The Solitary Starsmith

Writers: Estelle, Yvonne
Date Posted: 9th April 2021
Series: The Lighthouse Keeper

Characters: M'gan, Rehaan
Description: M'gan investigates the mysterious starsmith at the lighthouse
Location: Elsewhere on Pern
Date: month 7, day 20 of Turn 10
Notes: Mentioned: Alina

M'gan and Isarth arrived at the lighthouse on a grey and cloudy day, the
sea below them stirred by the wind into foaming white ripples. Through a
light mist of rain, the tower stood out against a backdrop of
uninterrupted forest. They couldn't see another settlement for miles.
**It really is isolated.** After a lifetime spent in the busy community
of the Weyrs, he couldn't conceive of what it would be like to live
alone out here.

}: Shall we land? :{ Isarth asked, picking up on his rider's slight unease.

**Yes, of course. Down there.** He focused on the bare, rocky outcrop of
land that jutted out into the sea. As the bronze winged his way down,
the sound of the gusting wind gave way to crashing waves. When they'd
landed, M'gan slid down and pulled off his riding helmet. He tilted his
head back to look up at the glassy heights of the tower, but couldn't
see any movement.

With a shrug, he approached the door at the base of the building. The
starsmith must have seen the dragon approaching. "Hello?"

The door opened and a man peered out, squinting suspiciously into the
overcast light. He was maybe in his thirties, but he had deep,
weather-drawn lines around his eyes and mouth. His hair was brown
streaked with grey, and his clothing hung oddly on his frame, the hems a
bit short. His one wrist was wrapped in a bandage. "Good afternoon,
bronze rider. You are... ah, not my usual dragonrider liaison? Is
greenrider Alina all right?"

"Oh, yes, she's absolutely fine. I'm M'gan, rider of Isarth. Alina's
Wingleader." He smiled and raised a hand in greeting. "I hope I'm not
interrupting your work, Starsmith...?"

"Rehaan." The man didn't smile. He eyed M'gan for a moment, then held
out a message tube. "The report."

"Oh - thanks. I can take that back to the Weyr, but actually, it wasn't
for the report I came." He took the report with a polite smile and
tucked it into his jacket. "Mind if I come in for a moment? It's a bit
damp out here."

Rehaan stared at him a moment, then wordlessly opened the door wider and
stepped back to let M'gan in.

The bronzerider stepped inside and looked around him with curiosity.
He'd visited holds before, plenty of times, but usually they were
bustling communities, even the smaller cots. Besides a few isolated
herder's huts, it was rare to come across someone living entirely alone.
It seemed ordinary enough. Outdoor clothing and boots hung neatly on
racks on the walls, alongside barrels and crates of supplies. A spiral
stair led up to what he guessed would be the living quarters.

"Must get lonely out here," he commented. It was hard to imagine, for
someone brought up in the Weyr. "How long will you be posted here for?"

"Until the Hall recalls me," Rehaan said flatly. He looked uncomfortable
with M'gan in his space, and he didn't leave his position by the door.

M'gan waited for a moment, letting the silence draw out in the hope the
man would go on, but he said nothing more. "I suppose you get used to it
after a while, being alone. You've been here...how long?"

The starsmith stared at the bronzerider. "More than a few Turns. I like
the solitude."

"Right. Good." M'gan felt an itch at the back of his neck. Anyone would
turn a bit strange out here on their own for Turns, but still, there was
something unnerving about that stare. "Well, it's my habit to visit the
stops I send my wingriders out to from time to time, especially the more
remote locations. Just to see that everything's in order, and to find
out if there's anything you need that I can help with." He waited. "Is
there? Anything you need?"

Rehaan shook his head, his expression softening. "I have everything a
man could possibly need, and then some."

M'gan took in those words, turning them over carefully in his mind. "And
Greenrider Alina - you're satisfied with her visits, and the supplies
she brings? No troubles there?"

"She has been very considerate." He paused. "And how is the bluerider?
J'pil?"

"Doing well, considering his dragon's injury and their age. He and
Fenolth are flying together again, and when the dragonhealers clear them
for longer flights, I'm hoping he'll share the weather duty with Alina."
He paused for a moment. "Is he a friend of yours? If so, I can arrange
it so that your lighthouse is on his part of the route."

Rehaan shook his head. "No. I prefer my solitude. The greenrider doesn't
say much."

"All right, then." M'gan could take a hint - and yet, there was still
something about the lighthouse and its occupant that troubled him.
Enough that he didn't feel right about letting one of his wingriders
come back here, alone. "Well, if there's nothing else, Isarth and I had
best be on our way."

He started for the door, then hesitated with his hand on the handle.
"Oh, one more thing. A request, actually. If it wouldn't take up too
much of your time... I spent most of my life at an inland Weyr before I
came to Dolphin Cove, and I've never had the chance to see the workings
of a lighthouse up close." He tilted his head back, glancing up at the
spiral stair. "Would you mind showing me before I leave? It's something
that interests me very much."

Rehaan blinked. "The lighthouse? You mean the light?"

"Yes. If it wouldn't be any trouble?" M'gan was rather more concerned
with finding out whether there was an imprisoned starsmith up there - or
worse - than any sudden fascination with lighthouse design, though what
he'd do if there was, he wasn't quite sure. He turned back with an easy
smile. "Of course, if you have work to do, then I'll be off."

The other man hesitated, then shrugged and gestured for M'gan to proceed
him up the spiral staircase. The second floor was a small kitchen, also
neatly kept, and the floor after that held a table, two chairs and a
bookshelf of hides, presumably records from the lighthouse although
there were a few harper novels peeking out from the middle shelf. There
was also a small collection of seashells and a dusty looking weaving
that depicted shipfish jumping in the waves.

M'gan glanced around the rooms as he passed as best he could without
seeming nosy, but saw nothing out of the ordinary, or anywhere another
person could be hidden. Only the quiet, so unfamiliar to one raised in
the Weyr, who'd had his dragon as a companion since boyhood. They
continued up to the next floor, the lighthouse-keeper's bedroom, as
simply furnished as the other floors with a narrow bed, a wardrobe and
some shelves. The faint light of the cloudy day filtered through a small
window opposite the bed.

The final floor housed the light itself, the large glass enclosure
taking up most of the space. The day wasn't dark or foggy enough for the
lamp to be lit just yet, but it stood ready with a good supply of oil
and a wick prepared. Starsmith or not, the bronzerider thought, the
inhabitant of the lighthouse was taking care of his duties. He walked
around the glass case, carefully examining it, then looked out over the
restless waves below. Behind them, on the land, Isarth waited patiently,
lifting his head to see his rider atop the tower.

"Quite a view you've got up here." He turned back to Rehaan. "Peaceful.
I can see, almost, how you might like it... Well, thanks for letting me
take a look around."

The other man stood awkwardly at the top of the stairs, watching M'gan
with guarded eyes. He stepped aside and gestured for the bronzerider to
proceed him back down.

M'gan descended, still keeping a sharp eye out for anything unusual, but
he was becoming convinced that there was no-one here apart from the two
of them. Perhaps he'd been listening to too many harper tales, but he
felt more in the dark about the identity of the man in the lighthouse
than he had been before he'd arrived. What he needed, he thought, was to
talk it over with someone.

"Goodbye, then, Starsmith Rehaan." He hesitated for a moment at the main
door. "If you're sure there's nothing else you need?"

Rehaan stared at him with guarded eyes. "No."

"All right. Stay safe, anyhow, and if you need any help, just signal for
a sweeprider. They fly over here regularly." M'gan raised a hand in
farewell and stepped out into the rain. He heard the door close behind
him, but as he walked back to Isarth, he felt his skin prickle again, as
if someone was watching.

**Let's go.** The touch of his lifemate's warm hide was reassuring, and
he couldn't help letting out a breath once he was securely mounted on
Isarth's back. Shells, he was almost tempted to leave the man in peace,
starsmith or not, but he could hardly send Alina and Imarith back there
unless he was sure it was safe. **Back to the Weyr. Then we can figure
out what to do.**

Last updated on the July 21st 2021

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The Solitary Starsmith