, nor roars does he make, rather, he casually bowls over a buck with a swipe of a forepaw. G'har nods his agreement to Aurian's words, expression just a bit sour. He mutters to himself, "... never forgive..." Lysseth> Lysseth swoops from the sky, silent as a shadow, but nowhere near as dark... oh, no. She *glows*. But the light isn't enough to give the flock sufficient warning; a buck herdbeast is caught up in wicked, curving talons, lifted aloft with a scream of agony and terror. Well, you'd scream too if your innards were dangling from your body. With a contemptuous screech, Lyss lets the thing drop, to be splattered quite picturesquely on the ground below. Mmmm. Blood. Telgar-LC> Shasta sighs, and heads out the bowl, with an appologetic glance back towards Telgar's Weyrlingmaster. Shasta comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern. Lysseth> Sharath sinks low to his belly; ribs scrape against muddied, blooded ground. Across the killing fields -- green. Brown there, brown there, bronze there, blue there -- and green. And -- bronze /here,/ pale gold and tawny, matching Lysseth's leap with one of his own onto the breaking, bawling carcass of herdbeast. Wings sweep forward, and he feeds from behind the curtain with sounds thick and mumbly-soft. Telgar-LC> Dossa returns with more wineskins, sniffling. "I hate flights," she whimpers. "'specially Lysseth's." She sets the skins out, and counts. Lysseth> Adonith plummets into the collection of scurrying beasties with a fury that would find admiration in the most bloodthirsty of drunken Hold guards. His talons, fully extended, sink into the back of a mid-sized bovine and there lock, carrying the creature to the bowl with a jarring -thud-. As he settles in the soft, misty cloud his landing raised, he rends the hapless creature in twain and, eyes whirling crimson intensity, begins to blood. Telgar-LC> Canus asks, "goona be a long night?" Telgar-LC> "Yes," Alyssa answers wearily, setting aside her tea as she walks toward the bowl, "it's going to be a dreadfully long night." "...And I'll have her hide for a cloak, and her teeth for daggers, and her gizzards for... um... display purposes," Kassima continues to rant, eyes flashing green. She isn't any more pleased with this than anyone else, you know. "*Blood* it, you fardling troglodyte, and none of that nonsense out of you!" Telgar-LC> Jehrina shrugs, "Lysseth's loud for a green, granted. Depends on how many dragons she tears up this time." Lysseth> Falsanath pauses as he catches sight of Lysseth, the herdbeast still dangling from his mouth. He tosses aside the herdbeast with a contemptuous flick, not really noticing where it lands, and snatches for another, his movements taking on a certain urgency even as the whirling of his eyes quicken. E'vrin sways in the midst of suitors and steamed breath. He fixes on one figure (/any/ figure) and tries to follow, led by unfocused, spancelled eyes. The fact that the figure happens to be swearing the chill air blue doesn't seem to be reaching him: it's enough if he doesn't fall over, for now. Telgar-LC> Maylia glances up toward Dossa, shrugging. "The worst parts' over, I"d say. She won't be proddy for another turn, a few drunken lecherous maleriders' wont be too much trouble." After all, this sort of thing happens several times a sevenday. Alyssa comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern. Lysseth> Kvasith tosses a dry avian over his shoulder. He hops up and lands on a buck who screams as he crushes under the brown's weight. He laps at the delicate spray of blood. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath slides his thoughts through the thickened aether like a scalpel of wicked glass. Blood -- echoed from rider, that injunction, from deep within his own walls -- blood now. Fly! Where is her ice now? G'har's gaze flickers briefly out of focus, and he shakes his head, mumbling something about obligations and hanging, and knots in certain long tails. Hands thrust deeply into pockets, after G'har tugs open his jacket. Aurian licks her fingers, catching the remaining redfruit juice off her fingers almost mimicking Kvasith's behaviors. Alyssa's appearance with the other riders is reluctant to say the least. Arms cross over her narrow frame, shoulders hunch against the cold, and features attain a stoic expression of forebearance. Lysseth> Lysseth does her best to drain her kill, but... well, the fact is, the messy way it met its demise doesn't make drinking very easy. With a dissatisfied growl, she springs again, rocketing across the Grounds--a mere handsbreath, if that, over the others; she's confident, this one. Smug. She knows her own cleverness. Banking back, she lands directly on the back of another buck herdbeast--she *does* have it in for anything male tonight, doesn't she?--and crushes it similarly with the crack of splintering bone. Lowering her head, she begins to drink of the rich life- liquor within. Here she sits, and here she'll say hello to herdbeast blood today. Lysseth> Kvasith licks his muzzle as he watches Lysseth. His eyes whirl with eagerness as the color begins to shift towards those of draconic lust. Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth gets some rules out of the way. :) << Pretty standard stuff: one pose for every Lyss-pose, no size limit; rider poses unlimited. Guest Weyr will be IC, flight channel OOC. Feel free to joke and heckle over the channel as long as it's good-natured. ;) We'll go up two skyspaces to save on spam. Be sure to page Kassi sometime before the end if you don't want to win. And have fun! :) Everything clear? >> Lysseth> Sharath shutters his eyes briefly behind milky lids, away from splatter and bone-cracking chatter -- away, Kvasith; away, all! Messy -- and slithers into new airspace. Up he launches, and down he falls, onto the back of another herdbeast whose hooves scramble for purchase on life's precipice, whose blood leaks into eager bronze jaws, whose calf wails and cries in the herd's safety, her eyes so big, so dark. Lysseth> Falsanath extracts himself from his final herdbeast, with a snarl for a brown that moves between himself and Lysseth, obstructing his view of the green. Head snaps up as she passes over the males--yes, he's actually trying to catch her before the flight has started, while he's still on the ground. Naturally, he doesn't quite manage it, but rumbles smugly for all that. He was -close-, or so he thinks. He settles back to wait, whirling amethyst eyes intent on the glowing gold. Lysseth> Muinyth hovers over his recent, blooded kill for a moment, forked tongue darting out to the streaks of blood across his jaw. His belly, dark with the blackness of cavern depths, creeps low to the ground as he casually eyes Lysseth, a soft rumble escaping his throat. But more blood is desired still, and the brown singles out a wherry and springs for it, the avian's final ssquack lost in the snapping of neckbones and the soft ffwumph of dragonwings. Lysseth> Sharath senses that Lysseth replies in a blaze of heat--anger, bloodlust... other-lust, too, but that still well-muted. She'll fly when *she* decides its time, and until then, shall move for no one. A thick moan in the throat: E'vrin sways again, nearly into Alyssa but not. ('Way -- away!) Shuddering, he pulls into himself, arms and shoulders and even eyes, miserable and blind. Lysseth> Nose burrowed into the entrails of his kill, Adonith busily sucks gory liquid from the bovine's torso, but his glistening gaze is fixated on Lysseth as she moves from one side of the grounds to another. His eyes, ruby echoes of the carnage spilled before him, keep Lysseth company in her every move. No poetry here, no tuning, no lyric romance in the rending of this herdbeast and his gorging upon the life's blood of it. This is stark, plain draconic business, and he is a professional about it. Aurian takes a steadying breath as she watches her dragon and the others. She rubs her temples wearily Shasta follows the cluster of riders, and comes to rest standing a bit apart, eyes fixed on the scene far off. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath squeezes a reply rich with blood, riding untrammelled tandem with the echoes of that calf's cries for her mother: a predator's haughty disdain for prey, and which one is she, hmm? Kassima is shifting her weight from foot to foot, almost like a little who has to go to the bathroom... but not for the same reason. Thank Faranth. "Hurry, hurry, hurry," she urges her lifemate impatiently, eager for it all to be over and *done*. Eyes slant to the younger rider as Alyssa reaches out a hand to steady E'vrin. "Careful," she warns, her supple voice roughened by the emotions Adonith is broadcasting. E'vrin hisses and avoids the hand. "Don't--" Strangled syllable, less a word than a cough, or warning, or plea. (Wrong, all wrong, this; where's the right?) G'har mutters under his breath, "Not -yet-." Dark brows lower over green eyes, gaze flickering briefly to E'vrin and Alyssa before moving back, unerringly, to Kassima. Alyssa murmurs stiffly, "Concentrate on controlling your dragon, bronzerider," and says nothing further, her attention required for her own self-restraint. Lysseth> Lysseth sits up on her haunches, muzzle sanguine, and the beast before her drained entirely. Such fuel as was provided has heightened her glow considerably, and her eyes are amethyst and ruby both; soon, soon will be the time. But not until *she* declares it. However, perhaps some of her rider's impatience communicates itself; she spares only long enough to rip off the head of a wherry and tip it back like a giant wineskin to embibe of its inner fluids, before throwing it, too, aside--and leaping into the air with a cry of utter, implacable contempt. Contempt--and challenge. Lysseth> You spring into the air and catch the thermals rising from the bowl floor to carry you aloft -- much to the relief of the wherries. Lysseth> Adonith rises up from the feeding grounds. Lysseth> You soar upwards and into the open sky above the Weyr. Shasta stands patiently, her back rigid, shoulders tossed back. Her eyes slide to the Igen bronzerider, and back to the feeding grounds far off, murmuring, "Now." Dragon> Adonith bespoke Flight with << Doh. >> Lysseth> Adonith flies up from the southern half of the bowl. Lysseth> Sharath flies up from the southern half of the bowl. Lysseth> Kvasith flies up from the southern half of the bowl. Lysseth> Muinyth flies up from the southern half of the bowl. Kassima closes her eyes briefly as the green form streaks into the sky, a shudder running through her lanky frame. "All right," she mutters, refusing to actually *look* at any of the riders. "Let's get this over with, shall we?" And to the Guest Weyr she goes. You push aside the curtain and enter the weyr. Shasta comes into the weyr from the bowl. Lysseth> Sharath explodes on fast-riding wings: higher! He angles behind Adonith for the slipstream's advantage, and his pale body shines paler under starshine, led by the madder-fire of part-lidded eyes. Dragon> Falsanath bespoke Flight with << Ack, lagspam! >> E'vrin comes into the weyr from the bowl. Aurian comes into the weyr from the bowl. Alyssa comes into the weyr from the bowl. E'vrin reels in after Shasta -- well, nearly /into/ Shasta, while he's mazed with another's movements -- but rights himself quickly. Over /there,/ against that cold, calm, solid wall there: he presses his brow into stone, rolling it, and shivers a moment. Aurian drops back against the wall. She rubs her temples wearily. Lysseth> Falsanath flies up from the southern half of the bowl. Lysseth> Lysseth streaks a blaze across the sky indeed, like a flash of heat-lightning against paradoxically snow-heavy clouds; she is fast, one of Telgar's fastest, and a good head-start is just what she needs now. It's got a logic that you just can't refute! The wind shrieks off of her windsails, to be drowned out by her own mocking, spiralling cry: fast as fast can be, you'll never catch me! G'har comes into the weyr from the bowl. Telgar Weyr> Dossa says, "I suppose everyone's chasing after Lysseth?" Lysseth> Kvasith skyrockets with absurd quickness. His wings spread wide as he follows after Lysseth, his body whips about through the night air. Telgar Weyr> Canus winks, "Not me." Lysseth> Adonith expends precious energy and drive in his launch and, head just tucked in against the wind, propels himself to the vanguard of those chasing. Wingtips dig deep into the frosty Telgari sky and rise again with alacrity, a trail of mist underscoring their passage. Against the clouds Lysseth's shimmering figure is facilely followed, and follow he does. What the others do, he cares not. Telgar Weyr> S'dar would, but has some friends over... I'll watch though! Telgar Weyr> Dossa says, "Silly S'dar, bronzes don't chase greens. :p" Kassima wastes no time in stalking over to the weyr wall farthest from the entrance and claiming it as hers. There will be no approaching *her* demense without facing the terrible peril. With eyes that smolder with anger, and nothing else just yet, she flicks a glance around to make sure that none of *them* are too close. Telgar Weyr> Kassima says, "Yes, they do. :)" Telgar Weyr> Meli says, "Voyeurs untie. :)" Lysseth> Falsanath arrows after Lysseth, though he's definitely to the back of the pack. His whippy tail sails behind him, incidentally twisting in the breeze to smack a slightly slower bronze's rump. It's not a kick, but it'll serve him, apparently. Telgar Weyr> Dossa says, "And if they did, they're desperate!" Telgar Weyr> Dossa ducks. ;) Telgar Weyr> Jehrina says, "sure they do. And too many of them win. ;)" Telgar Weyr> Meli says, "No, just typically ruddybronzes. :)" Lysseth> Muinyth springs aloft, leaving the wherry carcass in place where it ceased to have blood prssure. Let the firelizars eat it, he's got better things to do. Higher and higher the brown rises, calciferous umber wings carrying him on rising thermals, his eyes fixed on Lysseth, far above him so she's little but a glowing beacon. An unlikely effect, a mudball flung skyward, a chunk of cliff sppeeding upwards, but rise he does. Telgar Weyr> Alyssa says, "Yeah! ;)" Telgar Weyr> S'dar notes that Chezroth is a ruddybronze! Aurian rubs her brow. "Faranth faranth." Alyssa finds and folds against the most convenient wall, head bowed between her upraised knees. She whispers to herself now and again, but those few words are regarding flight: she is one with her dragon. Dragon> Flight sense that Falsanath apologizes in advance, as his lag has chosen now to strangle him. << Poses will be slow. >> Telgar Weyr> Aurian snorts. Dragon> Flight sense that Sharath chips in with the same. Shasta shuffles away from the Igen bronzerider, giving him a glare thats icier than the weather outside. But she says nothing, the furrow of her brow smoothing as she forgets her own place in favour of concentrating on her lifemate. Dragon> Adonith bespoke Flight with << Ditto, of course. >> G'har slumps to the nearest bit of wall to the entrance, the better to make his escape at the end of the flight. His dark green eyes, however, are fixed on Kassima, despite being only half-focused. E'vrin rolls his way around the wall until shoulders can brace him against it, hold up the teetering near-fall. His face sharpens towards human recognition in the wake of Shasta's glare, which he returns blankly, helplessly, furious beyond his own rhyme and reason. And keeps shivering. Lysseth> Oh, the unspeakable proddy Lysseth! She *is* a cruel one, for no sooner have the last of her pursuers managed to get themselves settled in than she twists on a wingtip to make a breakneck dive towards the Rim below. Almost coyly, she herself turns aside from the rocky threat with ease... knowing that *they* will have more difficulty. Hah! She's the trickster, and trick them she will, until she can trick no more. Sort of a trick-or-treat situation, in its odd way. Having fun yet, mortals? Lysseth> Sharath rises into the paradox and skirling call, rides the buffets that accost his narrow frame once out of the slipstream. Down, around: he follows the diving twist, but who would prefer a mate of jagged stone to /her/? No. Higher, higher yet: his wings strop the air as a knife strops the stone, hard and fast and urgent, and if they don't quite draw sparks ... well, no need to set paradox on fire, is there? Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth isn't lagging *yet*, but all things considered, may start at any time. So all is forgiven if you promise to forgive me the same straits. :) Lysseth> The brown stretches through a cluster of dragons. Kvasith pulls his wings closer against him as he picks up speed, Lysseth is all he wants. Lysseth> Falsanath, like love set fire, streaks after the glorious green, edging past a pair of dragons. Not sparing breath for a bugle, he lets his wings show his triumph, rising and falling in a metronomic rhythm and pushing himself the farther. As she lowers, so he rises, attempting desperately to cut off her dive and claim him for his own. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath seethes with animal fury. Taunt! Tease! Be captured -- surrender! Oh, the call of burning ichor, and oh, the taste of green on the wild winds that still remember snow -- but surrender to them -- to him! Kassima's glare didn't last long. She's now just as unfocused as anyone else, for all that she attempts to retain some decorum in her casual posture. She's not bothered. No, not at all. And wherries speak, porcines fly, and the lowest highest point is in New York. G'har mutters, his voice strained, "Don't. Mention. Lysseth." He closes his eyes, inhaling a shuddering breath. Lysseth> As Lysseth dives Adonith likewise twists and, after his pirouette, lowers his finely shaped muzzle, tucks his wings against his purplish-blue hide, and arrows toward the green's vanishing figure with a challenging bellow that echoes his pleasure for the flight. The sound heralds forth in a whitish cloud of blood-scented breath that hangs for a half-second until its source disperses it, plunging through the center. Aurian glances at Kassima lingeringly. She narrows her eyes at the greenrider and maybe smiles a little. E'vrin captures a breath, hoards it for his own, and uses it to balance humanity in his mien like an overfilled water glass. He can look around. He does. He fixes, after the shivering scan, on the center of calm (appearances are enough for now). Lysseth's rider. (Kassima?) Lysseth> Muinyth continues to rise, as the minute glowing form far above that is Lysseth grows bigger, or seems to, as the green dives. Taking his time, a single strong wingbeat takes the brown out of the rising thermal, to wheel slowly in the direction she swoops in. But does he follow her down? He's been in far to many such chases for that old trick to work - instead he rides the winds crossing over the bowl, awaiting her return. Lysseth> Lysseth is paradox, and palindrome; eternally changing and eternally constant. Beautiful tyrant, fiend angelical; dove-feathered raven, wolvish-ravening lamb! Dark, dusky wings trail tantilizing tendrils of tourmaline illumination, kissing the clouds with their light as she banks, spins--wheels back up, up, up. There are moons and stars for her to catch, and surely none could follow her to Belior's surface itself? She will go to the moon! Alyssa looks not at the other riders; like her dragon, who studiously ignores the males nearby, she is centered on the chase and its consequences. Her eyes are closed tight, body taut with restrained emotions that cause her body to reverberate in its needs. Lysseth> Falsanath rumbles quiet frustration as Lysseth lofts once more, taking her loveliness from her reach. Talons tightening as if plucking flowers from the moon's surface--if only he were there! Then, at least, he'd be above Lysseth, the better to swoop upon her. He does, however, gain some ground, wings moving as if motorized. Lysseth> Sharath streaks through Muinyth's chary shadow, his back to the other's belly -- rises. Pale against night and small against vast, the young male races his own heartbeat (echoed in pinions' proud lope) higher yet -- oh, higher! -- towards her peak, fit to burst through cloud, into night, and against the stars, against the moons ... against her. Lysseth> Kvasith arches upwards higher and higher. He spins towards Lysseth, with an almost serpentine movement he moves to avoid a blue. Amber streaked wingsails are almost totally against him. Kassima closes her eyes again, expression momentarily transfigured to one of absolute bliss. To fly, perchance to escape... but there is, indeed, joy in the sheer flying. And she knows better than to scorn the opportunity to revel inbetween the far more frequent moments of desperation. Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth is already having far too much fun with this. Y'all are *fantastic*. :) Lysseth> What goes up must come down? Muinyth seems to be a bit of a paradox, as the brown who seems rent from a cliff's peak continues to amble upwards. But yes! What goes down in a flight, comes back up again! The brown strokes his wings through the air, casually offering Shareth a warning snarl, but avaricious talons remain tucked up close to his belly. Even a mudball such as he is concerned with wind resistance. Dragon> Flight sense that Falsanath dragongrins at Lysseth. << It helps that you're giving us so much to work with. :) >> Dragon> Sharath bespoke Flight with << O, for a Muse of fire! :) >> Dragon> Flight sense that Juliath may never Rise again. :) Aurian slips off her jacket as she settles into a more comfortable place on the stone. Cold stone rather toasty weyr. E'vrin's breath hitches and nearly hiccups with surprise. Eyes widen with other's dark vision, sweep the weyr (the sky?) again with harried urgency. Hands skitter, discombobulated gossamer-spinners, across the wall, hunting and seeking. He lurches forward a stiff step. G'har's hands knot together. He holds his breath for a moment, then exhales, hands falling to rest on his knees. He shakes his head, fingers splaying. Lysseth> Adonith is speed's ally and implores his wings to mirror Lysseth's blazing demonstration of aerial agility and, mercifully, they do so without complaint. Membranes luff with the chilly wind of Telgar's wintry nights, flaring forward as his wings push backward to discard some of the distance keeping him from that upward-surging female. To the moon she goes? Then upward shall Adonith go too, sans complaint, sans fatigue, sans concern. Lysseth> Lysseth dances with the thermals for a moment longer, allowing them to partner her in a brief aerial tango as, in the doing, she gains more distance yet. But alas, alas... the moment must be cut short. Playful innocence gives way to *purpose*: shall she go and live, or stay, and...? Never! Wingsails sweep up, propelling her in a rocket-burst of speed that sends her shooting up over the cloud-cover indeed. Attention, male dragons: her body is not yet available! Dragon> Lysseth bespoke Flight with << Anyone get that last reference? ;) >> Dragon> Adonith bespoke Flight with << Go and live, stay and die...um... um... >> Dragon> Falsanath bespoke Flight with << That'd be a no from me. >> Dragon> Kvasith bespoke Flight with << Ummmm no >> Dragon> Flight sense that Sharath is still trying to catch up with posing. Dragon> Lysseth bespoke Flight with << No, no. That one's R&J; I meant the last sentence. The Cat from Red Dwarf. :) >> Dragon> Adonith bespoke Flight with << Nope. >> Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth didn't think so, but, well... she couldn't resist. :) Lysseth> Falsanath hesitates the barest moment as Lysseth disappears, then spirals after her, wings shattering a section of cloud to mist that seems to cling to his sandstone-bronze hide for a moment before dissolving in the heat of his movements. He does not loft as high as Lysseth, of course, being larger and slower, but mirrors her course in all other respects. Lysseth> Muinyth aims upwards, unconcerned with stars and moons, let others strive for them! For he has seen the light, and she is Lysseth. And she is above. That is all that matters. Again and again, he pushes at the wind, wings marking the tempo of this dance. But still not the fluttering, desperate wingstrokes of one frantic to catch up - he's far too laid back for that. More of a southern drawl, sweet bluegrass rhythm, a gentleman. Kassima takes a deep breath, eyes refocusing--if hazily--for a moment. It figures. Her senses finally blurred, and it couldn't last. With a fleeting scowl, she edges back closer to the sanctity of her cool stone wall. There will be no welcome at *this* Guest Weyr Anthrax. Lysseth> Kvasith twists startled at Lysseth. He doesn't give up though, his determination never wearying as she continues to press onwards and towards her as close as he can. Lysseth> Sharath's snarl at Muinyth is lost in winds' rush: wan thunder, to be sure. But ... no time, no time, as the dance calls, the paradox chimes ice in fire, and he harries ever on. Through the clouds, which grasp at him with a fretful lover's hands, he rises on hiccuping wingbeats, seeking the rhythm and writing the flow. G'har has gone straight to his own Armageddon, though this is hardly willing. He manages one final mutter about big bronze throw-rugs, with a mumbled addition about the need for alcohol. His senses, apparently, have not quite blurred enough. E'vrin's second step stilts him forward, then pushes him back over balance's fulcrum. Stay by the wall, away by the wall, away from /her,/ that wicked, naughty one (but who would ever spank her?). He folds into himself again, and watches the weyr distrustfully. Shasta simply stands, wavering back and forth slightly as she rocks from heels to balls of her feet. Her focus is blurry, her mind fixed on muscles she does not posess, on sights she does not see - though the experience, and desire, are shared. HEr breath comes in short, shallow motions, lips slightly parted as her physical body mirrors the efforts of her lifemate. Lysseth> Lustrous blue shimmers silvery white while Adonith skims the surface of the clouds, playing with the thermals underlying that puffy array of moisture. The thermals are a brief respite from his sprinting before Lysseth's midair escapades remind him that his dancing partner may await. He has no rose for her tango but, in all other respects, the pas de deux he proffers is ever bit as passionate. Aurian flicks her glance over Kassima. She sighs softly and almost tenderly but she closes her eyes and rests her head against her hands. Alyssa's eyes, purplish like her dragon, open to squint about her, ignoring what she sees until they rest on Lysseth's rider. An uncharacteristic gleam is within those irises, intensifying the longer they behold Kassima's familiar figure. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath grasps like those clouds, like those wraiths and wracks of mist -- where is she? The taste of her, the feel of her, held by the wind for him to slide into and out of, again and again as paths cross and recross -- /where/? Lysseth> Lysseth maintains her blazing speed as long as she can, but... never forever, nothing lasts forever; the Shadows--death, weariness, gravity--make sure of that. So shall she still lead them on a merry chase while her energy lasts? Yes! The moonlight shines upon her, as upon a wicked blade, and she fares upon the sky-forged trail that fate's own hand had made. She cries challenge, cold as peak-snows, frosty as the midnight air, and would seek her refuge in a place, but none is there. She takes the path quite gladly, aimed for triumph in the sky; sooner or later, she must fall back... or will she stay there for aye? Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth apologizes for that poetic butchery, but I've always wanted to use the Lost Queen's Ballad for something. :) Hrm... capture poses after Lysseth's next? Dragon> Adonith bespoke Flight with << Shore >> Dragon> Falsanath bespoke Flight with << Gotcha. :) >> Dragon> Flight sense that Tierth, speaking for Muinyth, nodnods. :) Lysseth> Kvasith continues on. Zipping towards her and her glowing green zelf. Its been a long night and its starting to tell in Lysseth's flight as he inches closer and closer. Dragon> Kvasith bespoke Flight with << Okies >> Lysseth> Sharath cuts through Adonith's wind again, angling at Falsanath for prime position -- for now, for now, for as long as the dance may hold them in elegant, starfall thrall. Hard through the echoes of her cries, as well, the pale body slices, on the edge of exhaustion and exhilaration; his head throws up high, a ship's prow, into the streams, and he races for the moons' harsh mistress. Lysseth> Falsanath can't help but respond to Lysseth's challenge with a bugle of his own, despite the fact that such noise steals needed breath. His stony-bronze warmth, he is sure, is more than enough to melt that chill. The bugle, however, dies as Sharath nears him, and his whippy tail lashes out once more. The other male's nearness seems only to spur him towards the green, wings beating endlessly with the stamina of his color. Kassima begins to shake her head, an unconscious denial that her dragon-- she!--could be tiring at all. "Nay, nay, nay; Lyss, you *can't*, nay now...." She's long lived in the state of confusion, but appears to be vacationing in the state of denial. Lysseth> Muinyth pushes on, defying gravity it seems upon earthen wings that have little place in the sky. Weariness he ignores, and Death might chase him as he chases Lysseth, but he seems to care little of that. Naught matters but Lysseth. He eases between a blue and another brown, as the blue falters with the effort of answering his quarry's call. Silent as the depths of the caves his shadowed belly resembles, the rock-solid brown ever continues his chase. E'vrin has a passing acquaintance there, himself. His face melts and molds with passing moments' fires, until confusion finds lasting hold. Again he starts forward -- to the exit, to Lysseth's rider; doesn't matter -- and again he falls back. Pendulum, wavering in earth's weighty grip ... oh, but Sharath flies on-- Lysseth> Adonith cleaves the clouds with his elongated torso while, like a baker with a citron, he asserts his strength to squeeze every drop of aerial energy from his flagging frame. For countless moments he has warmed himself, warmed his hearts, by the fiery blaze of her speed and, his prey similarly fatigued, the time nears in which he proposes to return the favour. He pays no mind to Sharath's position save a lightning-quick whip of his tail when the other male nears, stretching himself and his limits for the joy of answering Lysseth's challenge. Aurian stands to her full height, short as it is, to glance at Kassima. Her jacket slides off her lap and onto the floor as she listens to the sounds of her voice. G'har rakes a hand through his short hair, fingers clenching briefly in an almost painful grip. "Faster," he mumbles. "Never mind him. Just go." Lysseth> Lysseth reacts to the nearing of the dragons as if they themselves were spurs, pushing ahead to the utmost--flogging herself for every last bit of speed. If she should lose her strength and fall to the hungry rocks below, at least she would die free! And yet... and yet. The winds call, and straight on Lysseth pursues, in vain hope of glorious, glorious escape. She had her comfort in control, once, but now she feels remarkably as though destiny has given her a good, swift kick in the tail. Dragon> Lysseth bespoke Flight with << Capture poses now, s'il vous plait? :) >> Dragon> Flight sense that Adonith helps the bronzes. << That's to capture the female, guys. >> Earlier visible dispassion has given way to a white-hot glare of emotion from Alyssa, who has risen to her knees and is staring openly at the greenrider, hunger lending a gravity and darkness otherwise alien to the gentle rider. E'vrin's breath skips again; his eyes are on Falsanath's rider, then off. No words, only sounds: another moan, throttled into determination's growl. Dragon> Flight sense that Falsanath thbpppts Adonith. :) Dragon> Flight sense that Sharath gives a martyred sigh and considers Lysseth instead of that fetching Adonith-- Dragon> Flight sense that Adonith preens. Dragon> Flight sense that Nraith swoons over Adonith... oh, wait... Oh, serenity has fled the greenrider now. Kassi hasn't even the protection of her dark glasses anymore, to shade her vision or keep her from seeing what must be. Her fingers scrabble against the wall behind. How dare they not leave an exit for her to use, or make the wall soft enough to claw her way through to freedom? Lysseth> Kvasith takes this chance now. A whip about a bronze and suddenly there she is within range. He inches closer and stretches his wings to foul hers with his. Its an attempt but it needs to be made. He tries.... Lysseth> Falsanath, despite the urgency of his movements, manages a certain suaveness, an adrenaline-ladened high that pushes him towards the glorious green, whippy tail and everlasting neck curling from below her and her right in the hopes of bringing her down from above. A soft croon of entreaty escapes him. Lysseth> Approaching from the underside of Lysseth, tail and talons outspread to envelop her in a secure and supple embrace, Adonith offers to meld his destiny with hers, his essence with hers, his entire being with hers. Angled beyond the noisome and deadly grasp of the lesser males, this blue, this familiar and forthright blue, has position and puissance. She is for him, and his hissing invitation confirms as much. Lysseth> Sharath's wings spray laughter into the faces of the stars -- into the dragons near him, too, one streamlined blue and one sandstoned bronze. The dance has two partners; the call has /one/ answer. And so, he strains forward into the breach once more, neck and tail and talons reaching, and he strives to jess Paradox, and he hurries to catch Glory. G'har's gaze flickers briefly to E'vrin, but, with a dismissive gesture, he turns quickly back to Kassi, hunger obvious in his gaze. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath tumbles, stumbles, rumbles -- the ropes tauten with dance's race -- the knots pull and pull and pull -- and would fire-born, fire-caught crystal prove sword enough to cleave them both free? Alyssa pushes to her feet now, sensing the end, sensing the beginning, too. A steady, thrumming pulse appears in her temple, its beat one of rampant physicality and desire, while she clenches her fists against the urge to take command of the situation -now-. Dragon> Lysseth bespoke Flight with << Before I consult my judging panel and try to make an almost impossible decision, I'd like to thank you all *so* much. This has been an absolutely gorgeous flight, and I'm honored beyond all telling. :) >> Aurian heaves a weighty breath mental twining with her dragon tight and continues to try and focus on something anything in the room. E'vrin sees Falsanth's rider (mm; probably), but there are more important issues at stake. Breathing is one. Standing is another. The ultimate, though, is ... well, what /next/? He weaves forward, into the now. Lysseth> Muinyth exerts nearly the last of his energy reserves, as he springs upwards with a powerful surge, a mud-covered granite pebble launched from a weyrbrat's slingshot! As Lysseth strives forward so does he, with a calculated trajectory leading him to arc above her. Earthen wings strive to foul with green, the sandstone cliff arch of his neck reaching, should he succeed, he'll be ready. No mind is payed to the others persuing her, the matter not - let them catch stars! Dragon> Flight sense that Falsanath heys at Sharath. << That's sandstone! Not sandstoneD! Not stoned! ;) And thank -you-, Lysseth. It was fun! >> Dragon> Flight sense that Sharath innocently polishes his halo. Hmm? ;) Dragon> Flight sense that Adonith smooches Lysseth and claps his wings for the other males. Even the thbbting Falsanath. << This was a superfun flight, and thanks Lysseth! >> Dragon> Flight sense that Tierth's thrilled you let Muinyth chase! I've had a blast :) Dragon> Flight sense that Sharath adds that for a first flight, this was marvelous. Thanks from us, too. :) Dragon> Flight sense that Falsanath smooches Adonith, but in a -manly- way. ;) Dragon> Flight sense that Tierth reads back and heeeyyyys, Sharath! Dragon> Adonith bespoke Flight with << Oooh baby ooh baby. >> Dragon> Flight sense that Kvasith chuckles. Dragon> Flight sense that Adonith twiddles Falsanath's thumbs. Dragon> Flight sense that Falsanath yeek. << Neat trick. >> Lysseth> Lysseth would borrow Death's own white steed if it promised escape, the trident of Evil if it would provide safety--but she is too far gone for either of these things. The last of the luminance drains and bleeds from her, leaving only a dragon... a mortal dragon, exhausted and faltering. With every last ounce of determination, she works to throw herself upwards--but no; she is already caught, jessed, trapped. A scream of denial and fury moderates into something a bit less objectionable as she clings to Sharath, allowing his embrace to take the place of that of the denied rocks below. Dragon> Flight sense that Adonith cheers the conquering hero! Lysseth> Kvasith snarls as he drops away. Lysseth> Kvasith flies downward towards the southern end of the bowl. Dragon> Flight sense that Falsanath woo hoo! :) Dragon> Kvasith bespoke Flight with << Congrats >> Alyssa's explosive reaction propels her toward the bowl, irritation singing in her voice and actions. Alyssa leaves the weyr and heads out into the bowl. Lysseth> Muinyth never studied calculus, unfortunately for him. His trajectory brings him over Lysseth, and he plummets, spent, groundwards. Aurian manages to walk with some decorum as she exits. Aurian leaves the weyr and heads out into the bowl. Dragon> Flight sense that Lysseth *whews*. That was one of the hardest choices I've had to make yet; y'all keep getting better all the time! ;) *Snugs.* Thank you all, so very much! :) G'har gives E'vrin an utterly scathing look, but takes it no farther than that, stumbling from the weyr. Lysseth> Sharath's flight jerks forward, jerks /up,/ with the surprise -- has her. He has her, and he folds around her, bronze around green, flame around fire, and his wings fling out again to stroke the air and caress it and bring them both through the heart of light, together. G'har leaves the weyr and heads out into the bowl. Shasta, with dignity, pivots on her heel and heads out for the bowl, lips pressed together into a line. Dragon> Lysseth senses that Sharath falls into light, crystal and wine through remembered rubies and ice, and perhaps they are both jessed, after all. Lysseth> Adonith howls his annoyance as his attempt misses and, rocketing downward, he aims for the one bit of solace he desires. Dragon> Flight sense that Tierth belatedly congrats Sharath! Great flight, everyone! Lysseth> Adonith flies downward towards the southern end of the bowl. Shasta leaves the weyr and heads out into the bowl. Dragon> Flight sense that Sharath waves thanks! Then has to go slow his heartbeat. :} Lysseth> Muinyth flies downward towards the southern end of the bowl. Dragon> Flight sense that Adonith's rider smooches Sharath's rider, then he leaves the DTU. Thanks again, Lysseth! Lysseth> Falsanath flies downward towards the southern end of the bowl. E'vrin's growls sharpens, then falls away as if sliced: the sword's fallen, and /he's/ falling, and she's there at the end of the fall, finally. /Finally./ Escape, denied; fleeing, forgotten--Kassi gives a wordless cry that echoes her dragon's, reaching out to catch... and be caught in turn.