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

Elsewhere on Pern
NPC Weyr
River Bluff Weyr
Seacraft Hall

Story Listing
Series Listing

Weyrling Training

Writers: Halyonix
Date Posted: 28th July 2026

Characters: J'lyas
Description: J'lyas tries to time it back to his past
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 2, day 20 of Turn 13
Notes: Mentioned: M'gan, N'vanik
cursing involved

His talk with M'gan hadn't gleaned anything truly of use. Rather, it had confirmed to J'lyas what he thought would happen if he tried to get too close to himself in the past or try to leap into the future. Stuff he already knew. His frustration was apparent but he wasn't going to be thwarted. He still had ideas.

}: I still don't understand why you want to go back so much. That was before you met me. You hate that time, :{ Braxialth remarked. He was sunning on the Rim, idly listening in on his rider's thoughts.

**If I can go back, even if I can't change what happened to me, maybe I can make it all worse for them,** J'lyas explained. Probably for the third time since Brax forgot that they had had this conversation the other day. That was what he wanted: revenge. M'gan's admission gave him that avenue.

But also, fuck N'vanik and all of those bronzeriders for keeping this information secret for so many Turns. How dare they all think that they were _better_ than everyone else, that other dragonriders didn't deserve or have the wits to know. There was _nothing_ that made them any better or smarter just because they were on a bronze dragon.

Sensing his rider's fierce pride and insolence, Braxialth fluffed. J'lyas was right. Braxialth was just as clever as a metallic -- even more so! And them timing it would prove it absolutely.

The problem now was that J'lyas needed a clearly defined moment in the past, one he wasn't at, in order to enact his plan. Clearly defined. That was the key. So it had to be a big event because he would remember one of those best but one where he wasn't at the event just _then_.

Alaynis's birthingday might work.

Alaynis was the Holder's son. Big stocky boy who was going to run the Hold one day when Tassotel couldn't. Well, if he even got past being such a blockhead. And a bully. Tassotel had always made sure the Hold gathered to celebrate Alaynis's birthingday because what else did their little backwater place have to celebrate? Surely not scrawny J'lyas or any of the other kids.

That might work. J'lyas had always protested going to the event, even though he could clearly see it being set up in the courtyard. He remembered the colors and configurations of the pennants because he had stitched them himself. Who had set out what. And when. That was the kicker. The _when_. He couldn't arrive when his past self was also there.

So, he thought back to one of the Turns where he had spent as much of the event hiding away in his room after setting up those pennants. That was enough of a distance right? Braxialth could appear just south of the cothold, J’lyas could keep to the outer edge of the event, and he could…well, he’d figure out what mayhem to cause when he got there.

Galvanized, J’lyas strapped Braxialth up, mentally reviewing each detail until he had it burned in his mind. Confident that he had their destination set, he looked around themselves in the now, memorizing the time of day and other details, because he wasn’t going to be stupid and get stuck forever somewhere else or worse.

}: We’ll succeed, :{ Braxialth said with unflappable belief. He took off and followed his rider’s image /between/.

Okay, it was a lot longer /between/ this time. Like, really long. How many heartbeats had passed? Had he gotten it wrong? No way! He had been at the event! He remembered what it all looked--

Braxialth burst free of oblivion, over the Hold, and _exactly_ where J’lyas had envisioned.

Elation and egotism shot through J’lyas. “Yes!” he hissed. They’d done it! This was it! Now, to get near and wreak havoc. Maybe empty out some kegs. Set all of the herdbeasts free. Scare the runners into a panic that would ruin the party. Just the thought of them trampling all of the decorations made J’lyas smile.

Yet the moment Braxialth’s feet landed on the ground, J’lyas felt a queasiness in his stomach like never before. And a headache forming behind his eyes. Had he eaten something bad? No way! Breakfast had been hours ago! That didn’t explain why it was suddenly hard to concentrate. And the pennants he had made definitely didn’t spin like they now were.

“Fuck,” he muttered as his stomach heaved. Fuck, they had timed it too close. How? His younger self was across the courtyard in the building! How was that still too close? J’lyas let out a string of curses as he quickly began imagining home, every little detail he had just pulled together, as Braxialth began to panic.

}: What’s wrong? You don’t feel good. You don’t feel good at all! Nothing feels good! :{

Focus. Focus. “Fucking focus,” J’lyas growled to himself, clenching his fist and willing his body to behave for just. one. sharding. minute.

Go!

It wasn’t something he said. It was something he forced on Braxialth, shoving the image of Dolphin Cove into his dragon’s mind just as he leaned over the blue’s side to vomit. He could hear Brax taking off but couldn’t do anything but curse his headache, hate the weak way he felt, growl at the bronzeriders who had given him an idea and then screwed him over with it somehow.

It was cold, cold, cold /between/ and it took so much longer.

J’lyas had enough time to wonder if he was going to spend the rest of his miserable life spewing his guts out /between/.

Brilliant, blazing sunlight hit him, adding to his headache. }: We’re here! I’m here! We made it! :{ Braxialth said with equal parts relief and elation. }: I didn’t like that. I didn’t like that at all. :{

“Yeah, no shit,” J’lyas agreed. Was it false hope or was his headache already dissipating? No way. So _that’s_ what getting too close felt like! Shells and shards, he was going to have to figure out a better strategy. He couldn’t just do _nothing_ with this information. He had to make it work for him. “Okay, back to the drawing board, Brax.”

}: We’re going back? :{ the dragon asked with fear in his tone.

While J’lyas directed him to land (and double checked that they had indeed made it back to the correct time), he said, “No. We’ve just gotta figure out how to time it right. If dumb M’gan can do it, so can we. We’ll have our cake and eat it too.”

}: …but I don’t eat cake. :{

Last updated on the August 11th 2026