[NorCon] Pickup RP: Flaming Practice
Who: Paige, P'draig, Jekzith, Tiasheth, NPCs: G'ben/Vrusith, Neala/Twilith, Saryan/Sayarith, Ph'lyp/Daizath, Z'eren/Falstath
When: 8th month of Weyrlinghood
Where: Center of the Bowl, Fort Weyr
What: Flaming practice with straw piles.
Center of the Bowl, Fort Weyr(#227RIJMas$)
Sandy soil and a few particularly resilient tufts of grass fill the otherwise empty plain that creates the heart of Fort Weyr's bowl. Mountain walls curve protectively to all sides, dotted with the dark entrances of the resident riders' weyrs. The bowl itself is a narrow oval, oriented northeast to southwest, with a couple of larger entrances that lead to various places that reside within the bowl's walls.
The most easily accessible from here would be the weyrling barracks, which are to the west, with the infirmary off to the east. Distantly viewable to the northeast would be the Weyrleader complex, the hatching complex, and the living cavern; to the southwest, the lake and the feeding grounds can be seen.
It's late afternoon and the Weyrlings were set to doing formation drills this morning, then Yet More Firestone Sorting in the earlier part of the afternoon. A short break was called and now P'draig's got people lined up to do more flaming practice. "Okay, today you'll actually be flaming /something/," the Weyrlingmaster says. "Not just a spot on the wall, but something flammable and working on aim. We're not up to targets yet, though that'll come. For now it's just, stoke up, point muzzle at scrap pile of moldery straw from the stables, and burn the stuff up. All of the usual safety rules apply. Two dragonlengths apart, no pointing muzzles at each other. First three dragon pairs to get through their line of piles get a half day off. Any questions?" My. Paddy sure is on a roll today.
Standing in line with the other weyrlings gathered for the exercise, Paige casts a rather anxious look up at Tiasheth as the pairs begin separating by the directed two dragonlengths. No questions from either green or rider; both glance briefly toward the straw piles - one with caution, the other with a calm focus. As G'ben and Vrusith begin stoking up far to their left, the slim weyrling finally begins selecting suitable chunks for her lifemate to chew, murmuring something that sounds like 'second stomach' as she presents them to the green.
There's an early gout of flame, misdirected at the Bowl floor from Ph'lyp's dragon and P'draig calls out a: "Whoa there, careful. Make sure everything's all set first, Ph'lyp," he reminds and the lad hangs his head a little, but gives Daizath a little nudge to remind the green. Walking the line, Paddy pauses by Paige and nods. "Good to remind her until she doesn't need it anymore," he notes. "You happy with her flame?"
Tiasheth tips her head back slightly, careful to get the stone positioned just so before crunching it into bits; bitten tongues are to be avoided at all costs. Automatically cringing a little at Daizath's early gout of flame, Paige side-steps closer to her dragon, feeding her another piece once the first one is down. "Oh, yeah, " the girl says quickly as Paddy pauses by them, expression still a trifle uncertain. "S'jus' tha' s'always seems so - sudden." And as if to illustrate her point after a third piece, the small green quickly tilts her muzzle away from her rider and more toward the straw, releasing a jet of flame as Paige hastily ducks more out of the way.
"Good size on that," P'draig states, eyeing the occurrence without flinching. "And it does take a little getting used to. Control and aim are what we're after now she's got the hang of just making the flame all together. Keep at it, keep her stoked and try to focus on burning those straw piles up." He smiles encouragingly at Paige then frowns over at Saryan who is struggling to get Sayarith to get her flame to hit the straw. Everywhere but, it seems.
"Yessir, " Paige says more brightly once that first flame is over with, unable to hold back a little laugh as Tiasheth turns to give her a reassuring croon - and ends up turning back toward the straw to release another stream of flame. And the straw searing continues, interrupted in varying intervals as dragons have to be re-stoked. The pair progress well enough, managing to keep flame from escaping too far around them before the piles of straw can be eliminated, but nearby, Vrusith isn't quite so lucky, still missing her piles every few attempts or so.
"Control, Saryan!" P'draig holds up a finger for Paige's benefit. "'Scuse me." And he ambles over to Sayarith and Saryan and holds a quick conference with them. "Concentrate," he tells the greenrider over and over, makes her help Sayarith focus until /finally/ flame hits straw. "Keep at it," he encourages, does another swing up the line and back to Paige. "Almost there, huh?" he counts the number of piles. "That last one is often hard for many. Trying to reach."
Paige and Tiasheth cast measuring glances at the last pile, trying to gauge how lengthy of a flame they'll need to successfully hit it. "Even fer the bigger dragons?" the weyrling asks, leaning over to pick out a few more pieces of firestone to feed to her awaiting dragon. Crunch, crunch, chew. "Does seem kinda far, " she admits, brow knitting a little, "but if'n we jus' get a piece of it - s'better'n not gettin' it at all?"
"Even for the bigger dragons," P'draig confirms. "At least at first." He eyeballs the distance. "Seems like sometimes it's just harder to judge even?" Sayarith's still working on the second of her piles, better aim, but far from perfect and Saryan's just frowning, too busy to gossip for once.
"Lotta times, " Paige agrees, stepping back as Tiasheth spouts more fire, trying to use what she's learned of endurance by trial and error to keep enough flame going to get at least a piece out of that farthest pile. Vrusith's a few piles away from her last one, managing well enough except when she turns excitedly every now and then as G'ben mentions something or another that likely has little to do with flaming and more about the gardener who passes by the class on his way toward the herb garden.
"Keep going, maybe get her to adjust her posture a little," P'draig suggests and Jekzith obligingly demonstrates making his neck one long slightly inclined line. "G'ben! Stop gossiping and keep her on /target/," Paddy calls over next. "Shells man, if you can't do piles, think about hitting a /bullseye/."
Shifting to align her neck the way that Jekzith is holding his, Tiasheth keeps trying to singe the pile, jetting out another stream of flame after a brief pause, eyes whirling more quickly as she gets a bit closer to hitting the mark. "Like this?" Paige asks, expression growing more excited as they get a little closer to almost getting it. "Oh! Tia, tha' was close!" Hop. Perhaps drawn back to focus more by the idea of hitting a bullseye than P'draig's admonishment, G'ben hastily directs Vrusith back to her piles, feeding her another piece once she runs out of flame.
"Mmhm, like that," P'draig says, unconsciously mimicking Jekzith and keeping a sharp eye on G'ben. Jekzith keeps his head posed that way and scoots over a to a clear patch. Paddy chuckles and walks over, pops a few chunks of stone in his mouth and a moment later the brown is showing of juuuust a little, flames reaching long based on that angle. Saryan lets out a whoop of triumph as Sayarith finally gets the third pile of straw. Neala meanwhile is also working on the last and Z'eren's just finished all, pumping a fist in the air.
Tiasheth's flames don't reach quite as long as Jekzith's, but she finally singes just a bit of that last pile, eliciting a little beam from Paige, even as both turn a little to watch Jekzith. "Prolly turnin' more tha' way would be better, huh?" the girl says aloud to her green, but she's still grinning broadly. "S'got experience on his side, " she notes, shaking her head a little. "Lil more time. Ya'll get there."
Neala gets Twilith to sear the last pile and she too whoops. Saryan and Sayarith continue to work away. G'ben's actually staying close by Vrusith and the other green valiantly tries to mimic Jekzith's technique, eyes rolling sideways towards Tiasheth. << How did you /do/ that? >> she inquires with an edge of exasperation in her voice. "Exactly. Practice and more practice."
<< Try angling your neck this way, >> Tiasheth replies patiently, turning a little to give the other green a better demonstration. << And stand at an angle, like Jekzith is doing. That seems to be helpful, too. >> "Maybe we'll be able t'get it all in one go in a few months. Or sometime next turn. 'Course, " and Paige sighs a little, "by tha' time, it won' matter any. We'll be a'doin' more important thin's than flamin' lil piles o'straw."
<< Oh more angle. >> Like of course that's the answer to all her troubles. A little disgruntled still. Vrusith tries to mimic again and sends more flame forward. There. Edge of the pile crisped. She preens. "Few months," P'draig says confidently with a smile, "and yes, flying sweeps, transporting people, maybe rescuing folks bogged down in mountain passes. All sorts of things."
"Rescuin' folks?" Paige swallows, edging closer to Tiasheth again now that the green seems to have expelled all her flame. "I -- yeah." Glancing down for a moment to fiddle with her sleeves, she frowns a little, thoughtful. "Y'think - we'll all be ready fer tha'? I know they're big now and gettin' close t'nearly grown, but - sir, I gotta admit, " more quietly, "I dun - I dunno if'n I feel tha' we're all grown and ready, not all the time." And they're probably not the only pair that still occasionally feels like they're recently bonded.
"Mhhm. All sorts of things." P'draig lifts a hand while the rest of the class keeps working, towards Paige's shoulder. "I think you'll be ready, Paige. There's time yet. Months. Just -- hm. Be glad you don't have to fight Thread," he says softly and aims to squeeze that shoulder lightly. "But I know what you mean. It's a big step to take. Hang in there okay?" Paddy smiles at Paige then steps away, lifting his voice. "All right, we've got our three free half-days. Neala, Z'eren and Ph'lyp. Practice is over for the day, tidy up the 'stone and head in for baths and dinner. See you all in the morning!"
"I am glad, " Paige says just as quietly, glancing up at him gratefully for the reassurance. "Yeah, s'big - big thin'. Thank ya." Giving the winners of the half-days a small grin in congratulations, she sets to tidying up the stone left in her allotted space, dusting her hands off and heading for the caverns soon after.
When: 8th month of Weyrlinghood
Where: Center of the Bowl, Fort Weyr
What: Flaming practice with straw piles.
Center of the Bowl, Fort Weyr(#227RIJMas$)
Sandy soil and a few particularly resilient tufts of grass fill the otherwise empty plain that creates the heart of Fort Weyr's bowl. Mountain walls curve protectively to all sides, dotted with the dark entrances of the resident riders' weyrs. The bowl itself is a narrow oval, oriented northeast to southwest, with a couple of larger entrances that lead to various places that reside within the bowl's walls.
The most easily accessible from here would be the weyrling barracks, which are to the west, with the infirmary off to the east. Distantly viewable to the northeast would be the Weyrleader complex, the hatching complex, and the living cavern; to the southwest, the lake and the feeding grounds can be seen.
It's late afternoon and the Weyrlings were set to doing formation drills this morning, then Yet More Firestone Sorting in the earlier part of the afternoon. A short break was called and now P'draig's got people lined up to do more flaming practice. "Okay, today you'll actually be flaming /something/," the Weyrlingmaster says. "Not just a spot on the wall, but something flammable and working on aim. We're not up to targets yet, though that'll come. For now it's just, stoke up, point muzzle at scrap pile of moldery straw from the stables, and burn the stuff up. All of the usual safety rules apply. Two dragonlengths apart, no pointing muzzles at each other. First three dragon pairs to get through their line of piles get a half day off. Any questions?" My. Paddy sure is on a roll today.
Standing in line with the other weyrlings gathered for the exercise, Paige casts a rather anxious look up at Tiasheth as the pairs begin separating by the directed two dragonlengths. No questions from either green or rider; both glance briefly toward the straw piles - one with caution, the other with a calm focus. As G'ben and Vrusith begin stoking up far to their left, the slim weyrling finally begins selecting suitable chunks for her lifemate to chew, murmuring something that sounds like 'second stomach' as she presents them to the green.
There's an early gout of flame, misdirected at the Bowl floor from Ph'lyp's dragon and P'draig calls out a: "Whoa there, careful. Make sure everything's all set first, Ph'lyp," he reminds and the lad hangs his head a little, but gives Daizath a little nudge to remind the green. Walking the line, Paddy pauses by Paige and nods. "Good to remind her until she doesn't need it anymore," he notes. "You happy with her flame?"
Tiasheth tips her head back slightly, careful to get the stone positioned just so before crunching it into bits; bitten tongues are to be avoided at all costs. Automatically cringing a little at Daizath's early gout of flame, Paige side-steps closer to her dragon, feeding her another piece once the first one is down. "Oh, yeah, " the girl says quickly as Paddy pauses by them, expression still a trifle uncertain. "S'jus' tha' s'always seems so - sudden." And as if to illustrate her point after a third piece, the small green quickly tilts her muzzle away from her rider and more toward the straw, releasing a jet of flame as Paige hastily ducks more out of the way.
"Good size on that," P'draig states, eyeing the occurrence without flinching. "And it does take a little getting used to. Control and aim are what we're after now she's got the hang of just making the flame all together. Keep at it, keep her stoked and try to focus on burning those straw piles up." He smiles encouragingly at Paige then frowns over at Saryan who is struggling to get Sayarith to get her flame to hit the straw. Everywhere but, it seems.
"Yessir, " Paige says more brightly once that first flame is over with, unable to hold back a little laugh as Tiasheth turns to give her a reassuring croon - and ends up turning back toward the straw to release another stream of flame. And the straw searing continues, interrupted in varying intervals as dragons have to be re-stoked. The pair progress well enough, managing to keep flame from escaping too far around them before the piles of straw can be eliminated, but nearby, Vrusith isn't quite so lucky, still missing her piles every few attempts or so.
"Control, Saryan!" P'draig holds up a finger for Paige's benefit. "'Scuse me." And he ambles over to Sayarith and Saryan and holds a quick conference with them. "Concentrate," he tells the greenrider over and over, makes her help Sayarith focus until /finally/ flame hits straw. "Keep at it," he encourages, does another swing up the line and back to Paige. "Almost there, huh?" he counts the number of piles. "That last one is often hard for many. Trying to reach."
Paige and Tiasheth cast measuring glances at the last pile, trying to gauge how lengthy of a flame they'll need to successfully hit it. "Even fer the bigger dragons?" the weyrling asks, leaning over to pick out a few more pieces of firestone to feed to her awaiting dragon. Crunch, crunch, chew. "Does seem kinda far, " she admits, brow knitting a little, "but if'n we jus' get a piece of it - s'better'n not gettin' it at all?"
"Even for the bigger dragons," P'draig confirms. "At least at first." He eyeballs the distance. "Seems like sometimes it's just harder to judge even?" Sayarith's still working on the second of her piles, better aim, but far from perfect and Saryan's just frowning, too busy to gossip for once.
"Lotta times, " Paige agrees, stepping back as Tiasheth spouts more fire, trying to use what she's learned of endurance by trial and error to keep enough flame going to get at least a piece out of that farthest pile. Vrusith's a few piles away from her last one, managing well enough except when she turns excitedly every now and then as G'ben mentions something or another that likely has little to do with flaming and more about the gardener who passes by the class on his way toward the herb garden.
"Keep going, maybe get her to adjust her posture a little," P'draig suggests and Jekzith obligingly demonstrates making his neck one long slightly inclined line. "G'ben! Stop gossiping and keep her on /target/," Paddy calls over next. "Shells man, if you can't do piles, think about hitting a /bullseye/."
Shifting to align her neck the way that Jekzith is holding his, Tiasheth keeps trying to singe the pile, jetting out another stream of flame after a brief pause, eyes whirling more quickly as she gets a bit closer to hitting the mark. "Like this?" Paige asks, expression growing more excited as they get a little closer to almost getting it. "Oh! Tia, tha' was close!" Hop. Perhaps drawn back to focus more by the idea of hitting a bullseye than P'draig's admonishment, G'ben hastily directs Vrusith back to her piles, feeding her another piece once she runs out of flame.
"Mmhm, like that," P'draig says, unconsciously mimicking Jekzith and keeping a sharp eye on G'ben. Jekzith keeps his head posed that way and scoots over a to a clear patch. Paddy chuckles and walks over, pops a few chunks of stone in his mouth and a moment later the brown is showing of juuuust a little, flames reaching long based on that angle. Saryan lets out a whoop of triumph as Sayarith finally gets the third pile of straw. Neala meanwhile is also working on the last and Z'eren's just finished all, pumping a fist in the air.
Tiasheth's flames don't reach quite as long as Jekzith's, but she finally singes just a bit of that last pile, eliciting a little beam from Paige, even as both turn a little to watch Jekzith. "Prolly turnin' more tha' way would be better, huh?" the girl says aloud to her green, but she's still grinning broadly. "S'got experience on his side, " she notes, shaking her head a little. "Lil more time. Ya'll get there."
Neala gets Twilith to sear the last pile and she too whoops. Saryan and Sayarith continue to work away. G'ben's actually staying close by Vrusith and the other green valiantly tries to mimic Jekzith's technique, eyes rolling sideways towards Tiasheth. << How did you /do/ that? >> she inquires with an edge of exasperation in her voice. "Exactly. Practice and more practice."
<< Try angling your neck this way, >> Tiasheth replies patiently, turning a little to give the other green a better demonstration. << And stand at an angle, like Jekzith is doing. That seems to be helpful, too. >> "Maybe we'll be able t'get it all in one go in a few months. Or sometime next turn. 'Course, " and Paige sighs a little, "by tha' time, it won' matter any. We'll be a'doin' more important thin's than flamin' lil piles o'straw."
<< Oh more angle. >> Like of course that's the answer to all her troubles. A little disgruntled still. Vrusith tries to mimic again and sends more flame forward. There. Edge of the pile crisped. She preens. "Few months," P'draig says confidently with a smile, "and yes, flying sweeps, transporting people, maybe rescuing folks bogged down in mountain passes. All sorts of things."
"Rescuin' folks?" Paige swallows, edging closer to Tiasheth again now that the green seems to have expelled all her flame. "I -- yeah." Glancing down for a moment to fiddle with her sleeves, she frowns a little, thoughtful. "Y'think - we'll all be ready fer tha'? I know they're big now and gettin' close t'nearly grown, but - sir, I gotta admit, " more quietly, "I dun - I dunno if'n I feel tha' we're all grown and ready, not all the time." And they're probably not the only pair that still occasionally feels like they're recently bonded.
"Mhhm. All sorts of things." P'draig lifts a hand while the rest of the class keeps working, towards Paige's shoulder. "I think you'll be ready, Paige. There's time yet. Months. Just -- hm. Be glad you don't have to fight Thread," he says softly and aims to squeeze that shoulder lightly. "But I know what you mean. It's a big step to take. Hang in there okay?" Paddy smiles at Paige then steps away, lifting his voice. "All right, we've got our three free half-days. Neala, Z'eren and Ph'lyp. Practice is over for the day, tidy up the 'stone and head in for baths and dinner. See you all in the morning!"
"I am glad, " Paige says just as quietly, glancing up at him gratefully for the reassurance. "Yeah, s'big - big thin'. Thank ya." Giving the winners of the half-days a small grin in congratulations, she sets to tidying up the stone left in her allotted space, dusting her hands off and heading for the caverns soon after.