Brillian Gold Sky

Writers: Devin, Duskdog, Estelle, Halyonix, Sia, Suzee
Date Posted: 9th April 2024

Characters: Cyradis, N'vanik, Z'ku, M'gan
Description: Panitath Rises
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 8, day 4 of Turn 11

Cyradis

N'vanik

Z'ku

Cyradis paced back and forth in her office rubbing her hands together.
She'd been expecting this now for weeks but still the actual timing
was never certain. She'd called back all the Weyrs bronzes and warned
their riders it could be soon.

Panitath's eyes snapped open red and whirling and she roared her
challenge to the Weyr. }:Who can catch me, none of you puny bronzes
are worthy.:{

Cyradis ran from the office and toward the feeding pens as the great
golden queen bellowed her defiance to every creature and fell upon a
herd beast in the pens.

"Only the blood" she screamed with her voice and her mind **Only the
blood** She fought her lifemate's will with an iron one of her own.
"Blood Only!"

Loseth answered the challenge of his mate, his brass cry echoing off
the stone of the Weyr. }:Mine!:{

N'vanik closed his eyes against the surge of lust from his bronze.
He'd been on edge waiting, and now relief and tension both rolled
through him. While his confidence in both himself and his Weyrwoman
had grown since the first time Loseth caught Panitath, there was no
certainty when the Senior Queen rose. Maybe she would blame him for
the danger to her hatchlings. Maybe the weyrfolk had lost faith in
him.

}:No, this Weyr is mine! _Ours_!:{ Loseth had no doubts at all.

**Ours.** N'vanik clenched his fists and hurried toward the feeding pens.

Isarth growled a response to Loseth as he joined the challengers, his
eyes glowing a fierce crimson. On any other day the other bronze was
senior, but today he was only another rival. He knew he was just as
strong, just as experienced and wily in the air, and with his rider he
led a Wing against Thread. He would be a worthy mate for Panitath.

Not far off, M'gan joined the other bronzeriders with a flicker of
excitement in his belly. As much as he respected N'vanik, he'd never
hidden his ambitions, and he couldn't help but wonder - would this be
his time?

A dark-toned bronze with caramel-hued wings descended on the feeding
pens with a deep rumble. J'ine's bronze Iyoth observed the competition
silently, eyes whirling a violent red as he latched onto a herdbeast
and drank deep. For his part, his rider took his time in making his
way toward Cyradis' weyr. Senior flights were always an affair, and
never one that ever ended up amounting to anything to him. Why rush to
something that was unlikely to have an impact on his life, regardless
of what his dragon may think?

Tavorth hissed at the other gathering bronzes. He had already drained
a herdbeast dry, though he did not doubt he would have the strength to
keep up. Too long had he chafed under Loseth's leadership. His time
was now!

His rider, Sh'tan, also held no doubts, striding into the gathering
throng as though the Weyrleadership was already his. He looked towards
N'vanik in silent, obvious challenge. The time for change was now!

M'vander surveyed the other gathering bronzeriders with a slight
smile. "Good afternoon, gentlemen," he said, his usually smooth voice
a little rough. He didn't really expect anyone to reply under such
circumstances, but it was his preference to remain polite in all
things, regardless. He knew that soon enough, once the flightlust took
over, he wouldn't be in any frame of mind for niceties. "Best of
luck."

}:You are too nice!:{ Malchobeth hissed, raising his head from the
throat of the beast he was blooding. He was a small bronze, but he
knew he was strong and clever. Panitath would see. }:These are our
rivals! Show your dominance!:{

**They will be our brothers again tomorrow,** M'vander replied evenly,
undoing the top button of his shirt for relief from the sudden heat --
something he would ordinarily never do. **Keep your head clear, old
boy. Our worth is self-evident. We've nothing to prove.**

Panitath hissed after she'd taken her third beast and sucked down the
hot blood. Glowing like Rukbat she flung herself into the sky.
}:You're not going to catch me.:{ she shouted back at her would be
chasers.

Cyradis swayed in the midst of the gathered riders and she became one
with her dragon.

Good luck and green-speed, old man." C'bricht drawled. He wasn't one
for all this _dramatics_, really, nor for the men that acted out the
pomp and preening of their bronzes when a goldflight was near. Still,
he could hardly refuse the opportunity to clap M'vander on the back as
he entered. "May those who want it play hard, and those who don't play
harder, eh?"

His own Tarqeqth's presence loomed in the fringes of his mind, and he
could already feel the burning of the bronze's roar in his throat and
the flesh blood hot in his belly. Tarqeqth gathered himself onto his
hindquarters and leapt into the air, hot on Pantiath's heels.

J'ine was slow to join the gathered bronzeriders. Still, he greeted
them all with a dashing grin and a jaunty wave. "Gentlemen,
Weyrwoman," he greeted. "Let's have a good flight, yes?"

Iyoth shared none of his cheer. The bronze took to the skies with a
roar that could shake the heavens, the mighty thrusts of his wings
propelling him into the sky with as much speed as a beast his size
could muster.

Thadath was just being strapped up for drills when Panitath
challenged. R'kehr had immediately taken the straps off to let his
bronze fly to the feeding pens. As his bronze went for the pen and
drained a herdbeast, he walked over to the weyr where people were
gathering. He privately thought they had no chance, but was willing to
surrender his will to his bronze's. The flight would be enjoyable
regardless.

Volaith had no such doubts. None of the other bronzes felt worth his
attention - he had only one key rival. Normally he respected Loseth,
but today he did not. He was Weyrsecond, and soon he could be
Weyrleader. He knew how the other bronze flew, it would give him an
advantage.

"Indeed," M'vander intoned in response to C'bricht, though it was
becoming increasingly difficult to focus outside of his dragon as
Malchobeth roared and took to the air after Panitath. He had no
burning desire to become Weyrleader, himself, though he wasn't afraid
of the prospect, either. He certainly felt he would be up to the
challenge if the situation presented itself. The ability to take the
lead at the drop of a hat was certainly the bare-minimum expectation
of any self-respecting bronzerider, as far as he was concerned, but it
was also no shame to be a follower when required. There was only one
Weyrleader at a time, after all, and only a handful of wingleaders.

Malchobeth, however, was as eager to claim the senior queen as his
mate as any hot-blooded bronze would be. }:You will be mine and you
will be glad of it, Panitath!:{ he said, jockeying for position
amongst his rivals.

The combination of lust from Xemroth and the nervous jittering from
his own stomach was unpleasant. Z'ku knew he wasn't ready to be
Weyrleader yet, but the dragons might rush him into it. He'd
considered keeping Xemroth from the Senior Queen's Flights, but even
if _he_ wasn't ready, he didn't want to deny his bronze the chance.

Xemroth knew only that he wanted to possess the shining golden
Panitath, his muscles tense and ready for the long Flight. He would
prove himself and claim her!

Panitath twisted into a cloudbank sucking her chasers after her and
then shot back down just above the waves of the sea before rising to
reflect the sun into their eyes from her glowing golden wingsails.
}:Puny bronzes:{ she declared with disdain.

}: There is nothing puny about me, :{ Tavorth purred back at her, his
tone determined to the point of possessiveness. He swerved away from
Volaith, who was too close for his liking, and quickly pinpointed
Loseth's position. A deft flick of the bronze's wings and he was in
front of another rival, slowly making his way up in the pack.

Xemroth found himself beside an ambitious brown and snorted
contemptuously. They may get lucky with a junior gold, but never a
Senior Queen! He pumped his wings harder, edging past the older
dragon, and then banked sharply to follow another of Panitath's turns.

All these males wanted to take what was his. Loseth hissed at his
rivals, though his red eyes were fixed on his golden mate. He knew
her, he knew this place -- the thermals, the currents, the wind. He
did not follow Panitath in her dive toward the water for she would
never let herself be caught so low. Instead he climbed higher.

Malchobeth dove after Panitath, but leveled out slightly above her,
hoping to snatch the advantage from those who were chasing more
closely when she inevitably rose again. He had lost track of Loseth,
whom he considered the biggest threat to his victory, in the cloud
bank, but no matter -- no doubt the other bronze had fallen behind,
and Malchobeth really had only so much attention to spare for his
rivals, anyway. The golden form ahead of him was too enticing, and he
dare not remove his eyes from her, lest he miss a crucial movement.

She could tell they were beginning to tire as she gloried in the
strength of her wings. Several of them were performing well but she
had yet to see true greatness. Loseth of course was in his prime and
didn't follow her tricky dive above the waves. But she lost a couple
of the smaller bronzes and browns. Powerful downsweeps of her wings
brought her higher and higher avoiding those seeking to claim her as
she climbed the sky. She would test them to their limits!

Isarth allowed himself a moment of satisfaction as the lesser chasers
fell away, while he kept half an eye on Loseth. The wily bronze knew
that it paid to watch the queen's past mate, since he'd know her
tricks the best - but while those tactics would keep him in the race
until the end, they wouldn't bring him victory, and the golden glow
drew him on irresistibly. Soaring on a warm current of air, he pushed
forward, easily cutting off a younger bronze, hot blood burning in him
as he moved to the front of the pack.

Malchobeth's choice of positioning before Panitath's climb had gained
him ground, and he now pressed in near the front of the pack, too, but
it hadn't gained him the prize that he'd hoped for. Still, he was hot
on her heels now, and it was only a matter of time before she was
caught. With a roar and a snap of his wings, he surged forward with
all of his might, jockeying for position with another
similarly-ambitious but much younger bronze to try to overtake the
leader.

Tarqeqth roared a protest as Isarth cut him off, and with a full-body
twist he jerked harshly to the side, well away from the pack of
bronzes and far enough to prevent a collision. Later, when the
adrenaline wore down, he and C'bricht would have matching pains from a
sprain. Now, he surged upwards after the pack, watching for the right
time to dive back in or, if he could, catch Panitath unawares.

Xemroth was a smaller bronze and the strain of keeping up was starting
to show. But he would _not_ give up. Others around him dropped out of
the race, giving him more room and a better view of the shining prize
in front of him. }:I am young and strong!,:{ he called out. }:I will
catch you!:{

Catching a thermal, Loseth rose, following his mate. Up and up, he
knew she was climbing with intent now. They must go high to make a
large clutch, and he must show her that he was the _only_ choice. He
watched for any sign that she granted him favor . . . or the threat
that she might choose another. Loseth was ready to take her, no matter
what.

She felt the first twinge of strain in her huge wings as she rose far
above the clouds and sea. She looked and saw the leaders behind her
but not yet endangering her option to choose. Their voices were a
melody in her mind. She looked critically at Isarth then Malchobeth
but finally she knew. }:Not yet, brave one:{ she said to Xemroth and
flung herself into the path of her chosen consort... Loseth. }:Fly me
well:{ she demanded.

Loseth lost no time in claiming his Queen. }:Mine!:{ He bugled his
triumph, the note ending on a hint of a croon. His huge wings opened
to ensure a long fall. N'vanik lifted his small Weyrwoman and claimed
her just as thoroughly.

Last updated on the April 11th 2024

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Brillian Gold Sky