Smithcrafter Algernon's life began in Dawnlight, though he is the son of a smith and a dragonrider. He was fostered by another of the Smithcrafters, master Zaff. When Algernon was only about 8 turns old, he began using his first bellows, and since then has developed a great love for the work of a smithy.

He loves fire, and his physique has begun to bear his dragonrider's heritage: his strong shoulders and good legs will do well around a dragon's weyr! Shoveling smithy's coal, or shoveling firestone, it's all the same work.

When he went to Blackstone Weyr for the first time, at age 12, he was approached by another fairly young member of the black-bottom hair group. He was startled to find himself enjoying his new pink and black hair, and keeps it cut stylishly to show it off. His Master smith was somewhat disapproving, but knew that there was nothing to be done about the lad now.

Currently, Algernon is 17 turns old, and has reached his Journeyman stage in his Smith crafting. He specializes in power sources, and he has heard rumors of steam engines and such running about near Alabaster's weyrhold. That intrigues him immensely.

When in Blackstone weyr, he was searched by the local dragons, several of them. But he also found a very pretty girl, the daughter of a dragon rider, a girl named Abalone. She too has been searched, but she still waits to see if she will Impress on someone's sands. He hopes they do together.

If Algernon Impresses he will shorten his name to G'ernon (not Al'anon... hee hee). He hopes to have a strong brown dragon, with the good flame endurance he's heard about. He's not too concerned about flying in a mating flight, as he is comfortable with Abalone and does not seek another mate.

The apprentices, two to a bellows, were sweating already in the heat of the room. They were smelting something unusual, something that took a much higher melting point than most metals they were working with. Zaff did not tell them what it was, nor why they were doing it, but there was a dragonrider in the doorway watching them do it.

He was from Alabaster Weyrhold, Algernon noted. The pink and black haired smith took notes, watched the gauges for anything anomolous, and waited for the metal to be poured out of its hot forge.

When it was poured, it was into small bars which were then stamped with Alabaster's marking. These were odd, Algernon wondered why they were doing this here at Dawnlight, and not at their own well-known smith craft hall.

The rider finally came up, looking over the work, and nodding. He was skinny but well muscled, and his head was practically bald, though he was quite young. He walked with a stiff gait, and Algernon wondered if the young rider had sustained Threadscore.

"Do you need some help?" he asked, and the rider nodded.

"That would be appreciated," he said. "I'm V'ax, one of the smithcrafters at Alabaster."

"I see that," Algernon smiled a bit, while hefting a crate of the new metal -- which was surprisingly light -- onto his shoulder. "Why do you need it smelted here?"

"Dawnlight's mines are where much of this alloy are found," V'ax said, "there are little pockets of the metals around Alabaster, but not enough to make good strong metal like this."

"I could see using something this light weight, but does it protect? Why use something this brittle?"

"We're..." V'ax waited until they'd hauled a bit more of it outside, until they were alone, to speak further. "We are developing something for Ablan hold. Something they've had for generations, but their metal is old, and heavy, and worn. We'll be making it into, well, a sort of thin sheet. For their groves."

"Covering it with metal?" Algernon looked surprised. "That's amazing. We could probably do something like that, too, eh?"

"It would make fighting thread easier," V'ax admitted. "Ground coverings like this are very expensive and hard to make, though. We won't be put out of business."

He mounted his brown dragon, with difficulty Algernon saw. The smiths saluted each other, and the rider was on his way.

But Algernon thought hard about what he'd heard. He was sure that there was something he could do about making the same work for their precious fields...

Algernon's reverie was broken several days later, by a call from the skies. A blue dragon, with a friendly looking rider, dropped into the courtyard. Of course, there were the requisite numbers of brats scurring about, but there were older folk too, and the Lord Holders among them.

"A search! A search!" Cried one of the teenage brats, at the tops of his lungs. Ever more young inhabitants -- from drudges to Holders -- came from the inner parts of the Hold.

But the blue seemed to have eyes only for Algernon.

That one, I like him. He is strong, and concerned for Pern! The dragon bespoke broadly, and many people turned their heads to see who he could be referring to. But only the rider approached Algernon.

"Heyla, sir," he said, saluting. "I'm P'laz, of Rose Circle Weyr. An offshoot of Dawn Sisters. Would you care to stand upon our sands? Our young Queen has just set down ninteen eggs!"

"I-- it, YES! Of course I will!" With the same surprise that he had when he had been told he was good Candidate material before, Algernon's heart lept at the thought that he would be able to stand -- NOW!

The expression on his face was enough that P'laz said, "I'll handle your Lord Holders, they'll want to know where you're going."

"And... my craftmaster, too..." Algernon said, in a daze. He was going to be a candidate! Now he'd have the real chance to fly against that enemy of all Pern! Or he could lift the heavy woven metal sheets to help cover the grounds when it fell, all kinds of things crept into his mind!

And Abalone... But she would stand on someone's sands, and some day too she would impress... Wouldn't she?

It was so early! Why was there so much noise going on?? Algernon groaned and dragged himself out of his cot, when the Weyrleader came rushing in!

"The eggs hatch! Come quickly! Get your robes!" He said and passed along through the halls to wake others. Algernon did as he was told, this early in the morning he hardly--

"Hatching!?" He yelled at himself, and quickly got into his robe. Once they were all there, the candidates watched as a beautiful bronze came first. A good sign for a new weyr! Then, others hatched. It took so long... Twelve eggs, including the shy little Queen, hatched before something alerted Algernon to the newest on the Sands.

A handsome brown, with skin as dark as his own! "What luck," he said, as the little dragonet came to him. "We match!"

We certainly do! We're both hungry!

"Then we are off to breakfast, Ebalsth, you and me!"

"You won't always be so lucky," said the Healer. G'ernon nodded, and winced as he did so.

"It wasn't luck, it was skill..." he moaned, and the Healer chuckled.

"It had better be. The next time your dragon rolls over like that, you'd best hope that he's no bigger than he is now. At it is, he's bigger than a draught runner, and they're rather heavy you know."

"I know... I know..." G'ernon said, as the Healer left his weyr.

...I am so sorry, G'ernon... Came the dragon's hesitant apology.

"It wasn't your fault... Everything else is to blame but you, Ebalsth."

But I almost smushed you!

"You were mostly asleep! And the wherry cart out there didn't help at all!"

It did smell good.

"And you do have a weakness for food, my friend." G'ernon smiled, and knew that his dragon's eyes were changing from worried orange to a more content blue.

Could I chase her?

"You could, but I think she'd probably bite your head off, you little brown. Try that one instead when she rises."

G'ernon pointed at a shining green, who looked quite healthy and quick, but did not look like the queen that Ebalsth wanted to fly earlier.

G'ernon hoped that he'd forget about trying to fly any queens unless they were little or young. He was not ever going to be much bigger than the smallest of his rank, though his heart was surely not small!

I think she is pretty too...

"G'ernon, your transfer hides have come..." Said the Rose Circle weyrling master. He and the weyrleader strode toward the tall darkskinned man, and both looked relatively pleased. "Those people in the Protectorate think you're going to be in their Uplift wing. Is that good?"

"Good? It's great! We'll be able to go out and help people build cotholds, and dams, and everything... That sounds good doesn't it?" G'ernon said to the brown.

I am looking at the greens, G'ernon. Bother me about buildings later, okay?