Jazra's Green Liaoth

Gaping Chasm Egg

This egg is a trifle oddly colored. The shell is a mostly unbroken white, save for a swath of muted blue-gray that bisects it along its horizontal axis. The gaping chasm is unchained by any bridge and far too wide for any leap to span the gap. Shadows on the hatching grounds, or perhaps a dusting of Ista's black volcanic sands, put a vague smudge of darkness on the apex of the egg. The shadow of a heroic couple, prepared to swing across the gap, perhaps. Regardless, there is an uneasy stillness about this egg, as though it waits with leashed impatience for hatching day.

Egg Inspiration: Star Wars

Who could forget Luke and Leia, in their panicked flight from the prison cells on the Death Star, taking a wrong turn and finding the bridge out? In a panic, Luke blasts the control panel to lock out the stormtroopers behind him, only to realize they also controlled the bridge. He throws a grappling hook across and Leia kisses him "For luck!" and the pair swing romantically across the chasm. Too bad they're brother and sister!

Hatching Pose: Gaping Chasm Egg cracks along the blue-gray line that bisects it, almost like a biscuit split in half with a fork. The top half raises slowly, serving as a hat for the pale green dragonet inside. The creature shakes her head, sending the white piece of egg flying off, barely missing a candidate that stands nearby. The green rocks back and forth, attempting to free herself from the bottom half as well--and finally tumbles tail-over-head into the blackness of the Istan sands with a startled sound.

Determined Celadon Green

Pale celadon spreads evenly across this petite hatchling's shape, like a piece of pottery that's been carefully glazed. Blunt of tail-tip but long of muzzle, she’s evenly muscled from one end to the other, though narrow through the hip and chest. The color of her hide deviates briefly along her underbelly, lightening in drops where a bit of finish may have dripped off before firing. Powerful wings sweep wide, belied by a delicate, silky stretch of wingsails brushed with bold strokes of darker green in a seemingly random pattern. Careful study may reveal something more: designs reminiscent of sweeping mountain vistas or even knobby vines of flowers. Small eyeridges and smooth headknobs echo the darker shade, barely shadowing a deliberate gaze that emerges from eyes set close together. Sparkling jade tips her neckridges and talons, the only glitter on an otherwise subtly-adorned green.

Final Size: 21.2

Inspiration: Liaoth is based on the main character in Disney's animated feature, Mulan. The movie is about a Chinese girl who, disguised as a man, joins her country's army in place of her elderly father so that her family will not be dishonored. She keeps her gender secret, training and living with the other men in the army without them finding out who she really is until she's been wounded in battle. Earlier in the story, Mulan is shown to be kind of a tomboy--certainly not the girly-girl she’s supposed to be when her mother takes her to the matchmaker to find a husband. Despite being cast out from the Army after it's revealed that she's female, Mulan goes on to keep her loyalty to her country and helps to save the Emperor from the invading Huns. More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulan

Her color and markings are inspired by celadon, which is both a color and a type of pottery original produced in China. The glaze of the pottery is pale green and is meant to mimic jade. More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celadon and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celadon_(color)

Name: Liaoth - Liaoth's name is based on one of the Chinese words for 'good' or 'smart.' "Liao" is the pinyin spelling/pronunciation. Traditional and simplified symbol: http://www.mandarintools.com/cgi-bin/ugif/5AFD.gif Pronunciation: http://www.mandarintools.com/sounds/liao2.aif

Mindvoice: Liaoth's mind is usually a gentle, calming breeze that cools the Istan heat. Her voice is almost lyrical, though certainly not sing-songy. The sounds flow and blend, inconspicuously slipping in and out of your hearing. While she favors words over images to express herself, there are usually bright, cheery undertones accompanying her thoughts, mostly in primary colors. That can help them stand out a little more when necessary, as well. When something's wrong or she's anxious, the winds of her mind whip into a frenzy that's enough to drive anyone crazy! Luckily, that should happen pretty rarely, given her calm nature.

Internal Impression Message: Unsure at first, the Determined Celadon Green Hatchling pauses in front of a raven-haired candidate, studying her with fast whirling eyes. The green's delicate, silken sails spread wide in a welcoming pose until she suddenly lurches forward, almost tumbling into the one she's chosen. Managing to right herself, those wings lend her a moment's balance, long enough for her to look into a steely gray gaze and claim what's hers.

External Impression Message: A tentative tendril, almost questioning, reaches out and curls around you. It's like a soft, gentle breeze that wraps you in its coolness, soothing away the heat and humidity of these dark tropical sands. The breeze quickens, whipping up a swirl of dust that clouds your mind. The colors and sounds of the sands swirl together, fuzzy with confusion though there’s an underlying current of joy throughout. Suddenly she’s there, pale and petite, parting the cloud that twists in your mind and stubbornly claiming you as her own as everything around you comes back into focus. << Jazra, I am Liaoth! You are –mine- and I am yours! Will you hunt something for me to eat? >>

Temperament

Weyrling:
All weyrlings are clumsy. But your Liaoth--she's more so than usual. Starting out, she'll have trouble with training sessions, such as her first flight or wing exercises. It's not always her fault when things go badly, though—she might’ve just been in the wrong place at the wrong time when that vat of oil was knocked over. Despite her floundering she may try to appear as if she knows what she's doing, even if it's obvious that she doesn't.

Liaoth may be fairly shy in the early stages of weyrlinghood. While she is willing to make friends with her clutchmates, it might take a while for her to really warm up to them - her clumsiness may make her self-conscious with others. She may have trouble relating to other greens and golds in particular, instead preferring the camaraderie of guys over gals.

There will be a turning point, though, perhaps halfway through training, when suddenly things will fall into place. She will figure out exactly where to put her wings to get where she needs to go, and understand just how to chew the firestone to get a good flame. Though modest about her accomplishments, she enjoys it when you (and others) sing her praises just a little - even if it makes her inclined to hide her head.

Overall, she's a fairly steadying force, determined to better herself no matter what’s required. She won’t mind getting down and dirty, though she’ll want a bath afterward. When the others are lounging by the lake after a hard lesson, she’d rather be practicing. << Just one more landing? I flubbed the last one a little! >> In the end, her perseverance will pay off, but you’ll have to make sure she isn’t overworked.

Adult:
After all that bumbling as a weyrling, Liaoth will be much more graceful as an adult. Her size might make her seem like a delicate flower, but there's power in her diminutive body. That power is not only physical, but mental: once she's set her mind to something, it may be hard to get her to back down. She's fairly level-headed, so usually her positions will make sense... but sometimes they won't, and you'll just have to work with or around her balkiness.

Sometimes your Liaoth might get fanciful ideas that seem to pop out of nowhere, like a sudden desire to fly off and visit Red Sands even if you don't know anyone there. Traveling to new places makes her giddy in a way that almost nothing else does, and she has a strong sense of adventure that draws her on. For that reason alone, she may try to volunteer for the pair of you for long sweeps--but then you'll have a chance to hunt in new places, so it'll be a win-win situation all around.

Liaoth will be very loyal to you, her weyr, her clutchmates, and her wing. With that loyalty comes a protective nature. << Maybe you shouldn’t visit them any more, >> she’ll reason of snarky Holders, << They seem mean! >> Her need to lend protection and do the right thing can lead her to be a bit of a snitch sometimes. If she thinks that sharing information can help protect or save someone, she'll do it, even if she was asked to keep quiet. Or course, it's entirely possible, with a dragon's memory, that she’ll forgot she was asked to keep it quiet in the first place.

Flight:
Liaoth's proddiness will be subtle until right before her flight. It will manifest with self-doubt and distraction: suddenly feeling inadequate at sweeps, missing little details here and there that she usually would've caught, and having trouble flaming because she's not paying enough attention. She may feel uncomfortable, and bewildered.

The only time Liaoth will care about being attractive to others will be when she's proddy, and that may be why she feels awkward. Normally she has too much common sense to bother with the opinion of others. Then suddenly she'll be bright and glowing and up in the air, and she'll feel awkward in the sky, too. She'll try to demonstrate her beauty by twisting through the air and showing off her silky wings, but she can't help feeling self-conscious.

Still, your Liaoth will have the prowess to fly high for a green and will usually fly well even though she may feel unwieldy. She may use lots of tricks and diversions to make sure those chasers pay close attention. Only those dragons smart enough to keep up with her capers will be able to come close to her: brains over brawn, for sure.

Wing:
Liaoth is small and sinewy, and that will serve her well in her wing. She'll be able to quickly dart in to flame at errant ropes during drills, but also have the stamina to keep up with some of the blues when it comes to distance flying. Still, you should keep tabs on her energy levels. As she gets older, she'll be less likely to deny when she needs rest, but it's something you should watch out for as it may affect the wing.

She'll also be very loyal and helpful as part of her wing. In fact, sometimes she may go too far, trying to sacrifice herself in place of others in the wing when there's a hard job to be done. Attempting to martyr herself for others, though, will almost certainly bring admonishment from her Wingleader. It’s nice that she wanted to help that blue rider when he had to haul firestone from one end of the weyr to the other, but it was his punishment to complete, not hers!

During search, Liaoth will be very astute at finding candidates and will enjoy the process of studying those that are available in order to find the one that's just right. She'll be a little shy about it, at first, and uncertain of her abilities, especially if her candidate doesn’t impress. Once she's had some practice and seen positive results, she might become more confident.

Credits:

Egg: K'tor
Description: C'len
Temper: C'len
Puppeteer: C'len