Logs:First Flight
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| RL Date: 10 December, 2013 |
| Who: L'sha, Rillaeth, J'vain |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Vignette |
| What: L'sha and Rillaeth have their first flight, Rillaeth can't help showing off a bit. |
| Where: The center of the Bowl |
| When: Day 3, Month 7, Turn 33 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: Ghena/Mentions |
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| For once, Rillaeth was awake before her lifemate. « It's today, » she thought. She lifted her head so that it was level with L'sha's. She stared at him, asleep on his cot, for a full minute before she lost patience and nudged his midsection. "Mmngah." A hand sluggishly moved to paw at her nose and pushed it away feebly, but the eyes remained closed. Rillaeth stared again. Nudged again. This time his eyes opened a tiny crack. How humans got by with just one set of eyelids, she'd never know. Her wide, whirling eyes watched his slitted eyes for a few moments, then he yawned hugely and sat up on his cot, stretching his arms as far as they could go above his head. Which, being very limber, was quite far, his arms bending behind his back at a painful-looking angle. She sensed no pain from her lifemate, however. "Mmmnnnh," he groaned, "Well, this is certainly quite a change. Usually it's me trying to drag you out of bed. What's the occasion?" « It's today, » Rillaeth repeated. L'sha looked at her with a dull expression. "Huh?" It took another few seconds for realization to dawn. "Ohhhh, I get it. You're right, today's the day!" He scritched Rillaeth's eyeridges lovingly, then leaned over to rest his forehead on top of his lifemate's, between her eyes. "No wonder you're up so early." He stood and scratched idly at his chest. "It probably won't be 'til after lessons, though, you know." Rillaeth's multifaceted eyes whirled in greens and blues as she watched her rider prepare for the day. « I can wait. » L'sha snorted. "Right. Waking me up at the crack of dawn, like that ever happens. Just don't bug me about it all day, OK?" « Can't make any promises, » she replied, her usual slightly reverse-echoed touch failing to mask her amusement. L'sha sighed and rolled his eyes. He got dressed into light exercise clothes and roused the weyrlings who hadn't yet woken, then walked out to the morning calisthenics area. "Well, at least we'll be on time for once," he murmured to Rillaeth, then began the morning ritual of the roll call, one of his new duties as this month's wingleader. The morning passed in the same routine the pair and the rest of the weyrlings had fallen into in their fourth month of training, though he was exhausted after his laps, as if someone stuffed an extra firestone chunk into the sack he carried. That little "gift" left him sore and grumbling all day. Retaliation for his leadership style, perhaps? He shook his head and put it out of his mind. Rillaeth's behavior didn't assuage his soreness. She didn't necessarily say anything, but she just stared at him all day. She ate lightly that day, just a wherry, as she didn't want to be weighed down. She was hungry, but she resisted eating more. After lessons, he and Rillaeth met J'vain in the center of the bowl, while the other weyrlings enjoyed some free time. As wingleader, he was allowed to fly mounted a full week before the rest of the class so that they'd be able to be present at their fellow weyrlings' first flights without being preoccupied by their own flight. He nodded and began to buckle Rillaeth's straps on, positioning the seat between the two neckridges just above her shoulders. He could feel her excitement growing, almost like an electric current running through her entire body. He chuckled. "Calm down, sweetie, we'll get up in the air soon enough. I'm excited too, you know. I've been waiting for this since the first time I saw you on the sands." « Easy for you to say. You don't have wings you haven't used yet, » She retorted. L'sha shook his head and grinned. "You've flown before." He checked and re-checked the straps, looking for any imperfections in the leather, tightening a bit here and there. Stirrups, check. Chest strap, check. Safety straps, check (hopefully those won't be needed). "Not too tight on you, is it? Nothing chafing?" « It's not the same. Flying alone is fun, but we're meant to fly together. And no, the straps are fine, will you stop fidgeting with them? » she swung her head around to glare at her lifemate, eyes whirling an impatient shade of yellow. "Okay, okay! Just making sure everything's good! Okay, here we go." He took a deep breath, adjusting his riding leathers, helmet and goggles, then walked around to Rillaeth's left foreleg. He grabbed the mounting loop on the straps with both hands, then placed his booted right foot on top of her proffered left forearm. Rillaeth lifted him up easily as he slid his left foot into the stirrup, then switched his grip to one of her neckridges, swinging his right leg up and over her back. He planted his other foot into the stirrup and clipped the harnessing straps onto his belt. "Whoah," he said, as Rillaeth stood on all fours. He took a moment to look around at the view from atop Rillaeth. His heart started to beat faster. He felt Rillaeth breathing beneath him through his legs, which was also quickening as she became even more excited. Just sitting here atop her, strapped in, was exhilarating. This was by no means his first ride a-dragonback, but this was something different, something special. J'vain walked in a half-circle widdershins around to Rillaeth's right flank. His tone was almost bored, in contrast to the weyrling's growing excitement. "How's it feel up there, you comfortable?" L'sha couldn't wipe the grin off his face if he tried. "Feels great! Yes, comfortable." The bluerider grinned. "All right then. So, think you're ready?" L'sha's reply was immediate and urgent. "Yes, yes, please, can I go now, before Rillaeth explodes?" J'vain chuckled. "Okay, now when you take off, Rillaeth will go off at full gallop and get airborne, just like in unmounted flight. L'sha, you crouch down low as you can and...well, hang on for dear life. One lap around the bowl and then land. No more than two lengths off the ground." L'sha nodded and grinned. "Yes, sir!" Rillaeth bugled loudly in anticipation and trotted over to an empty area of the bowl to get enough room for takeoff. She paused a moment, then turned so that she was facing into the wind. Quarizath ambled out of the green's way, rumbling encouragement to her. « Ready? » She reared back on her haunches, leg muscles bunched like a coiled spring and wings unfurled to their widest. L'sha closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, reaching deeply through the link he shared with Rillaeth. He felt the air currents and wind direction over her hide, the powerful muscles in her legs and wings, preparing himself for the ride, then opened his eyes. "Ready!" He crouched down as low as he could, gloved hands gripping the straps as tight as he could, steeling himself. Rillaeth's acceleration was explosive as she surged forward as fast as she could. After a dragonlength, she brought her wings down, sweeping a huge volume of air downward, then partially folded them for the upstroke. Her legs pumped furiously, still accelerating as her wings swept down twice, then thrice. On the fourth downstroke, she was airborne. J'vain wasn't kidding about hanging on for dear life. He was bucked and thrown around so violently on Rillaeth's back that he nearly lost his grip and might have fallen off if he weren't strapped in. On the third downstroke, he felt a strong upward acceleration and suddenly felt much heavier. Then, they were off the ground and the bucking from Rillaeth's legs vanished, though the upward force continued. L'sha sat up straighter and his mouth fell open, momentarily stunned. Then he barked out a sharp laugh and a whoop of sheer ecstasy. Rillaeth returned her lifemate's whoop with a brassy bugle of her own, then her wingbeats stopped and she spread her wings wide to soar for a few lengths. She felt his exhilaration and basked in it like heat from the sun, then resumed her wingbeats. Her touch, reflecting the void of deep space but oddly reassuring at the same time, reached to her rider. « Turning now, hang on. » Short and to the point as ever. Even through the leather earflaps of his helmet, the roar of the wind in his ears was almost deafening and it buffetted his face and chest. Good thing he could hear Rillaeth in his head, because he sure wouldn't be able to hear anything else. He nodded as she relayed her next action to him and crouched low again. He leaned with her turn, tilting his head to try and keep it upright and level so he could keep his bearings. Rillaeth's wings beat strongly and smoothly as she adjusted to the turn. As she came around and leveled off, L' sha straightened up again. He turned his head as they approached the landing and saw J'vain and Quarizath in closer view, when a moment ago they were almost specks. His mood dipped a bit, since that meant that the ride was coming to an end. Rillaeth must have sensed it and decided on one last bit of fun, suddenly climbing another length. "Whoah, whoah, stay below two lengths!" L'sha hung on as she climbed, then just as suddenly started a long, soaring descent. L'sha felt about to rise off of Rillaeth's back the at the top of the arc, then crouched low as they accelerated and descended, the wind roaring even louder around him. "Slow down, slow down!" Rillaeth gleefully called out, « Coming in for a landing! » She did as instructed, however, tilting her wings forward to act as an airbrake. When they neared the ground where J'vain and Quarizath waited, she began to backwing, slowing even further. Her hindlegs lowered and she landed with a single hop, then touched down with her forelimbs. L'sha sat motionless between Rillaeth's neckridges for a moment, stunned, then came back down to earth and began unbuckling his straps with hands trembling from adrenaline. He wrapped his arms as far as they could go around Rillaeth's neck and hugged. "That was wonderful! I love you so much! Grinning, he slowly dismounted, finding that his legs were shaking slightly as well, and hopped down the last few feet to the ground. J'vain's face was impassive and his single hand rested on his hip. He glared at the weyrling enough to spoil the boy's mood. "What did I say? Two lengths. Did you not hear me?" L'sha grimaced in embarrassment. "Sorry, J'vain, she did it before I could react. Guess I was too wrapped up in it." He grinned sheepishly. J'vain snorted. "That can get you killed, you know. Pay attention next time. Speaking of which, I want you here same time tomorrow. Dismissed." He walked back to Quarizath, who rumbled to Rillaeth. « You flew very well, but listen to J'vain next time. » Rillaeth crooned back to Quarizath and preened, smoothing her wings out prettily. « Thank you! Sorry, just wanted a bit of fun. » She swung her head around on her sinuous neck to nudge her rider gently. L'sha saluted J'vain as he left, then cradled his lifemate's head gently, resting his head against hers. "I could float home. Wish I could feel like this forever." He and Rillaeth walked back into the Weyr side-by-side. His fellow weyrlings caught him staring at nothing a few times with a slightly dazed look on his face at dinner. That night, he drifted off to dreams of flying, a serene smile spread across his face. |
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