Special Deliveries

Writers: Duskdog, Estelle
Date Posted: 14th April 2024

Characters: G'zan, L'keri
Description: G'zan and L'keri are on messenger duty together
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 2, day 6 of Turn 11

G'zan

L'keri

L'keri left the lower caverns in a cheerful mood, scanning the neatly
written list he'd picked up from one of the Headwoman's assistants.
Messenger duty was one of his favorite tasks, since there were always a
variety of different people to meet, who were generally pleased to see a
dragonrider. Sometimes they would offer klah, or even snacks! It
definitely beat watch duty, of which he'd been doing far too much these
last months.

Each item on the list consisted of a hold or hall, the name of the
sender, the nature of the shipment and the destination. **Vintner Hall,
Smith Hall...** He knew most of the stops, large holds and Crafthalls,
but stopped by the archives on his way up to his weyr to get the
coordinates of some of the smaller holdings. Once he'd done that, with
riding gear on and Rhalith's straps in place, he mounted up and the pair
flew down from their weyr to meet his duty partner.

Usually, with his brown, they picked up the larger shipments, so he was
particularly pleased to see he'd been assigned to work with greenrider
G'zan. Not only was his wingmate fun to be around, but he'd be a great
help with the heavy work of loading up the cargo. He could see Panghuth
waiting for them not far from the entrance to the Hatching Cavern, and
Rhalith glided to a landing next to her, rumbling a greeting.

"Hi, G'zan!" he called, waving with the list in his hand as he slid down
the brown's side. "Looks like we've got a good selection today. Nothing
too awkward or smelly."

G'zan didn't mind messenger duty. People were usually happy to get their
packages, and it was a nice excuse to get out of the Weyr for a while
and let Panghuth stretch her wings. She was a dutiful green -- she liked
having something assigned for her to do.

"Hey! Nothing that's gonna leak, I hope? Last time Panghuth got all wet
and sticky."

}: It was unpleasant, :{ she said, reminded of the incident that she had
almost forgotten. }: I will do what I'm tasked, but I prefer to be able
to do it with dignity. :{

"There are a couple of cases of wine from the Vintner Hall," L'keri
said, running a finger down the list. "But if those leak or get broken,
we're going to have more problems than a wet dragon." If someone had
paid to transport those wines by dragon, they must be expensive, or
wanted urgently. "Shall we get those done first?"

"Sounds like a plan," G'zan agreed. "I'll take one case if you take the
other. Let's get this stuff loaded, huh? Wine last, since it's getting
off first." He stretched, rolling his shoulders and cracking his neck
one way and then the other. "I'll grab the heavy stuff, don't you worry
about it. You think maybe if we get done fast enough, we can goof off at
the beach for a while?"

"A pair of diligent, industrious dragonriders would come back to ask for
more work if they finished early," L'keri said, picking up one of the
medium-sized packages, which looked like a sack of seed labelled for a
farm hold. He heaved it up with an 'oof' and began strapping it to
Rhalith's side. "But since we're not that, the beach sounds like a
terrific idea. If we're really lucky, maybe the people getting the wine
are having a party and can spare us some snacks."

"And it would be wrong of us to do all the work, so that there's none
left for the diligent, industrious guys," G'zan agreed with a nod. He
looked over the other parcels, taking a moment to experimentally lift
one or two to get an idea of how heavy they were. After a moment, he
hefted one of the heavier ones -- heavy, but not too bulky -- and
carried it over to strap onto Panghuth. He'd leave the rest of the heavy
or bulky ones to Rhalith, but his green was perfectly capable of
handling a little weight, even if not as much as the brown. "Oooh maybe
it's a wedding and they'll have those fancy little sandwiches! I love
those things. 'Cept people keep saying you're not supposed to eat the
whole tray. What's the point of food if you're just gonna nibble it?"

"Right! I see one of those trays, and I think eating contest. Who can
fit the most little snack-bites in his mouth, or clear a tray in the
fastest time." L'keri pulled the strap tight around the sack and turned
back to look for another similar-sized package to balance it out. "It
turns out that isn't considered polite behavior at a wedding, though.
Can't imagine why."

"They should just be happy that we're there to celebrate with them,"
G'zan said, selecting another parcel for Panghuth. She looked, and felt,
a little bored, though he knew she wouldn't ever complain about doing
her duty. She just found some duties more exciting than others. "Lift
your wing a little, baby -- atta girl." He secured the new parcel
carefully, then turned back to L'keri. "You ready for a heavy one? Those
two there seem pretty solid. I can grab 'em for you, just let me know
when you want 'em. What's in those things, anyways?"

L'keri had finished securing the second sack to Rhalith's far side, so
he came around the dragon and crouched down beside the large bundles.
They were roughly cylindrical and wrapped up in heavy, padded cloth with
an outer cover of tough hide. "It's got a Smithcraft mark." He consulted
his list. "Flamethrowers and parts for Silver Springs Hold. That's a
wine growing hold, they'll be wanting those to protect their vines after
Fall. If you take one end, I'll get the other and we'll lift it up to
Rhalith, strap it on just in front of his hind leg, okay? Then the same
with the other, round the far side, and we're ready to go."

"Ah good, deliver the wine _and_ protect the vines -- we're practically
heroes," G'zan said, moving around to the other side of the first big
bundle and crouching down to get a good grip on the underside, waiting
for L'keri to get situated, too. "Y'know, this is one of the easiest
jobs. A little lifting, an excuse to travel, and the dragons mostly
don't seem to mind. I dunno why some riders seem to hate it. Except when
it starts raining, maybe. That's less fun. Rhalith doesn't mind, does
he?" He paused. "Okay, ready? One, two, three, _lift_!"

"Urrgh!" The brownrider grunted as he lifted his end. Shells,
flamethrowers were heavier than he'd thought - it gave him a new respect
for the queenriders, that was for sure. Once it was up to shoulder
height, it was easier, and they managed to maneuver it over to Rhalith,
who crouched as low as he could. With a good deal of cursing, heaving
and alarming metallic rattling noises, they managed to get a strap
around the package, then several more to secure it. Then Rhalith turned
around as gracefully as a large brown dragon loaded down with sacks and
parcels could manage, so that his other side faced them, and they did it
all again.

"Finally." L'keri scrambled back down Rhalith's side, having fastened
the last strap, and dusted off his hands. "Right, that looks like
everything. Ready to fly?"

"Always am," G'zan replied with a grin, giving Panghuth's parcels one
last check. Everything seemed situated fine, and a couple of tugs on the
straps revealed they were secure, too, and so he hefted himself up onto
his green's back. She took a few experimental steps just to reassure
herself, too, that none of their cargo was going to move in any awkward
way when she was in motion.

G'zan looked back at L'keri. "Race ya... Ha ha, just kidding!"

"Don't scare me." L'keri placed a hand over his heart in mock fright.
"If those wine bottles get smashed we'll both be scrubbing out the
weyrling barracks for all eternity."

}:And I would never dare to race a swift-winged green like yourself,:{
Rhalith added courteously to Panghuth as his rider mounted up. Once
L'keri was strapped in, he rose carefully, testing the weight he
carried, then crouched and sprang into the air, his wings beating hard
to gain height.

L'keri leaned forward, wincing as he heard what sounded like a clink -
hopefully it was a flamethrower part and not a bottle. He felt the extra
weight Rhalith carried through their bond, but it wasn't unmanageable,
and eased as they reached a warmer air current above the Weyr. **All
right, the wine-drinking hold first.** He visualized the coordinates,
and asked Rhalith to share them with Panghuth. **Ready?**

"Eh, if they get broke, it's the price they pay for wantin'
air-delivered packages," G'zan said -- though of course he didn't
actually want any of the bottles to break. Not only would they make a
mess, but somebody's wedding (or whatever celebration) might be ruined,
and he hated to disappoint people who were just looking to have a good
time. He didn't think Holders got to have as much fun as Weyrfolk, so if
some Hold or Hall was having a big party and he could help get them
sloshed, well, why not try to deliver?

Panghuth rose into the air carefully after Rhalith, testing the weight
of her own cargo and finding it well-balanced. It wasn't the most
pleasant sensation in the world, and she would be glad to eventually be
rid of the burden, but it wasn't any more than that -- just a minor
inconvenience. Such (small) sacrifices were an important part of doing
her duty. She took a few seconds to set the visualization from Rhalith
firmly in her mind, waiting for G'zan to do the same before relaying
back to the brown }:Ready.:{

The dragons winked out and reappeared over the hold, a pretty stone
building tucked into a valley in the hill country west of Amber Hills,
where a bridge crossed a fast-flowing mountain stream. L'keri's spirits
rose as he saw brightly colored banners and trader wagons drawn up
outside the hold. There was definitely some kind of celebration going on.

He directed Rhalith to land on a flat area, far enough away from the
wagon beasts not to scare them, and to make room for Panghuth. He'd only
just dismounted when a man came running up, wearing Holder's knots and
looking very relieved to see them.

"Welcome, dragonriders," he said, a little out of breath and with the
flustered manner of someone who'd been running around and organizing
things all day. "Thank you so much for coming!"

"You're very welcome - Holder Nyval?" L'keri consulted his list. "Two
cases of fine wine from the Vintner Hall."

"Yes, that's me. It's my son's eighteenth birthday today," the holder
replied proudly. "We ordered the bottles and had them sent by trader
wagon at first, but learned only a few days ago that there was some
dispute between the caravan master and his guards over pay, and the men
broke into the cases and drank the lot! Disaster!" He threw up his
hands. "Thankfully the Hall was able to have replacements sent by
dragon, or we'd have had nothing to toast my boy with but a very
inferior vintage that we keep for cooking."

G'zan dismounted and started unloading the wine as the Holder told his
story, feeling Panghuth tense in an effort to stay as still as possible
while he removed her half of the delicate cargo. He looked back over his
shoulder and grinned. "Aw wow, this is a nice big party you got set up
for 'im -- you must be real proud! Glad we could help out!" He set the
cases down carefully, first one and then the other, a little ways from
the dragons, just in case one of them moved without realizing what was
in their periphery. "I can help haul this on over, if you want -- but
either way, tell your boy we said happy birthday!"

"Thank you - if you would. It's this way." Nyval helped to steady the
second case as L'keri lifted it with a puff of effort and they headed
over towards a large tent, from which delicious smells of cooking were
issuing. Then he spoke the words that were music to the brownrider's
ears. "But can I tempt you both to stay for a glass and a bite to eat?
It's the least we can do, and it would mean a lot to the lad to have
dragonriders at his party."

"Well, we do have to complete our duties," L'keri said, tilting his head
back towards the laden dragons. "But I think we could stay a little
while, don't you, G'zan? For a young man's birthday?"

G'zan's ever-present grin widened over the top of the case he was
carrying. He set it down where Nyval indicated. Work was fine and all,
but parties were better, and the food smelled delicious. "Oh yeah, if
it's gonna brighten somebody's birthday? I think we can."

Last updated on the April 18th 2024

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