Firefighter Rookie Jennifer Muñoz, on the force for 18 months. Currently her duties are similar to Heller's, in that they are often paired up to clean and service the vehicles, do laundry and other sundry duties for the rest of the Station - they're the rookies, after all. They get the crap jobs. But they also get the tough on the line jobs, holding the heavy hoses and making sure that everything is stocked on board before a call. If they miss something, you can bet that Steele will call them on it later.

This 22 year old powerhouse of a woman doesn't let anything stand in her way. She is of Mexican-American descent, and has the rich black hair, big brown eyes and red-tan skin tone to go along with her proud family line. Her father was a fireman, back when it was still PC to call them "men". She wanted nothing more than to follow him into glory - he perished fighting the Wildfires only 2 years ago.

Jennifer's family now consists of her mother, two sisters, and several cousins on her father's side. She has had a string of bad relationships with men who would rather she settle down and do housework. She's not that type, and never will be.

Back to the bonding page!

Muñoz went through the many pictures of dragons in the Healing Den's computer system. The one she kept returning to was a pleasantly curved looking one. Smooth wings, short hooks, a widely spaded tail. "This one looks strong," she said to no one in particular.

"Darkling Dawn," said one of the spooky Kalkin men. They'd made their way back into the room, one of them to gloat over his great new filing system, the other to tsk his tongue and offer suggestions as to how it could be made better.

"It's a good choice," said the other. "Strong and healthy."

"Could you two... bother someone else?" Jennifer asked them. She kept gazing on the image, and then clicked the 'print' button to get a copy of it. Along with the image was a bit of a pamphlet, specifics about who ran Darkling Dawn, what she might be required to do while there, and how to get there and back.

One of the local riders met up with the group of Talon City folk who had already chosen off their destinations. R'met was his name, and he was insanely cute. He had a bit of a catlike grace, with pretty puppydog eyes and a lovely smile. His blue dragon Jalanath offered a ride, and Jennifer gladly took it.

"I'll be back here, right?" She asked.

"Of course, just check out the surroundings. Memorize them, you'll want to do that at any place you visit." He said, and helped her onto the blue. The 'parking lot' outside the Healing Den was wide and busy with several other riders helping out or carrying things back into the Den. Over the opening to the den's corridor was a number, it said 108, and Jennifer laughed.

"That's our station number," she said, "I can't forget that now can I?"

"Good," R'met said with a chuckle. "Hold on tightly."

Jennifer smiled and did so. They took a bit of a running start, flapped hard, and took to the static sky over the Den. Denim, just hatched not a few hours before, chittered and clung on to her hair. Everyone had been offered an egg if they wanted one, not told what might come of it. She took one, and was given a bit of fresh meat - she was glad she did, because the little blue Seiryuu flitter that came from the shell endeared itself to her immediately. While he clung to her shoulder, Jennifer looked down.

"What is this place about anyway?" She asked, and over the roar of what sounded almost like a river, R'met answered.

"It's a place outside of time and space, an asteroid hollowed out. Your dragons will have their own place, they can go between your world and here, from that building of yours."

Then they vanished through the Nexus.

***

Darkling Dawn was a busy place indeed! There were already a dozen people waiting for the eggs on the sands to hatch, but some of them seemed intent on just taking a long look at the orbs. They left the sands making arrangements with the weyrwoman, Teah.

Jennifer was there long enough to settle her bag of clothing and books into the dorm, and get half a night's good sleep (though how she could sleep in a strange place like this was beyond her reasoning). Then, the strangest sound woke her. It was a deep hum, almost like a transformer that was defective.

But that wasn't what it was at all. It was about three in the morning, when the bugling dragons woke everyone in the weyr to their eggs hatching! A trio of dragons - bronze, brown and gold - stood eagerly above the sands.

"How come there are two males?" Muñoz asked.

"Because they both flew her," Said a woman whose appearance startled Jennifer so much she staggered quickly off to the sands. She had firey skin, and big wings, almost like a dragons' wings! Of course later on Jennifer would learn that this strange woman was the rider of the big bronze who ... well, her attention was captured by the shaking of the eggs on the sands.

Everyone's eyes turned to the bold bronze who shattered his egg powerfully and then demanded tht he go to a place called Weyr Eriol. There weren't any good boys for him? When three more eggs broke open, everyone cheered. There were two blues of different pigmentation, and a brown.

The pale colored blue came right out of his shell, and shook himself free of the clinging sand. He was bigger than his blue companion, though not as large as the brown.

Do you think I'll be able to help you fight fires when I grow up? Asked the pale skinned blue. He was so sincere, so intense, and ... he was speaking only to Jennifer!

Surprised, but pleased that he'd ask such a thing, Jennifer patted the blue's head and embraced him. "We'll see, Luukinith, we'll see." They didn't wait around to see the rest of the hatching, Luukinith was tired and needed to eat, as well as stretch out. His time in his shell had left his wings cramped!

***

By the time her little blue flit was almost full grown, Luukinith had begun to stretch his wings and fly. He was a strong flapper, and attentive to details like where to put his tail, how to raise his wings, and how the riding straps would change his flight pattern.

It is a good thing you are not a big human, because I would not train very well with too much-

"You are not talking about my weight again, are you?" Muñoz exclaimed and the pale blue scampered into the den with a dragon giggle.

***

"Take this to my mom," Jennifer said to her little blue Denim, and don't you dare let her feed you too much." The chibi flit gave a squeek, but Muñoz knew better than to think her mother wouldn't over-stuff the little guy. He was so cute - as he flew off Luukinith nudged his rider.

Why does he get to go to her, and you keep me away?

"Because Luu," (she pronounced it loo-oo, the Hawiian way) "you're going to be my big surprise. That was just a picture, she knows about you, just... I want it to really be something special. Like you were when you hatched."

The pale colored blue crooned with joy, and then turned his head to look at Darkling Dawn one last time. If we are not too busy, do you think we can come back here?

"Of course we will, Luu, you and I - it's going to be fun." She tied back her hair and put it under her riding helmet, one which she'd be exchanging for a hard hat or something more fire resistant when they really got back to things. They were the first - but they wouldn't be the last - to bond and return to the fire station.