L3: Burimyu Candidates

[cailan]

Cailan watched as the two others went first then took a deep breath and started to climb as he tried to hit the circles. He chose a path up the middle then worked on climbing and knew that he couldn't go back which was sort of like life. The young candidate continued to climb yet was still careful enough to not fall. While he didn't have a issue with heights because he had climbed into vineyards and had used ladders his whole life. A few more steps and he was straight across hoping that he hit enough for it to matter. A continued climb Cailan continued as he his competitive streak was starting to come out. The candidate was not usually very competitve however today it was a different story.

[Rowana]

Nabrik shrugged as he let the last wrong fly. He was a bit disappointed he hadn't done better, but third wasn't all that bad. Roselle was a bit of a shock though. Where had a girl learned to sling rocks so well? A few years ago, Nabrik might have been a bit more upset about loosing, but maybe he'd actually managed to mature a little since living with the riders. Besides, after his swimming victory, he could let one or two of the others have some glory. Tossing the slingshot aside, Nabrik walked over with the others to see what M'kai had set up next.

This time, he didn't have a confident grin or cocky smile. Rock climbing? Nabrik fancied himself half way decent at climbing trees, but his short stature made it hard to reach between branches. Rocks, he was certain, would probably be even worse. Some of those red dots just looked so high. Nabrik shook his head and squared his shoulders. He wouldn't back down, even for something like this. It probably wasn't so hard once you got going. Besides, he'd never let himself go on without trying.

Once several of the older kids had gone, Nabrik walked firmly up to the wall. Taking a deep breath, he put his hands on the rough surface and began to climb across. He didn't really plan where he wanted to go, taking each step as it came. His short limbs had a hard time reaching some of the dots and he didn't dare go too high. Not that he was afraid, of course, he just didn't want to push it. When he finally got tired, he jumped off and landed lightly on his feet. Not too bad, he thought, smiling.

[metaldawn71]

(Sorry about the late start for Nividya.)

Nividya was one of the last Candidates for the Swimming. She wasn't used to all this excerise, even at Fort but she tried. Not to win but she thought she had to prove she was not a sissy. She finished the Swimming Challenge and on to the next challenge. She waited her turn to climb. She was a pretty good climber but a poor swimmer. In time, she hoped to improve to being a better swimmer. Maybe she would get someone to teach her better. Oh well, she completed the challenge.

As she waited her turn, she was able to catch her breathe. Her turn came and began to climb as she put her hand on the designated path set for her. It took stamina and endurance for the course and she had both, most definately. Even though she came in last in the fist challenge, she tried and that was all that counted for her.

Without hesitation, she heaved herself upward. She slipped on occassion, only to catch herself while going upward. She was stronger than she looked and it seemed to impress even her the strength and the drive she had. She felt she had something to prove, that she would make it being a great Dragonrider. Heights didn't bother her. She would do her best, even though winning wasn't all that she cared about.

[torino]

Rockclimbing... and of course he was going to be spotted by Nividya, the spunky little girl who, despite being one of Torino's favorites to keep tabs on, was just about half his size. Fabulous. "I'll try not to crush you," he said, a little droll twist to his mouth. If he did fall on her, he was pretty sure he WOULD crush her, no questions asked. Guess he wasn't allowed to fall.

With a sigh, Torino started up the rock face, scrambling across quickly rather than taking a careful and well-plotted route like some of the others. He tapped the red circles with a kind of debonair relaxation, using his height - he was just about as tall as the Candidatemaster, after all - to his advantage wherever he could. Once again, for Torino, it wasn't about winning. No, he wanted to come in last, wanted to fail. It sounded like the people that did well would get extra lessons and that sort of thing, and hell, Torino didn't even want to be here.

About halfway along the marked path, the Candidate glanced along the rock, then down at the ground. It was only about a three-foot drop from here, and his arms were starting to get tired. They weren't shaking like some people's were, but after all that stone-flinging they were already tired, not to mention he was starting to sweat. Ugh. Not acceptable, he decided, glancing down at the girl below him. "Head up, hon. Pretty sure my shoes won't go with your hair."

[Ruby]

((No problem, Jen! Glad to have you))

First: Keavon (3+3=6 points)
Second: Nividya (2 points)
Torino (2+1=3 points)
Cailan (3+1=4 points)
Nabrik (4+1=5 points)
Isori (1 point)

Roselle (4 points)

Not a bad turnout. Actually, M'kai was quite surprised that Nividya did as well as she had - as one of the smaller Candidates, he'd expected her not to be able to reach as high as some of the others, but she'd plotted a good route, and made use of her lower weight, maybe. Not as much strain on her arms, when she didn't have to haul near two hundred pounds up and down a rock. Whatever she did, it worked, and she came in second after tall Keavon. That wasn't a surprise, he'd been doing well all day, first in swimming and now in climbing. Endurance seemed to be his strong point - M'kai made a note. Actually, when he looked at all their scores added up, it was Keavon who was leading the pack, followed closely by Nabrik, then Cailan and Roselle, although no one was truly out yet - not even Isori, who'd started late. There were plenty more challenges to go.

"This one might be a little tougher," M'kai said, herding the Candidate back to the shade. Mats had been set up there under the trees, each with a board that could be settled on their knees like a desk. Each one had a wax tablet and a stylus on it. "It's a memory recall test. I have a drawing of a part of dragon anatomy, with letters in place of names, along with a numbered list of the names of the parts. Write the numbers of the names next to the letters of the parts, which are already on your tablet. If you don't know how to read, I'll be reading everything aloud. If you don't know how to write, do your best to imitate the shape of whatever you think the right number is; you can ask me for help. Ready?"

when everyone had settled, M'kai picked up a scroll, unrolling it so everyone could see. It was a dragon's wing. "Ok, part number 1: Wingsail. Please put a number 1 next to the letter you think it matches up with."

[Sebz]

Keavon watched the rest of the candidates finish up the challenge, making a mental note to keep tabs on a few of the females. The females seemed to be doing very well in a few of the challenges that, if he was a betting man, he would have counted them out of. He was impressed that the entire group had proved themselves capable in one skill or another, they were a competent lot. Pleased with himself for passing the climbing challenge, Keavon decided that perhaps it made up for his lack of eye-hand coordination that had led him to do so poorly on the one prior.

A memory challenge was next, and that alone had Keavon furrowing his eyebrows. He had absolutely no idea if he had a good recall or not, he had never found it necessary to memorize anything in particle. The things he did on an every day basis, like knotting his rope, had simply become muscle memory. Not to say he couldn't remember anything, but Keavon tended to only remember things that he, personally, thought were important.

The Candidate folded himself awkwardly on the mat, and studied the tablet in front of him, all the while listening M'kai's instructions. Yes, Keavon could read and write, his father had felt it necessary to teach him as a child, so he could help keep track of the the success of their fishing boats each year.

Now where was the wing-sail? The candidate scrutinized the drawing, trying to recall what he had learned before. Oh, there it is! Keavon's lips upturned slightly as he wrote down a one in his messy-but-legible scrawl on the appropriate space. He then glanced back up at M'kai waiting for further instruction.

[Ivy]

While she wasn't afraid of heights she opted out of climbing the rock face. It wasn't that she wasn't a skilled climber - in fact she was. However she preferred to save her energy for whatever might come next. When M'kai gave them their next task she was bit disappointed since she could have climbed and still been able to do this - its not as if remembering things took a lot of energy after all.

So she picked a mat and sat there with her eyes trained on M'kai. Occasionally they would flit around to the other Candidates as they took their time settling in, especially Torino. She still hadn't decided if his earlier comment on her coming in last in swimming was meant to be rude or not. He was a bit... odd.

As M'kai spoke again she looked at her tablet and marked it where she believed it was. True she didn't know everything about the anatomy of a dragon but surely she could at least guess at most of them, right?

[dragon]

Isori dusted off her hands, and frowned slightly. Somehow, she'd managed to royally screw that up. She was not at all pleased with herself, she should have done better than that. But, given it was her first try at really destination rock-climbing, she couldn't really judge herself too harshly.

But now she was involved in this game thing, she might as well keep going, see what else there was to do. It was better than standing around at the edges watching everyone else and holding her elbows. So she followed the group over to the next thing. Though it rather mystified her. Was this a test? If so, it was a rather silly test. Or maybe not. It would certainly sort the ones that had been paying attention and had real interest from those who just didn't give a shard in the first place.

Settling down and resting her board on her knees, she watched and listened before knuckling down and getting to work. This wasn't too hard ... it especially helped that she'd had a dragon to investigate in person. Futh was such an interesting creature, and so nice, too. He took flattery really well! But, due to that, she was certainly familiar with the parts and bits of a dragon.

Her handwriting was fluid and graceful, not due to her being taught at any particular level, but because she and Orena had sometimes competed to come up with fancy lettering styles and types. Partly for fun, and partly for embroidery and stylizing on clothing. As a result, her normal handwriting was - in her opinion - a very nice style. If with a touch more flair than was strictly called for. But hey, grace carried over into everything, did it not?

[Rowana]

Not bad, Nabrik supposed with a shrug, but not great either. He was loosing a bit of steam after such a great start, but at least he wasn't late. Kaevon was doing fairly well, which was to be expected. The older boy was a strong challenger. Some of the girls were a bit surprising though. Who would have thought Nividya would be good at climbing rocks? It was safe to say that even stubborn Nabrik was learning a touch of respect for his fellow Candidates today. Even if he was still a boy out to prove he was just as good, if not better than they were.

Nabrik collected Alph and followed the others to the next challenge. Blinking at the odd boards, the boy scowled as M'kai explained. What a dumb challenge this was. Nabrik almost considered sitting out. Intellectually exercises, even memory ones, just weren't something he was good at. He started to get up. Leaving? Nabrik lose, Alph chided, nibbling his ear. "I'm not leaving," the boy said in a rush. He crossed his arms and sat back down with a determined look. Alph was right, he could face anything! Besides, hadn't he learned that part of being a good rider was having a good memory?

The challenge began and Nabrik's face scrunched with concentration.

[Ruby]

First: Isori (1+3=4 points)
Second: Roselle (4+2=6 points)
Nabrik (5+1=6 points)
Keavon (6+1=7 points)

Cailan (4 points)
Torino (3 points)
Nividya (2 points)

M'kai finished marking slates, then met Isori's eyes and smiled. "Good job, Isori, top marks. And Roselle only missed one. Well done, both of you. Nabrik and Keavon - double check the names of the digits, you got a few of them mixed up. Still excellent, however. I'm impressed with all of you." He included those that hadn't chosen to participate in the memory recall round in that, nodding to the three where they were finishing up recovering from rock climbing. Torino especially seemed to be having a hard time of it, but that was alright. Everyone really had done well, and they'd all made him proud. They'd be ready for the hatching after all.

"One more game before we finish up for the day. You might have noticed little bundles of leaves lying around - jungle leaves from near Burimyu, not mountain leaves from the trees around here. I've hidden them around all the games we played today. If you were paying attention, you might have spotted some of them. Everyone take a sack -" Another smile for Isori, she'd helped him re-purpose some of the near-useless delicate silk they'd taken from that Caravan "- and get ready. Some of them are out in the open, some of them are hidden away, and to make it harder I hid bundles of mountain tree leaves too. Picking those up by accident will hurt your score, so you might want to compare them to the trees in the forest... although that will cost you time, of course. Your choice. Ready, set... GO!"

[Sebz]

Keavon grinned as the challenge ended. It had gone better than he had hoped, and he had even managed to get a few right. The quiet candidate noticed that not everybody had chosen to participate in the challenge, which was quite perplexing. The challenges weren't terribly hard, and even the ones that were the most difficult were still entertaining. Sitting around and watching wouldn't be that interesting, to admit, it sounded quite dull.

The next game that they were to play, and apparently the last, seemed quite fun. If he had understood the challenge correctly, they were to go and collect piles of leaves that were scattered through out the area. Keavon furrowed his eye brows in concentration. He had vague memories of where he had seen such piles, but then again, they could have been piles of the mountain tree leaves.

Taking a sack he glanced at his comrades. No, he corrected himself, they were his competition, at least for this challenge. They were diverse in strengths and weaknesses, as had been demonstrated by their placing in the challenges. The girls seemed to have a great strength for recognition, so they would probably already have a good idea where the piles of leaves were. The guys seemed to all physically fit, not to say the girls weren't, but they had generally done well in the activities that involved stamina.

With this information, Keavon devised a plan. He would go find the most obvious piles,, but after that, he would make a break towards the rock climbing and river areas, where he was sure he would gain an advantage if the leaves were placed in an obscure area.

"Good luck," he murmured to the other candidates, the only words that he had said all day, before taking off at a fast jog in search of the leaf piles.

[dragon]

Isori smiled brightly at M'kai. She was quite proud to have made him proud. Though she had absolutely adored going over Futh even when she hadn't known there would be a test on such things. Her smile only brightened a little further when he looked at her again. She didn't care that the reference was only due to what little help she may or may not have given in doing something.

She picked up a sack, considered blowing a kiss at M'kai, decided against it unless someone call foul on her hard-won points because of it, and hurried away. Some of them she knew where they were, certainly. Mostly because she had been bored and hadn't bothered to participate in several of the games. Left more time for looking around at stuff. Even if the most prominent eye candy was most certainly not a cluster of leaves!!

Running toward the river and the water, she slipped momentarily on the sloped, wet ground. Regaining her balance with her arms out, she continued onward to where she had seen that clump of leaves. Scooping it up, she stuffed it into her sack before scrambling back up the bank again, onto the level playing field and darting back toward the sling range.

[Ivy]

Leaves? Leaves?

What in all of Pern did this have to do with becoming a dragonrider? She could understand some of the other challenges but this one seemed a bit ridiculous. Still she didn't have anything better to do... Idly she wondered if they did such silly things at the real Weyr... Damn that Tenlie for not telling her they were coming here!

Standing up she grabbed a sack and headed out towards the field. Stopping she let her eyes scan the area for a moment before making her way towards where the swimming challenge had been. She found a pile and stuffed it in her bag before turning on her heel. Making her way towards where they'd shot the slingshots she saw Isori and diverted the other way - towards the rock climbing area. Its not that she didn't like the other Candidate, she just wasn't fond of anyone else in this place just yet. Except maybe Torino, he might be worth getting to know - he was at least a bit cute, if nothing else. Stopping she turned to see if he was going to bother participating or not - she'd noticed he seemed keen on not winning at anything. Who had Searched him? He had no motivation, no drive to succeed.

Only a few seconds were wasted considering the man before she turned and looked at the pile of leaves in front of her. Hm. They weren't the ones she was supposed to be grabbing, so she ignored them and moved on. A few strides to her left and she found a pile of leaves she was after so she grabbed them up. This was too easy.

Leaves. Really?

[torino]

Torino stayed seated while M'kai addressed the group as a whole, arms looped around his knees. He was the last to retrieve a sack, the last to amble off towards the courses. Some of the others were running - try hards, he had known - but Roselle paused for a moment, so he fell in next to her, offering her an ironic little smile as she considered a pile of leaves. She seemed to think those were the wrong ones, but Torino wasn't so sure - he scooped up the bundle she'd passed over, then ambled off towards the treeline without a backwards glance. Next time he was at dinner he'd make a point to sit near her, but he didn't feel like having a conversation right now. Too tired, and his hair was all mussed. Later.

Once he reached the trees, he pulled down a low-hanging branch, comparing the leaves to the ones on the trees. It didn't match the ones on this tree, so he worked his way deeper into the forest, trying to find a definite match. Better to make sure you had the right leaves before you went picking them up willy nilly, no? Also, once he was out of sight, Torino managed to sneak a sip from the flask he always carried - somehow he figured M'kai wouldn't be a fan of him drinking in front of the kids, but a little 'help' might make this exercise more fun. And indeed, he was almost immediately proved right - he matched his leaves to a tree, only to find a bundle of what looked like the right kind of leaves at the base of the tree. He kept both.

[Rowana]

Nabrik took a sack, looking a little put out. He had been hoping for something a little more to his liking for the last game. They were to collect leaves? That didn't sound fun, that sounded hard! He couldn't remember seeing any different leaves around, he'd been too focused on the other games. Still, he wasn't about to back out now. He'd done all the other challenges, so he would do this one too, just to prove he was no coward.

Squaring his shoulders, Nabrik started off away from the others. He had to get the right kind of leaves, he thought firmly to himself. He could remember that, surly. Alph scurried ahead, helpfully pointing out piles as they passed them. Nabrik scooped up a bunch and put it in his sack. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. "Come on, Alph," he chimed with a grin. "Let's show 'em!" He and his salamandyr jogged off around the courses, searching for more leaf piles.