A Glimpse of Mortality
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: 4th March 2019
Characters: Tarley, T'kev
Description: Tarley goes to check on her brother, the Candidate that was mauled by the green dragonet at the Hatching.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 10, day 8 of Turn 9
"Can I see him?" Tarley whispered, ashen-faced and tight-lipped.
"He's not responsive, but he's stable. You can see him," the healer replied in a soft voice, touching his hand supportively to the greenrider's shoulder.
"Thank you."
Pushing the curtain aside, Tarley swallowed past what felt like an impossible knot in the middle of her throat. Tyrael was lying face down, sheets covering him from the waist down. Above the waist, he was swaddled in white bandages that covered his entire torso and one of his biceps.
"Why did you turn your back on a rampaging dragonet?" she whispered as she looked down at him. When her eyes closed she saw again the way the desperate green dragonet at the hatching had pounced onto his back, her long talons puncturing through the soft flesh of Tyrael's back. It would have been nearly impossible to be walked over by a dragonet without drawing blood, with the way the talons were made. She just hadn't expected so much blood.
"How is he?" a rough voice startled her as she looked up across Tyrael's limp form into the eyes of her uncle, T'kev. For once, she thought, he looked sober. She knew he managed his drinking enough to be clear for practices and Threadfalls, but that was where the fine line ended.
"The healer said he's stable," she answered.
T'kev's blue eyes looked glassy, from tears she noted, and not from their usual drunken glaze.
"When he went down all I could think of was your parents," T'kev said, shoving calloused hands into his pockets. "I couldn't bear to lose another piece of them."
Even though it had been some time since River Bluff's collapse, thinking of her parents and how they died still brought tears to her eyes. Tarley tried to never think of them, and especially not to bring them up in conversation. It was easier that way.
"He'll be fine," Tarley repeated, sitting down and brushing a lock of Tyrael's bangs away from his face.
"Of course he will," T'kev dashed his sleeve across his eyes. "You all are made of tougher stuff than that."
Tarley looked up and studied her uncle's face. It could have been handsome were it not drawn and lined from the drinking. She tried to imagine what he would look like if he smiled, but she had never seen one on his face. "You are, too." It was clear what she was really talking about.
The bluerider shook his head, he knew that wasn't true. "If anything changes you'll let me know?" he nodded his head at Tyrael.
"Of course," she promised. She knew T'kev was dying to go somewhere alone to drink.
"Congratulations on graduating to the Weyrleader's Wing, by the way. I've been meaning to drop by and tell you that. I've just been... busy." They both knew that was a lie.
"Thank you, I really enjoy flying in the high altitude," Tarley replied, hating the stilted small talk, but it was all she and T'kev knew. They hadn't been around each other much as she'd grown up, only the occasional visits near Turns End.
The bluerider seemed to be searching for something to say. Had his social skills really become so rusty that he couldn't carry on a conversation with his own niece?
"Well, I am going to go to the Hatching Feast and try to find your brother and sister. They're all young enough to have another chance on the Sands, so at least that's a good thing, right?"
Tarley adjusted Tyrael's pillow slightly, "Yes, that's true." Although she doubted that was a big comfort to Acharl and Erathena, both of whom desperately wanted to Impress and had been on the Sands when the dragonet had died.
T'kev stepped a little closer and reached out a hesitant, trembling hand that he rested lightly on Tyrael's shoulder.
"I'll keep you updated on his progress," she assured him again.
T'kev nodded, looking at Tyrael's pale face one last time before turning and leaving, shoulders hunched as he reached and pulled his collar up to ward off the cold as he walked out of the infirmary.
Last updated on the March 15th 2019