Gender/Age: Male, 22 Turns
Journeyman Harper and Hold Junior Steward
Rudandi is an efficient thinker. He was found early by the Harpers of Dawnlight, and trained extensively with scribing and writing. The Lord Holders have enjoyed his eager ability, but they are wary of his hesitation to fully join in their plottings.
He is a long-bodied man with dark skin and black hair, with dark brown eyes. He always wears browns, as well, all except his harper blue knots.
He has several pets, small cats, which usually run through his weyr freely, catching small tunnel snakes for him.
If Rudandi impresses, he will elide his name to Ru'di. He would love to impress brown, of course!
Lord Holder Deon grimaced at that. "That filthy wanderer and his tribe are too dangerous to have around Dawnlight. And far too dangerous to have on dragonback."
"I do not believe any others than the one have been Searched," Spencer said, tapping his finger on the desk between them. The older Holder nodded once. "But that doesn't mean that others won't be. I will see to it that Rudandi goes."
"Good. Keep his loyalty, Spencer. Make it worth his while to join our cause finally." Deon's brown eyes glimmered slightly in the light of the glow baskets. Spencer rose, bowed, and exited his superior's office.
Once outside and in the halls of Dawnlight's administrative area, Spencer went looking for the dark-skinned young man. He was a good harper, but it was well known -- at least to the older folk such as himself and Deon -- that the boy had been Searched as a child. Perhaps even Rudandi didn't know it. That could work to their advantage.
***
Rudandi put the ink quill back into its small box and watched as the sand dried the hide's letters. Another good day's work. Transfering records from one wherhide to another was slow, exacting work, but it was also tremendously rewarding.
Particularly when you wanted to learn about your enemies.
Rudandi heard a clap at the door flap, and called for them to enter. To his surprise, it was Lord Holder Spencer. The man was smiling, broadly, and that could only mean one thing. He wanted to convince Rudandi of something.
"Rudandi!" Called Spencer, "I've great news! Ah, have I interrupted anything?"
Rudandi told the Holder that he'd just finished re-scripting a bit of a history scroll, nothing to be bothered about, the ink was dry. Rudandi shook the sand from the hide, and rolled the hide up before Spencer could really get a look at what it might have said.
"Well," Spencer clapped his hands together eagerly and held his fingers tight, "I've come to tell you that one of the Search riders from Aden weyr is looking for candidates. You know, son, you've got quite a history with Searching yourself..." The tan-haired Holder leaned in with a conspiratorial look. "When you were but a babe a Search rider's dragon sniffed you out. Do you remember it?"
Honestly, Rudandi could not. He did recall that brown dragons were always his favorite, and perhaps... Well, perhaps the memory was a dim one, but there was a great brown dragon nestled deeply in his mind. It had always been there, almost like a goal, a secret area that would open some day.
Rudandi said, "I think I know now why I like browns, so much, sir!" Spencer laughed, a false but bright laugh.
"Good! Well, the rider can take you to Aden as soon as you're packed... If you plan on taking her up on it. Opalia on her green Zuruth is out in the courtyard. Should I tell her to expect you?"
Rudandi went numb. Was this really happening? He didn't much trust Spencer because, well, he was an untrustable tunnel snake. But ... His words were often far truer than his intentions. That was something Rudandi had learned from most of the history scrolls he'd been copying over. Dawnlight Hold had a long history of deception and hidden agendas, but Spencer and Deon's reign had been the worst in ages. Anything to keep the inhabitants in line.
But ... If Rudandi was able to leave the Hold, a precious thing indeed, he could perhaps bring back wisdom to his friends and the Holder brats. After all, wasn't he a Journeyman Harper?
Plus... As a Steward in training, he would be allowed -- encouraged! -- to mix with many of the folk. It was something he had been slightly uncomfortable with doing before, but now, it seemed like an ideal opportunity!
"I shall start packing up," Rudandi finally stated. "Aden Weyr, that's a good place. I will be sure to stand proudly, for Dawnlight Hold's image, sir."
That seemed exactly what Spencer wanted to hear. Rudandi was getting better at all this deception himself, and while he knew it was necessary, he preferred to be --
"Good! That is our boy! Now... I have a gift for you, son. Even if you don't impress on Aden's sands, which I know you will," he added quickly, "you'll be granted an extra ten Marks a tithe, for your ... continued service to the Hold." Rudandi could swear that he heard the man almost say Holders.
He knew what was happening. Of course. But... Ten marks a tithe? That would be, well, it would be almost double what their other Stewards had coming in, certainly. Was he really worth that much to them?
Rudandi gulped, and nodded. "Well, sir, I don't know what to say..."
Laughing, Spencer slapped the man on the back and escorted him away from the records room. "Well, son, just say that you accept and Impress well for us, eh?"
"I ... will do my best, sir, I will do my best."
He accepted it of course. He was no fool!
But where was he going to spend it? He'd have to wait for a gather. Or he would simply... No, that would be silly!
He could just give the marks away...
Before he really had the chance to do anything about it, however, he had to settle into being a candidate. All the days were spent learning how to choose fire stone, how to fix a dragon's meat for their first turn of life, and what not to do when they began to grow large enough to fly.
Then, the hatching day came! Rudandi had placed several Marks on which eggs might hatch what colors... Perhaps he could actually increase his earnings -- hardly earned though they were! Rudandi had been listening well to the Weyr's politics, and had absorbed a lot of information. He thought on that while the others were led into the hatching sands.
He lost the bet on the first egg to hatch! He couldn't believe it! But, bigger wasn't always better! The little green who came from her small egg knew where she wanted to be. So then, two more eggs hatched and --
All bets became less than nothing in his mind. For there, ringing so clearly it almost hurt, was a beautiful blue dragon who ran out of his shell toward Rudandi himself!
Are you the one who wanted me? I am Krynth! Are you as hungry as me?
"Here I am, Krynth! I will get you some food..." Was all he could utter, the wonder of impressing got to him quickly!
