Western Weyr - Lagoon Shore
A sandy beach running along the edge of the lagoon, between the sparkling waters and the bowl. Sometimes riders and dragons are seen playing in the water nearby or a dolphin can be seen cavorting. At other times seacraft can be seen coming in under the arch to dock. The lagoon is large enough to fill a quarter of the length of the bowl. A path winds out along a ledge out to the docks to the southwest, the lagoon to the west and the bowl to the east.
The last few days have seen a certain green Taiyokanth showing off an almost blinding glow, despite her small size, and a gaggle of males following her around. For her part, however, there has been no excess of flirting, no showing off, merely reveling in the presents of so many -friends-. Raev hasn't been much better, a few notable males - and females - following her around, while she enjoys the company. This afternoon, she is alone at the lagoon shore, settled on the beach, simply enjoying a bit of peace and quiet while Taiyokanth naps on a ledge nearby, soaking up Rukbat's rays.
Suldith doesn't normally take to following around greens, but he is rather fond of Taiyokanth. Maybe it's because they're both small? Either way, while he can during the day he's usually plodding along after her, looking cute like he normally does. Today he's napping beneath the ledge she's sitting on, once in a while trilling at her to make sure she's still… sitting there. Zi'on must be off today, or at least taking the afternoon. The weyrleader heads down to the lagoon in shorts and sleeveless shirt, carrying a couple of towels. He spots Raev laying on the beach and grins, unfurling one of his towels near her with a snap. Then he plops down on it.
With the sun shifting just a little, Taiyokanth's hindquarters fall into shadow, and the green is stirring, stretching her wings, her back, her legs, her neck, before she's toddling to the edge of the ledge, dropping her muzzle to peer around and see who is there. A little trill of greeting is given to Suldith, and she flips her wings out, hopping off the ledge. Raev glances up as there is someone intruding on her solitude, a loud sigh as she identifies Zi'on, tilting her head back to stare at the sky. "Don't you have something else to do?" She asks, with an arched eyebrow, though a hint of a smile lingers on her lips.
Rielth doesn't follow greens and golds around, but he's glad to be aware and drag his poor rider all over Pern after them if it means a good flight. His copper and bronze hide sparkles in Rukbat's light as he spirals down to the beach, crooning a melodic greeting to Taiyokanth while M'ta scrambles off his back. Tall, narrow, and androgynous, especially with the long red hair he doesn't seem to feel a need to contain, he gives the bronze a clout on the shoulder, "Sharding hope you're happy, Ree. I swear, it's hotter here than it is in Eastern." Rielth just snorts, starting to move away from his rider without crowding the green, leaving M'ta to turn his gaze over the other two, ginger brows arching over emerald eyes, "Ah… Ierne's duties to Western and her queens. I'm sorry if we're intruding, he was insistent."
Suldith apparently had fallen asleep, and he jerks awake at her trill. Then he stands and stretches out his front quarters, then his hindquarters. Then this wing, followed by that one. Finally he returns her trill after a yawn. Zi'on is here! Probably blocking Raev's sun for a short while before he sits down. He pulls his shirt off then. "Nope." He grins at the greenrider. "Well, I guess technically there's always something else I could be doing. But I'm not doing it. Don't you have something else to do?" Zi'on turns his attention to M'ta and gives him a salute. "Western's duties. I don't think you're intruding. I'm sure Raev thinks -I'm- intruding."
"Intruding?" Raev laughs aloud, shaking her head a little, nodding at Zi'on. "I could use a watchful pair of eyes with this one around." The young woman teases the Weyrleader, smiling back at M'ta, though she does take the time to prop herself up on her elbows, glancing over her shoulder at Taiyokanth. The green, for her part, offers a greeting to Rielth, before a flick of her tail and she's suddenly off the ground, shooting for the feeding pens. And then, it seems she mimics her golden sisters not just in the glow, but in the taste for blood, as her landing has her toppling one unlucky herd beast which quickly becomes hers for the blooding.
M'ta is small for a bronze and after Taiyokanth as soon as she moves, bugling his acceptance of her challenge in three part harmony, though he doesn't go after the beasts, forgoing blooding in favor of watching and biding his time, waiting to time his chase just /so/. His long flexible tail flicks back and forth where he crouches, watching and waiting. M'ta glowers after the bronze, then heaves a sigh, trudging towards the other two riders, "Sorry about this, he can be a bit… insistent." Didn't he say that already? "I'm M'ta, and the musical cassanova is Rielth." He inclines a bow to the green and bronzeriders, "So… nice weather you're having?"
Zi'on laughs. "Hey now… I have a weyrmate. I'm not a letch anymore. I value my reproductive organs too much for that. Speaking of… I wonder where Kiena is. She might want to get in on this…" Really she wouldn't, but her blue might. "Besides, you know you want a piece of this, Raev." Zi'on flexes. It's not terribly impressive, just some hair with a little muscle under it. "Hey M'ta. I'm Zi'on, weyrleader. This is Raev, wingrider." Suldith bounds off after Taiyo, eventually taking off into a short flight over to the pens as well. He grabs hold of a herdbeast in the neck with his teeth on the way down, dragging it a bit and using it as an anchor to skid to a stop. Then he laps up the red liquid oozing from the wound.
Taiyokanth is at least putting on a good show, the green finishing the first beast, and glancing at a second. But no - suddenly with a trumpet she's launching herself upwards, teasing Suldith and Rielth, tail flicking as she is aloft and shooting every higher - aiming for the thin clouds that linger in the heat. "Whatever. You're still one of -them-." Raev shoots back at Zi'on, wrinkling her nose, before she's patting the sand next to her as M'ta offers apologies. "Raev, as he said. And, that's Taiyokanth…" And as the green takes off, Raev sighs, tilting her head back to watch her form becoming ever smaller.
When the green takes to the air, Rielth pushes off after her, scattering dirt and herdbeast alike as he drives his lithe form after her with another croon. One of M'ta's brows arches up at Zi'on's attempt at flexing, "Ah… huh." Already, his mind has begun to join Rielth in the sky, maintaining just enough awareness of his surroundings to manage simple conversation, "Them who? C'mon, Ree."
Suldith takes off after Taiyokanth. His muzzle stained red from blooding. Apparently he's a messy eater, like his lifemate. Really the green ought to pick a different time of day to rise if she wants to hide! The small bronze ascends after her, wings working hard to push him skyward. Zi'on gasps at Raev. "One of -them-?! One of who? If I'm one of them, M'ta is, too. He rides bronze. He's a man. He's… uh." Zi'on also looks up to watch the dragons on the rise. "I forgot what we were talking about. I really should find a bodyguard… for situations like this…" Where he can't maintain enough focus to avoid a stabbing, he means. Though maybe he's looking for protection from the greenrider.
"A Shipton.." Raev manages, her voice a wispy fraction of its normal tone and volume, the green rider quickly becoming lost in the heavens, hands lifting and an attempt made to rest one on each bronze rider, perhaps to calm them, or perhaps to keep herself grounded. Tai, meanwhile, wants nothing to do with being grounded - instead she is continuing up and up, and then, just as suddenly, down, folding her wings as she drops, spiraling towards the white-capped waters below. Luckily for the two bronzes they -are- small, though the question is, even then, can they keep up with her acrobatics?
"Shards, don't shove me into some category, I'm uncategorizable." M'ta takes an unconscious step back from the other two, "And I sure as shards ain't no Shipton." The hand on his shoulder is a surprise, his own coming up to rest on it as he sinks further and further into the bond with his lifemate. Rielth croons again. He's practically a one-dragon band, building little melodies as he tries to court her with his voice. He tucks his wings to dive after her, streamlining his body to pick up speed and not bothering to spiral so he can always keep an eye on the green.
"I am not!" Zi'on exclaims. "Oh wait. I am sort of. Technically that's a holder name, and I am not a holder. Though I am my father's son. Or whatever. I just don't sound or look like him. Also, I have not cheated on my weyrmate outside of a flight. And that one other thing with that baker girl. What was her name again? I could go for some pie." Zi'on has digressed into a babbling idiot apparently, unable to shut himself up while his mind drifts off into the sky. Much like Suldith! As Taiyo dips past him, the bronze turns to the side a bit and goes into a roll after her. He can spin, too, see? Eventually he uses his tail to stabilize himself, tucking back his wings to zip down after the green, before she can get too far ahead.
One hand flips over to squeeze M'ta's hand, the other absently patting at Zi'on, attempting to quiet him, a 'long shhhhh' escaping from her lips, giving up on listening - or responding to the Weyrleader's rambling commentary. Taiyokanth drops ever closer to the water, corkscrew becoming tighter and tighter before she's pulling out of the dive, wings spread wide as she slingshots her way upwards once more, sparing a peek under one wing to check if the males were as successful in their own maneuvers. And yet, despite taking advantage of gravity, the strain is beginning to show in the green's wing beats, each one seeming to take a little longer.
M'ta's delicate fingers squeeze against Raev's in automatic response. Rielth barely manages to pull out of the dive in time, broad leaf-spattered wingsails spraying seawater everywhere as he skims the surface, muscles straining to stay above the water. He's even slower to gain after her, though he does manage to catch an updraft to regain some of his lost distance, one inner lid winking at the green as she looks back at him, well, them, but, really, it's all just him. His wings beat strong and stable, pushing him closer and closer with each wingbeat. His his HIS.
Zi'on eventually stops chattering, closing his mouth with a clack of his teeth. Meanwhile he rests a hand on Raev's leg. Down and down they drop. Suldith though knows all these little tricks. He also knows that if he tries to mimic her completely he'll go crashing into the water and not be able to recover. So he shifts to ascent higher above the water, backwinging a bit to gain, then pushing hard to catch back up. Updraft! That is helpful! He follows the other bronze to help pull himself upward. There's a tremendous trumpet from such a small bronze given as he makes eye contact with Taiyo. And he pushes forward to start closing the gap.
With each wing beat, Taiyokanth slows, her upward progress stalling, the quick energy from the blooded herd beast fading. Struggling to pick up speed, to regain the distance that is being eaten away by the bronzes behind her, she trumpets, before once more folding her wings, dropping down towards the ocean, and leaving herself open for one of them to make their move - or if she is so unlucky, to fall into the ocean below… That would be a total disappointment. Raev's hand drops from Zi'on's arm to his hand, even as her eyes close, and her breath is caught. "Tai…" She gasps after a moment, fingers tightly squeezing those of the bronze riders, nails and all, tense, even as she's caught far above with her life mate.
M'ta yelps as her fingers squish his. This is a bit of role reversal that leaves him staring at the greenrider. Above, Rielth sees his opportunity as the green lags, falling below them. The dappled light off the sea and bright light of Rukbat overhead make the dark design of the tree stand out all the more against his otherwise shiny hide and bring out the unusual tones of red, orange, and yellow along his neck as he tucks his wings again, claws extending to reach for her, trying like most do to gain purchase on her wingjoints and pull her in.
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh-Whoosh. Who-whoosh. That is the sound of beating bronze wings behind the green as they synchronize and desynchronize. Has there ever been a green that fell and wasn't caught? As she folds her wings Suldith immediately rolls to the right, tucking in his own. He won't need them right away, not until the claim has been made. Be it himself or the other bronze. There's not even time to give a final trumpet, no, it all comes down to these last final moments. If Zi'on weren't holding his breath, he might yelp as well. Instead he just lets out a rather displeased groan at all that squeezing. And the nails.
Just for a moment, Taiyokanth's glowing hide is lost amongst the dappled waves below, and just for a moment, there is a mental cry from the green, and in a moment of panic, she begins to spread her wings, to slow her descent. But then, she's no longer along, as Suldith's talon's snag her, and the Weyrleader's own bronze has a chance to halt her descent. Perhaps it is lucky that Raev is still caught up in her life mate, for Zi'on's sake - And doubly-lucky that the green rider is most definitely not hiding anything sharp nearby.
M'ta stumbles back from the other two riders even as Rielth's angry bellow splits the air as he goes flying past the green and into the briney depths. Though he surfaces a few moments later, his loss is obvious and he bugles one last challenge to the pair above for all they likely don't care, then ducks back beneath the waves to swim to shore the long way, leaving his rider stumbling awkwardly on the beach before he decides to dive into the water and swim to meet his bronze partway.
No need, little green! Suldith unfortunately doesn't project anything comforting to the green, his mind is all lightning bolts and storm clouds. But she ought to be comforted as his claws grab hold of her and his neck twines with hers. After that there's a much slower descent at his own speed. Zi'on for his part is abandoning his towels and his shirt. And poor M'ta. He'll feel rather bad later if he can remember at all what happened. He gets up and hoists Raev over his shoulder like a sack of tubers and books it off to one of the guest weyrs. Which thankfully aren't too far.
With Taiyokanth safely in the embrace of Suldith, it seems a similar fate awaits Raev, the visiting bronze rider disappearing, and she's soon finding herself flung over Zi'on's shoulder. Luckily for the him, there is only minimal struggling - Unfortunately, who knows if his luck will last.