QANYINA
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The world was dark. Red smoke in the distance suggested something was burning. Qanyina stood up. She didn't know how she had gotten here. She had just opened her eye and saw it. Burning Horizon. That's how she called it. She didn't know what she was supposed to do here, but the dream had come several times in the past month. She knew it was a dream. Qanyina was at all times aware of where she was and what she was doing. She was sleeping.
Suddenly her ears heard the calling. A soft high pitched sound that made her shiver. Beautiful in it's own way, but too sad and eerie to listen to. Qanyina pushed her hands against her ears. She knew that wouldn't help. The sound somehow came from inside her, a hurting so bad it almost make her wish she was dead. The first dream it had been almost too silent to notice, but it had grown stronger every night...
She turned toward the burning horizon and watched it, crying. Someone out there in the universe was calling for her and she couldn't go to help.
"Who are you?" she called toward the horizon.
Like every night she heard nothing, only the singing became a bit more bearable, now and again a happy note, a joyful chord interrupted the melody, like an old personality surfacing, trying to break the sadness, but just not strong enough to make it on her own.

"Master Qanyina?" a voice asked.
Qanyina woke up, she wouldn't find the answer to the dream today.
"Yes." she sighed, the sudden stop of the song always tightened her heart in fear. Almost as if when the song stopped there would be no-one left to help.
"It's Lenya, master. You asked me who I was."
Qanyina turned toward the young girl, twelve years old and the youngest in the group. Normally she wouldn't have been allowed at such a young age, but her seeing powers were enormous and she was alone. Her parents had died in one of the recent plagues. Lenya had been infected too, leaving her body scarred and thin. Her face still showed the beauty nature had been kind enough to give her. A classic beauty, pretty in it's simplicity with soft brown hair, light blue eyes and a smile that could light the world. Qanyina loved watching her. The world had been cruel to Lenya, but Lenya had survived. 
"Thank you Lenya." Qanyina said smiling, "Where are the others?"
"Avijon is in the garden, Barnes is meditating and Naviron is swimming." she said.
Qanyina stepped out of bed and dressed herself. A lingering sadness of her dream bubbled up inside her. It was sad to see the group dwindling. 5 where there had once been hundreds. 
Only 2 decades past young boys and girls would have killed for a spot in the Seeer group, but not today. Today they fought to marry and create a new world where the old one had come crashing down. Maybe they were part of the old world too. 
Qanyina shook her head, trying to lose the sadness. She should be happy. There were still 4 other young people in the complex. Though they weren't the most gifted there had ever been, but they worked hard and long to grow to higher levels.

At the breakfast table Qanyina slowly ate two slices of bread and an apple. At least food was still abundant. The orchard and fields provided enough food for them and some servants that had remained faithful, probably because they were too old to change. After her breakfast she got up and decided to check in on the boys. 
Naviron was swimming, as always it seemed. There was something odd when you saw him doing it though. You couldn't quite put your finger on it... Naviron had never told her what he did in the water and she hadn't asked. The complex only provided help when asked. Naviron seemed perfectly happy with the way he was progressing.
Qanyina waved, trying to get Naviron's attention. She got it and the young man surfaced.
"Morning, Qanyina." he said.
"Everything ok here?"
"Yes, just having fun..." the tone in his voice made it painstakingly clear that she wasn't wanted here. Naviron was the most handsome of the three men in the complex and she had always felt some attraction toward him, but he had never so much as looked at her twice. 
"ok, I'll be here when you need me." she said and left him.
Qanyina would have better luck with Avijon, Avijon had always been friendly to her and helpful. he was a wizz when it came to plants. He had told her he just knew which ones he should mix to get the best results for a specific person. 
On her way to the garden, Qanyina suddenly found herself being pulled away. She tried to resist, but the calling came without warning and she was unprepared. For a month it had only visited her in her dreams, but now, awake, it pulled at her a thousand times stronger. The world was still black and the horizon was burning, but what was scary was that the flames were higher and closer to her than they'd ever been before. She didn't have much time left before it would consume the fragile forest she was standing in. From high above her, it seemed, the singing voice came, crashing down on her, forcing her to her knees.
"Stop!" she screamed. But the singing went on.
She looked up, trying to see what was coming for her, but all she saw was the darkness of a starless night. She fainted.

"What's wrong with her?" the low voice of Avijon asked.
"I found her like this this morning too..." Lenya answered.
"I heard her screaming in terror." Avijon said, tapping a rhythm with his fingers, something he only did when he was worried.
"I'm fine." Qanyina said, trying to get up from the bed.
"No you are not!" Lenya said, her eyes wide in with anxiety. Her eyes were red where they should have been white, she had been crying. She let herself fall on the bed, wrapping her hands around Qanyina's body. Qanyina was surprised by this show of attachment. She always forgot Lenya was only 12 and still needed a mother. Apparently she was the one to take the part. She stroked the girls hair, holding her close. Trying to comfort her.
"I don't want to lose you." Lenya kept repeating. 
"I'm still here, aren't I?" Qanyina said.
"Avijon, help me get Lenya to her room." She said to Avijon.
Together they managed to carry Lenya to her room. It was still very much the room of a child, the walls had been painted soft pink at her request and there were scented candles standing on every possible surface. Qanyina lighted 2 of them standing next to her bed.
"I'll take care of her, Avijon." she said, "You can go back to your garden." 
"I'd rather stay here, if you don't mind." Avijon said.
"Of course I don't, you are welcome to stay." Qanyina smiled.
"Will she be ok?" he asked, worry in his voice.
"I don't see why not, she's just shocked. After some sleep she'll be ok." Qanyina said as she got some sleeping tablets from her sleeve. She saw Avijon looking at her in a baffled way.
"I haven't been sleeping good." she meekly told him. 
"Are you sure we have to worry about Lenya and not about you?" he asked.
"It are just bad dreams. Nothing I can't handle." she said, but Avijon wasn't entirely convinced.

The next morning Qanyina awoke laying on the bed. She couldn't remember laying herself down.
"You didn't, Avijon did." Barnes told her.
"I thought you were going to stop reading all of our minds." she said.
The boy shrugged. He turned toward the door, ready to leave. His hand was already on the knob when he suddenly changed his mind.
"Not all of us are as innocent as we seem." he said, "I'd be careful."
After those cryptic words Barnes left. Qanyina stood up and straightened her dress. The long black silk was folded in all the wrong places. She'd have to change into something else as soon as she could. But not before she had checked on Lenya. 
The girl was still sleeping, a content smile on her face. Qanyina touched her forehead. No fever. That calmed her down. She sat down on the bed and kept watching the girl. The words of Barnes kept circling through her head. She didn't think any of the men was innocent, she knew they had all done things that could be labelled as wrong, only Lenya deserved the word. And that was what frightened Qanyina.
She took the hand of the girl and tried to feel her future. Qanyina gasped as she saw the black forest with the burning horizon. But unlike the other times she had seen it, the flames were small, weak, more like cinders. 
"Come, Qanyina, I need you." a voice, like a thousand silver bells called out to her.
"Where are you?" she called.
"Just behind the flames, I can't cross them." the voice seemed sad, "I need you..."

"Noooooo!!!!!" the voice of Lenya pulled her out.
"Wha?" Qanyina asked.
"You can't go to Jasmith! She will take you away from me!!"
The girl started crying again. Alarmed by the crying of the girl Barnes, Avijon and even Naviron, what surprised Qanyina entered the room. What bothered her even more was that she could see the burning horizon in all their futures. 
"What's going on?" Avijon asked.
"Lenya woke up and started crying again." Qanyina said.
"You can't leave me!" the girl cried out, crawling even closer.
Qanyina took the girl's face in her hands and tilted it up. She looked into her eyes and said:
"Only death will part us and he's not going to visit anytime soon."
"But Jasmith wants you to come to her and you'll have to leave to help her." the girl said through her sobs.
"Did Jasmith tell you I couldn't take you?" Qanyina asked.
Lenya thought for a while... "No."
"See, now what did Jasmith tell you?" 
"I heard her for the first time a month ago, she was looking for you, but I felt her first. She told me she was sad and needed to find someone she could bond to. I saw it was you she wanted, so I blocked her. but she is strong... I couldn't keep her away at all times and when I sleep the wall gets smaller and she can call you..."
Qanyina hugged Lenya and looked over her head to Barnes: "You knew about this?"
"Well, yeah, I knew she was doing something she wasn't supposed to do, but I promised I wouldn't read minds anymore, so I couldn't tell you." he said.
Qanyina could understand his dilemma, but if he only had told her... they would have found a solution a lot faster. 
"I have to go to Jasmith, and Lenya will come too." she said, nodding to the girl.
"What about us?" Naviron asked.
"You are free to come."
"Where exactly are we going?"
"I honestly don't know." Qanyina said.
"Maura Lynna Weyr." Lenya interrupted, "But from there you can go wherever you want."
"What is a Weyr?" Avijon asked.
"A place where dragons live." Lenya explained.
"You knew all this and didn't tell me!" Barnes yelled, "I would love to see dragons!"
"I thought Jasmith would only take Qanyina." Lenya said, tears coming back in her eyes.
"She isn't, we'll all go, but how are we going to get there?" Qanyina asked.
"Maybe Jasmith knows." Avijon said.
"Lenya, drop your barrier, so I can ask."
With a last scared look the girl gave up her struggle and Jasmith was free to find her new rider.
"I will come and take you to my world." she said, "My last was bond from the future, maybe I'll do better with a bond from the past..."
Suddenly outside a golden dragon appeared. She bugles happily for them to come out. 
"Is it ok that Lenya and the others come."
Jasmith snorted and said: "Why wouldn't it be ok?"
Qanyina smiled at Lenya and said: "See?"
"We two will be staying with you, Jasmith. The others will find bonds of their own."

PRE-FLIGHT
With the closing of Maura Lynna Weyr, Jasmith and her rider Qanyina, as well as their little protégé Lenya had been forced to leave their temporary home and migrate. The Weyr had been as helpful as possible, but with the end of pass more than a few Weyrs were shutting down and there was barely room for the resident dragons, let alone room for a queen. And then there was another problem. As a dragoness who'd lost her first bond, she should have betweened. In stead she'd lived on and had even bonded a second time.
"I am too liberal for Pern." the queen sighed.
Qanyina smirked and sent back: "How sad a creature you must be."
"Don't mock me!" the disdainful reply of the gold came.
Qanyina shook her head and returned to trying to find a Weyr that would take them in. Especially since Jasmith wasn't keen on putting her mating flight days behind her.
"I am a gorgeous dragon. How do they even DARE suggest that?"
"You're very imposing, dear." Qanyina said, "I'm sure the other queens think you want their place."
"I am a team player." she insisted.
"I know, Lenya knows, but this world is going to a rough patch when dragons are concerned."
"Then we should just leave it."
"Like that?"
"Yes."
Qanyina pondered for a moment. Going off world might be the solution. Pern wasn't her homeworld. But they could not return to her native Gremyne either. Somewhere other planets must have dragon agencies though.
"I know of one already." Jasmith crooned, "It's name is Darkling Dawn."
"How so?"
"Ah, there was this very dependable brown dragon by the name of Anubith who claimed his entire Weyr had vacated off of Pern. He was saying we were free to join him and his rider for a talk if we were interested."
"Were you... interested?" Qanyina asked.
"Very. He was large for a brown. With very well-formed haunches. Maybe a bit too serious for my usual taste. But with him, I think it's time I settle down."
Qanyina dropped her pen. Jasmith, thinking about settling down? Qanyina herself wasn't that set on getting tied up anytime soon, but even she had sometimes questioned Jasmith's free spirit. Possibly she had been hurt worse by the abandonment of her previous rider than she let on. Was it a good sign that she was thinking of slowing down now. And just as urgent, who was this Anubith's rider?
"I'm glad you thought of me first." Jasmith smiled her usual open smile and then showed Qanyina a picture of a man who felt decidedly brown himself. He had brown hair, brown eyes. he wore brown clothes. He was well-built and Qanyina did not think he looked unappealing. But would she be able to spend the rest of her days with him?
"Kansas has his own demons to sort out." Jasmith nodded, "He's a human turned sand-demon. He took it rather bad but I think it worked out in the end. He got a dragon after all."
"For you everything gets better when you get a dragon." Qanyina smiled.
"He's a total cutie too. And according to Anubith very faithful."
"That is a plus." Qanyina nodded, "You do know Lenya is going to give us trouble."
"Leave it to me." Jasmith said

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FLIGHT
Kansas and Qanyina had travelled though the forests around Darkling Dawn and had found a secluded clearing where their dragons could land. From here Jasmith would launch her mating flight. It would be a closed flight and only Anubith would try and catch her. Kansas hoped the distance to Darkling Dawn was large enough to make sure of that.
"Afraid someone else will catch her?" Anubith asked hinting that his initial hesitant rider had really fallen for the red-headed sensual woman with a psychic talent.
"Shut up." Kansas replied, trying to keep his cheeks from blushing.
"It's very endearing to know that he wants me so bad." Qanyina entered their conversation.
Kansas looked up shocked that Qanyina had overheard their thoughts. She'd firmly told him that she wasn't a mindreader. Her talents were omens and reading the future and then something else that had given him the peace of mind to finally forget the rage fighting inside him.
"Jasmith helped. You can ask Anubith too."
"That would invade your privacy." Kansas said.
"We'll be married soon. There will be no privacy."
"Should I be scared?" Kansas asked, only half joking.
"Enough of this." Jasmith called, feeling that the attention was slipping away from HER, you know the gold dragon who was about to rise and she did not like that. She launched herself from her haunches and spiralled straight into the air as if she was a rocket taking off. Anubith was airborne only seconds later and chased her.
Privately he told Jasmith: "You can let them have their moment too."
"Today should all be about me. For this, you'll pay."
On the ground Qanyina concentrated herself as the bond between her and her dragon intensified. She felt freer than she'd ever felt before. Stronger. More beautiful. But also less inclined to let just anyone near her. She felt Jasmith think about how she could escape Anubith.
"Now who has commitment issues?" she asked herself.
"I only want what's best. I need him to prove that he's strong enough to father my babies."
"Maybe I should run laps before I let Kansas close."
"Hardly. Your mate can create sandstorms. I say he's proven himself."
"I should mention that Anubith has kept Kansas from dying by the hands of an Egyptian death curse. I say he deserves some credit."
"But only you got rid of it completely. So that makes me stronger."
"What a weird logic. Especially since I didn't do anything."
"Anubith and Kansas do NOT need to know that."
Qanyina smiled as her Jasmith flew up and down, east and west, trying to dodge Anubith as he charged and grasped. He was big for a brown and seemed to be strong enough to keep up with her. of course, Jasmith was the older dragon...
"Do not bring my age into this." Jasmith growled, "I'm not THAT old."
"I got you!" Anubith called.
"No you haven't." And Jasmith pulled herself free from his clutches.
The chase continued. The two dragons had been flying for over 20 minutes now and Kansas wondered just how long this flight would take. He felt like his head was about to explode.
"I'm getting closer." Anubith told him.
And then, "She keeps evading me... and she is stronger because she's bigger."
"Then be smarter." Kansas told his dragon.
On the ground kansas suddenly felt Qanyina lean on him. She and Jasmith must be feeling the strain as well. In his current mindset all he could think of was the woman he felt so close. He forgot about the flight and went with his feelings, tilting up her head a bit and kissing her full on the mouth.
"Oh! Something's happening to Jasmith." Anubith called.
The brown dragon lurched forward and was surprised to see Jasmith turn around mid-air and come straight toward him. The two of them brushed sides and Anubith knew that Jasmith had ceased running. Excited he grabbed hold of her large body and together they raced through the air, wings folded and bodies aligned with the ground.
"I won." was the last thing Anubith signalled to Kansas, but his rider did not much care.

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Qanyina bonded Gold Jasmith at Maura Lynna Weyr
Want to know more about Kansas?
Lantessama Isle