Student's Day Out
FOUR: FALAS WEYR
It was high noon at Falas, a thing which almost brought Seena to despair.
She was still tired from her day at the hospital and her feet, still
hurting without a proper footrub, started to sting at the prospect of more
walking.
"I'll leave you guys here, "M'len said, "Reyhtah will tell you
what chores you'll be assigned while you await the clutch to hatch."
When the dragonrider had left, the three of them stepped closer together.
How nice, being left all alone in a place they didn't know with two
frightened dogs ready to run away if not for their leashes.
"Chores! Aye my poor feet! What do you think they'll make us do?" Seena asked.
"You'll probably get to work in a hospital." Ese grinned, "Cleaning
out more bedpans."
"Don't! Even joke about that!" Seena yelled, brought to the edge of
despair, "I thought this was supposed to be a vacation."
"Well, what are we to do besides lugging around sacks of firestone?
Pretty tiring as well if you ask me." Ese replied.
"There are bound to be a few mental cases around here."
Neeku answered, "You're not telling me that all these bronzeriders
are normal. There's got to be some interesting invincibility delusions and
narcistic personality disorders happening around here."
"Would this be the right opportunity to deep out our knowledge on
male greenriders and their deepest psychological problems? Self esteem,
dreams... even..." Ese said, making the tension rise with silence,
"their relationships with their mothers?"
"Ehm... Let's not, shall we." Seena tried.
"It's too good an opportunity to pass on!" Ese shouted, "But
let's get settled in first."
"Hmmm, that cave seems a nice hideout." Neeku pointed.
Seena headed out in front of the other two. When they got all psycho it
was wise to stay out of their way. Seena entered the cave and immediately saw that it wasn't a nice hideout. In fact it was a kitchen. In it was an
older woman with long hair and dressed completely in green.
"Hello!" she said when Seena entered, followed by Ese and Neeku.
Seena quickly sighed. This seemed to be a lady in charge. Someone who gave
around orders and if she knew her Pern novels, she was called the
headwoman. Seena shook off the idea of some rest and walked to the woman.
"Hello, we are new here." she said.
"New candidates?" the wooman asked.
"Yes. I'm Seena." "Neeku", Neeku said, "And Ese."
Ese ended.
"I'm Reyhtah."
"We were told to come to you to ask about chores." Seena said,
still not too fond of the idea that she had already worked a full day. Why
couldn't they have landed here in the early evening? She was rather hungry
too.
"Oh, new arrivals don't get chores until the start of the new day.
But be assured, tomorrow I'll recruit you. Until then I'd say you'd best
explore a bit. Get settled in. Room number ??? is/are assigned to you
(waiting on reply from the group). Find someone outside who seems
loitering around to show you where it is. And I also suggest you take a
trip to the hold. Many of the earth candidates have gotten special
firelizards while they've been here."
The woman returned to her work, which was overseeing dinner preparations
as far as Seena could tell. The three of them hurried back out, pulling
along the unwilling dogs who had just realised they were hungry too.
"Didn't they eat at home?"
"Of course they did! Cayleigh's just a stomach on feet... and Chance,
well she needs to gain a few pounds."
Neeku laughed when Seena made Chance stand to show off her ribs. "If
I can see them I ain't happy dear." she told her doggie.
Chatting and walking slowly for Seena's feet, the three of them went to
someone who seemed to be on a break and asked for directions. Ese thanked
God that Seena and Neeku were with her, she would have gotten lost within
5 minutes. Or rather, she would have been bothering anyone in sight for
directions.
When they climbed the stairs the three of them entered a large cavernous
space which was divided in rooms and more rooms. All three of them had
flashbacks to school-holidays and camps and freely commented upon those
memories.
"If there are bunks I need a bottom one... I sleepwalk in foreign
places." Ese remarked.
"I'll take the top." Seena said, completely selfless... of
course not! Seena loved sleeping in the top bunk. A thing which had worked
out great when Ese had started sleepwalking when she was about 7. Seena
knew that the chance of her sister doing it again now was low. Ese hadn't
sleepwalked in a couple of years, but she wasn't going to risk falling out
of the bed again like on previous occasions.
Luckily for Ese, unfortunately for Seena there were no bunks. Some of the
rooms had open doors and inside they could see beds with a trunk at the
foot-end.
"Now where is number ???" Neeku asked.
They had dropped of their things in
their room and had gone back out. The people in the Weyrbowl all seemed to
move around with a purpose now. All except them, they were standing,
feeling rather stupid, just outside the lower cavern entrance.
Suddenly however there were a few firelizards flying around them.
Strange-coloured critters to Pernese standards but just as lively and
interesting. One of them even dropped down to the dogs' height though it
soon got over it's interest in them.
"Hello!" someone said.
"Hello." Ese said, "Are you a candidate too?"
The girl nodded. It was obvious that she was a bit different than the
other people around. Her brown hair hung loose to her back and she seemed
too American to be Pernese.
"My name is Kelli." she said, "Did you guys just arrive
now?"
"We did... and now we don't know what to do." Neeku said.
"They suggested the hold for firelizards." Seena said looking
interested at Kelli's two.
"They're so much fun!" Kelli answered, "I can show you were
to get them."
"Won't you get in trouble?"
"No I'm done with my work for today." she grinned.
"Then let's go!" Ese said, very excited about seeing
firelizards, the thing about Pern books she had enjoyed most. To have a
firelizard seemed even better than to impress a dragon... though if the
size problem could be overcome then that changed all her ideas.
"Do you have any money?" Kelli asked.
"What for?"
"Well the special firelizard eggs cost money."
"And naive me who thought firelizards were supposed to be free."
Ese said.
"They did have to be genetically altered." Neeku said, "But
I haven't got any money with me either, poor college student I am."
she laughed.
"Then we will have to talk our way in." Ese said looking at
Neeku.
"What? Me!?" Neeku said startled.
"Well, we'll provide the distraction and Seena will go in. There's
got to be a way for us to really freak out some journeyman? Hmmm, Too bad
I didn't pack the manual to the Wais IQ test to make him suffer." Ese
giggled, "I can picture it now: 'Who invented the theory of
relativity?... What you don't know? And how about this one?'"
"You little sadist." Neeku said, looking at her friend in
disbelief.
"What? Can't I have a bad streak now and again?"
Kelli lead them to the FGPC building. "I'll wait for you guys out
here. I really don't think it will work."
"It will, have a little faith." Ese said.
10 minutes later, Seena casually walked out.
"Are they still in there?" she asked Kelli.
"Yup. That poor journeyman has been screaming in frustration."
"Then he knows what I've had to live with for the past few years. I
bet they're making him believe he has some kind of mental problem. Maybe a
delusion or a depression.... which he might really have when they're done
with him."
"Did you get in alright?" Kelli wanted to know.
"I did! I took 5 eggs before I heard someone coming. I ducked back
into the hallway and that was that. No-one stopped me."
Another 5 minutes later Neeku and Ese came out with a distraught
journeyman between them.
"Don't worry. Just do your exercises and you'll overcome your oral
fixation. My God man, that you didn't know you had a real weakness for
addiction."
"I can't believe it." Ese nodded, backing up Neeku's words.
"We'll come back again to evaluate your progress in a week or
two."
The two waved the young man goodbye and went to Keeli and Seena, who were
standing baffled at the sight of the journeyman who had been turned from
steadfast clerk to whining boy.
"That was fun." Ese said.
"You really do have a twist to the darkside." Neeku said,
"Maybe I should evaluate you."
"I've got it under control. I'll be feeling all guilty tomorrow and
I'll probably bring the money in when I've had a chance to earn it or pick
it up at home... but now it just feels good to be a bit bad you know. i
get to be bad on so few occasions..."
"What did you get Seena?" Neeku asked.
"Five eggs." Seena said tucking out her shirt and showing 5
little ovals.
"They're beuatiful!" Neeku said dreamily.
"I'll take two." Seena said, "I mean I went in there doing
the dangerous thing."
"You can take two too Neeku, "Ese said, "Cayleigh's enough
for me to handle without 2 baby firelizards to feed."
"Now Chawancy... that's a nice doggie. She doesn't give me any
problems." Seena said petting her dog.
"Cayleigh's just as nice... she's only a little exuberant."
"Yeah right."
"Ooooh! Guys! Mine are hatching!" Neeku interrupted the little
argument.
And indeed the eggs were hatching. All three of them turned their
attention to the eggs they were holding. One by one little heads emerged.
flits Ese: talking water Icoon (m)
flits Neeku: Ruby Lyrania (f), amber Safixara (f)
flits Sena: Forest Woud (f) and Black Hybithan (m)
Waiting for the
Hatching
(Girl's movie night)
Neeku, Seena and Ese are Candidates at Isla
Weyr.
All Firelizards adopted at the FGPC at Isla
Lantessama
Isle
Font used is called 'Da
Bomb'
Background was found here