It's All Fun And Games Until Someone Gets Hurt

Writers: Halyonix
Date Posted: 3rd October 2022

Characters: Y'rim
Description: A sweepriding game turns into a search
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 4, day 16 of Turn 11
Notes: Mentor approved by Miriah

It was a lovely day for sweepriding.

If only sweepriding was a bit more…interesting.

Luckily, in their many Turns together so far, Y’rim and Quiroanth had come up with a little game between them to both pass the time and learn the landmarks of the area being swept. Since it was a new area to them both, there were plenty of things to spot. **I spy with my eyes,** Y’rim said, as it was his turn to find something for Quiroanth. **A tree with yellow flowers.**

}: Hmm…:{ his green hummed. Her faceted eyes twinkled, whirled, and then Y’rim felt her focus shift sharply to the left, spotting the aforementioned tree. He laughed as she swiveled her head in its direction. }: All too easy, :{ she said sassily. Y’rim thumped her closest neck ridge affectionately. }: I spy with my eyes…a river. :{

That one took Y’rim a moment to find, as he first had to find a break in the trees with a winding line to it that would indicate water. **That’s not fair, you know, when you can see further than I can,** he pointed out, but he was smiling softly. If she was going to give him sass, he was going to dish it right back. He scanned somewhere off almost over his shoulder. **I spy with my eyes…**

}: A flag, :{ Quiroanth interrupted.

**Cheater! It’s not your turn ye--ah!** The last part came out with a little yelp as Quiroanth sharply banked, propelling them towards something her far-seeing gaze picked up. Even leaning forward, Y’rim could only see something that _might_ have been a help flag but he trusted Quiroanth’s instincts entirely. A help flag could mean so many things -- sickness, disaster, a request for emergency transport, etc. -- but they had to answer it. Y’rim always felt nervous doing so because he hated surprises but duty called.

Quiroanth picked up on his nerves. }: And we answer, :{ she said confidently. Within moments, her speed took them within eyesight of the flag. She made a wide circle when they arrived, bugling out a call, as Y’rim tried to take in what he saw. Small holding, maybe one or two families residing there, no herdstock pen but a cart for one to pull. As Quiroanth figured out where to safely land, a woman came out of the holding, waving with both arms.

“We saw your flag!” Y’rim said the moment Quiroanth landed. He felt safer staying aboard his dragon until he knew what was going on. Sicknesses were contagious and…not every holder was willing to accept help from a man riding a green dragon.

“Thank you, rider!” the woman said, approaching but keeping a respectful distance. She began wringing her hands. “My husband, he’s…he’s missing. He went up the track to Simin’s hold and…and I think something may have happened. There’s some water to fjord and…it’s rained so much recently. I told him not to go, I warned him, I had a feeling it just…but he went anyway and…” She looked so close to tears. Y’rim felt his heart lurch a little. “It’s been two days. I…We’ve searched his usual path but the tracks never crossed the river.”

“The river where?” Y’rim asked. Even as she pointed, Y’rim realized it was part of the same river Quiroanth had spotted earlier. He silently thanked his dragon for her sharp eyes. Quiroanth shifted her weight, eager to be aloft and searching, but Y’rim still had questions. After a moment, he had the man’s name, what he had been wearing, and the color runner he had been riding. “We’ll return!” Y’rim promised, hoping that they would be returning with her husband alive as well.

Quiroanth leaped aloft and angled them in the direction that would intersect trail path and river. As expected, there was nothing in the shallows that hadn’t already been found. As the river flowed onwards, it sharply widened and deepened, with the banks high and sharp. Hard for search parties to follow, Y’rim figured, but a dragon could skirt along the river’s path with no problem. Quiroanth set off in a low glide, her wingtips touching the water as they traveled. She hovered when Y’rim asked her to stop but for a quarter of an hour, they saw nothing amiss. **Oh, I hope this isn’t going to be a bad news day,** Y’rim remarked as they continued.

Quiroanth said nothing. They flew on in silence for another few minutes before -- **Wait, is that…?** She was already heading towards it. Y’rim’s heart began to sink. Trees had fallen with the recent rains and trapped debris.

Including the runner matching the description.

}: But no rider, :{ Quiroanth remarked as she perched delicately but awkwardly on the banks. The ground was still so soft that her claws began sinking into the clay. They couldn’t stay long. She would be slipping soon.

Y’rim looked around, thinking. **Roar,** he said. He felt her momentary confusion but before he asked her again, she opened her jaws and bugled loudly. For a long moment, only the panicked calls of wherries answered, and then silence. Y’rim made a determined sound. If it was just the runner, maybe the man had gotten away and…

Quiroanth’s head suddenly turned sharply, looking into the woods. }: I heard something! :{ she said. Her claws slipped and her takeoff was ungraceful but she shot over the canopy towards the sound. She stopped, hovering, and let out another querying roar.

Y’rim’s heart leaped as he heard “HERE! DRAGON, HERE!”

“We hear you!” Y’rim called back, even as he asked Quiroanth, **Do you see him?**

}: No. The forest is too thick here. I…I can land over there, I think. :{ Y’rim nodded as she winged towards what looked like an opening, dropping neatly down in the space of a fallen tree as only a green dragon could. Y’rim slid down. Oh, he hated navigating in a forest! It was always thorns and rocks and crowded and…ugh! But he said, “Keep calling! I’m coming to you.” Quiroanth followed as close as the trees allowed but it wasn’t far.

A few rounds of back and forth calling and Y’rim came across the missing husband. “Oh good!” he exclaimed, even though the man looked ragged and dirty. “I was so worried that…oh, never mind. You’re alive, that’s good. Can you make it to Quiroanth?” he asked.

“If you help me walk, yes,” the man said. And it was then that Y’rim noticed the obviously broken leg. A wave of faintness washed over him. He hated the sight of blood! Oh, blood was awful, and gross, and ugh and…oh, but he had to help this man! Closing his eyes, he nodded and walked uncertainly forward.

“Sorry, sorry,” he apologized. “I’m…I’m not good with blood and that. Oh, that looks bad. We found your runner and -- grab my shoulder, okay, good, let’s…take it easy and -- we found your runner upstream a bit. Your wife raised the help flag. So smart of her. And Quiroanth saw it and…oh, careful, careful.” He was rambling, he knew it, but it helped him not concentrate on the obviously, obviously broken leg.

Between this litany and a lot of careful steps, they made it to Quiroanth. “Good thing your dragon is a green, rider, else this would be a lot harder to get on!” the man remarked with a weak laugh.

Still, even as Y’rim helped him get settled, the man swooned. “Oh, oh, we can’t have two of us fainting, no, no!” Y’rim said quickly. He managed to get the man settled, strapped in, and then said, “Quir love, let’s take it nice and easy back to his hold, please.” She flew with such dainty precision that Y’rim felt his heart swell. Everyone placed such prestige on the bronzes and golds but greens could fly like no other color!

A cry of gladness greeted them as Quiroanth landed a few moments later. “Careful, careful!” Y’rim cautioned as the adults swarmed the dragon to help get the man down. A sudden flurry of energy and commands went out -- warm cloths, water, poultices, a splint, strong alcohols -- and just when Y’rim thought that they might be forgotten in the activity, someone came over with tears in their eyes to grasp Y’rim’s hands.

“Thank you, dragonrider,” was all they said.

And just like that, Y’rim’s eyes were full of tears as well. “Our pleasure,” he said. Another squeeze of hands and Y’rim stepped back. He watched the household settle back into its rightful place with its missing member for a moment more before climbing back aboard Quiroanth.

Wiping tears from his eyes as she took off, he said, **Oh, Quir, you were magnificent! Spotting their flag like that and landing in that little spot!**

}: And look at you! Not fainting! Oh, I’m so proud of you! :{

**I think that’s enough of sweepriding today. What a report this will make!** Y’rim said as he imagined their new home for Quiroanth to take /between/.

Last updated on the October 30th 2022

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It's All Fun And Games Until Someone Gets Hurt