Destiny Unfolding
Dragonsfall Weyr
Amber Hills Hold
Vintner Hall
Healer Hall
Hidden Meadows
Dolphin Cove Weyr
Dolphin Hall
Emerald Falls Hold
Harper Hall
Printer Hall
Green Valley Hold
Leeward Lagoon Hold
Barrier Lake Weyr
Sunstone Seahold
Citrus Bay Hold
Writers: Heather
Date Posted: 17th May 2025
Characters: Cidra, Thayde
Description: Cidra tells Thayde why she wants to be a dolphineer.
Location: Dolphin Hall
Date: month 7, day 25 of Turn 12
~*Flashback*~
The water was slate gray and white capped. It was seething and boiling
like a cauldron over a fire. Waves tossed the ship back and forth in a
game of keep-away.
It was exhilarating, Cidra thought as she clung to the railing to keep
from being pitched overboard.
"Watch the rigging!" a voice called above the whine of the squall.
Cidra ducked just as a rope from the rigging lashed out and cracked
beside her head like a whip.
Maybe it _was_ time to go back inside, she thought. Her father's face
would be purple with fury when he realized that she wasn't tucked
safely into the ship's cabin.
As she turned to scurry back along the bucking midship, a wave crashed
upon the deck, sweeping her feet out from under her and lifting her
over the side rail and straight into the murderous depths of the sea.
The din of the storm was suddenly silenced as she plunged beneath the
water. Despite being a strong swimmer, she had taken in a large gulp
of ocean water during the initial plunge. Her nostrils burned, and her
lungs ached.
The whorling pull of the water left her disoriented, and in the dark,
fathomless depths, she struck out with her arms and legs, desperate to
find the surface.
Suddenly, her hand struck a slick, writhing mass. She recoiled in a
flash of terror, but then the dark shadow was nudging her in the
sternum.
A dolphin!
Was it Rebeena, the female bottle-nose that had been escorting them on
their journey?
She clung blindly to the shape, her hands finding purchase on the
dorsal fin after what felt like an eternity.
The power of the dolphin's forward jolt made her nearly lose her grip
on the slippery fin. Finally, her head broke the surface of the water,
and the roar of the storm pounded on her ears again in full force.
In the waning moonlight, the melon shape of the dolphin's head
appeared beside her in the darkness. It didn't look like Rebeena.
There was a jagged scar through this dolphin's left eye, which she
realized was missing.
The dolphin let out a screeching peal that drew the attention of the
huddled shapes of men on the ship. A round life-buoy attached to a
rope was tossed into the sea. Carried on the wind, it landed just shy
of where Cidra and the dolphin bobbed.
"Girl go!" The dolphin commanded, nudging Cidra. She latched onto his
dorsal fin once more, her body limply trailing in the water as he
towed her to the bobbing buoy.
Grabbing the life ring, Cidra hooked her right arm through it and
immediately felt the tug as the men aboard the ship began heaving.
"Stay in ship this time!" The dolphin squeed in her ear loudly and
then his head disappeared beneath the surface.
"Wait! I didn't catch your name!" Cidra called into the storm.
She thought she heard the word "Kurchak" carried on the wind, but the
dolphin was gone.
~*End Flashback*~
"That was the first real encounter I'd had with a dolphin, besides
saying hello to the ones who were escorting the ship. After that night
I felt.... I don't know, like it was my destiny to return the favor.
To help dolphins however I could."
Thayde studied the young woman sitting in his office. She was dressed
impeccably in fitted trousers and a smart tunic. The type of clothing
was common enough, but the tailoring and expensive material showcased
her wealth. He worried that her soft upbringing at Ivory Bay would
make the chores and manual labor of the Dolphin Hall too difficult.
He didn't know if she'd last a month, but there was a gleam in her
eyes that Thayde recognized. It was a thirst for adventure and a zeal
to prove oneself.
"And what training have you had?" he asked.
"I worked some with the journeyman at our hold. He showed me different
swimming techniques and how to remove bloodfish."
"This isn't an easy program," Thayde felt the need to warn.
Cidra's chin raised. "I can do it."
They stared at each other in silence for a long moment.
"Okay, then. Welcome to the Dolphin Hall, _Apprentice_ Cidra." He
handed her the rank knots of an apprentice dolphineer. "Check in with
Master Tolna and she will get you settled in the dormitory."
Cidra looked down at the turquoise and gold braided cord. It was
finally happening. Her heart soared. She was a dolphineer!
Last updated on the May 26th 2025