Trask's pages, written around 2000
Wandering the world with his friend Wakonda and their people, Torask ran up against Dawnlight's mining operation as a scout before his people traversed the area. He spent some time in the Hold, learning who was whom and which sides were available...
He apparently chose the wrong one. At least, according to the Lord Holders. When Deon asked Torask to head back to his people with the greetings and bribes which were typical of the Holders, Torask declined -- loudly. He went out into the courtyard of the Hold and demanded to be heard.
He was escorted away.
He met a girl while in Dawnlight, named Tamsin, who has come along with him. She is a journeywoman Healer, and therefore is quite valuable for his people. She understands the need for such things out in the wilderness, and as he has explained it to her, his people will not be easy to keep inside during threadfall.
It is his undying courage and ability to stick to his principles that first attracted others to him, and it is Torask's loyalty to his friends and family that keeps them close.
He and Wakonda were Searched at the same time, and Torask is thrilled with the idea (though he doesn't look much like it in the picture, huh?) and very much wants to Impress. He hopes to ride a sleek Blue or hardy brown into Thread, but doesn't feel he has what it takes to be a bronze rider. Shard and others disagree, but it will be up to the dragon to choose, and Torask will be quite happy with whichever type takes him as their rider. He will shorten his name to T'rask and has complained that he likes his his name already. Unlike a dragonrider's family, his people don't typically create their names with Impression and eliding in mind!
"There's a dragon rider here to see you," said a young boy, his eyes wide and face grubby.
"There are dragon riders everywhere," Torask said. "Who is it?"
"I dunno," the boy answered, and tossed his head to the front of the courtyard. Torask followed him, rolling his eyes. What now?
But instead of one of the Protectorate riders, even one of the rare contact riders from fringe weyrs, here was a stranger. A green dragon and a woman upon her back, a woman who greeted one of the other weyr inhabitants with a grin and a salute. It was a slightly different salute than Torask had seen around Blackstone, perhaps that meant something.
She approached, and was still grinning. "Torask?" She asked, looking at the dark-haired man. He nodded, unsure of this. "I'm search rider Opalia. This is Zuruth. We've come from Aden weyr. I have heard much about you and your friends here at Blackstone. A'rd here," she indicated the white haired flirtatious man she'd saluted, "tells me that you're one of the holdless candidates. Is that so?"
Torask nodded once, and Opalia eagerly extended her hand to him. "Aden weyr, sir. If you wish to stand upon sands, there is a clutch there. White Celinath and brown Eatatoth have a clutch. With a white dam, this could be an interesting clutch..."
"A white..." Torask said, "that's unusual."
"Not around Aden," A'rd said, slapping his friend on the back. "Go on, Torask, you'll do great, I bet. Trelerth's nose is never wrong."
Sliding his tongue around in his mouth, examining his teeth, and looking away, Torask thought hard about it for all of two seconds.
"All right, I'll go. What should I bring?" He said, finally cracking a smile.
"You'll be staying with Aden's weyrlings for two turns," the search rider told him while mounting back up on her green. "But you can always get your friends here to bring you things if you forget them."
"I have little enough," Torask thought about his girlfriend Tamsin... And wondered if she was material for impression. But he determined himself ready to go, once he'd assembled his clothing and hunting weapons. They rose to the air, and went between to Aden!
As the hatching day arrived, Torask began to feel strange sensations. He paid attention to them: he was hungry all the time, and his skin seemed to itch from a depth so far below that he could never reach it.
Then at last the day arrived! Aden's latest clutch was hatching and all the candidates scurried down to the sands.
The first to hatch was a pretty little green. Then, two more eggs hatched showing blues. The scribe from Dawnlight, Rudandi, impressed the bigger of them. Then, another egg hatched, revealing a brown.
Torask gulped. Still nothing for him. His heart pounded and he felt bad in the heat. His feet were fine with the hot sands, that was something typical of wanderers who spent most of their time walking.
Then the smallest egg opened, and a white came out! It was male, and Torask looked up at the white dam of the clutch. So it was more common here!
Several greens open up, and rush off to impress. Torask watched the eggs, but then sensed something at the back of his mind. He was cooler than before, but hungrier and itchier than he'd ever been! Then, he looked to his feet -- and into the eyes of the third green to hatch with her sisters!
He wasn't expecting this... A green? He thought -- well, that's a misconception, or perhaps just not consistant. He knew other males on greens would be a little less... um, masculine...
While Torask was thinking on this, the little green's eyes turn a shade of worried grey-red.
Do you not want me? I am Mareth, I am hungry... Are you sure that you are all right with me? I promise I will grow large and strong...
Surprised, Torask, now T'rask, laughed. "Of course I want you Mareth! I wouldn't trade you for the whole world. You just surprised me. Now, let's get you some food!"
Finally, the hunger subsided!
T'rask stood and waited for the weyrling master to complete his instructions before working with the leather. Since he was a holdless one, depending on himself and his skills was quite easy. His skills surely included working with hard leather.
The straps for the dragons' harness would be good ones. The weyrling master told T'rask that his work was probably the best he'd seen in ages.
Mareth glowed with pride at her rider with that.
I knew you were perfect!
(sorry, the last portion of the story was lost. :( )
