{ Matteo Lee | Male | 17 }
Rider-to-be | Location: Ferry | Mentions: Anu, others on the deck

Typically, Matteo would have been up on his feet and holding down his excitement. He had been waiting for the trip since he was invited to the Port. Yet to his dismay, the boy had fallen asleep in the cabin of the ship, slumped on the corner of a bench with his head resting on his shoulder. Last he checked, there were still others speaking in hushed whispers around him. How long had he been out? As he pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, Teo couldn't spot many of the future riders. They must have gone out to the deck. Perhaps they were getting close to their destination? He rubbed the back of his wrist over sleep-heavy brown eyes and trotted out the cabin door.

He barely took a step into the cold, damp atmosphere before he nearly tumbled backwards. The hands previously tucked in his pockets flew out to grab the railings lining the deck, eyes blown wide. With both shock and admiration, it seemed. Surrounded by a group of passengers, a beautiful feathered beast accepting the gentle strokes of another rider-to-be. Matteo started advancing slowly, shooting a glance through squinting eyes into the fog. He could see specks of people on the docks, and deemed the dragon one of theirs. Turning his gaze back at the creature, he examined it from head to toe, sliding in with the small gathered crowd. Avius, by the look of it. The dragon had the same build and feathers as his uncle's companion. As contrasting as her colors were, the dragon was mesmerizing. "She's stunning." He replied quietly, still careless to those around him.

⇺ [ Alistair Simmons ] ⇻
30 Years |•| Male |•| Chancellor
Location: Ferry Docks |•| Mentions: William, Barra (Directly) / Anu, Riders-to-be (Indirectly)

It would be safe to assume Alistair wasn't pacified by Barra's answer if the frown currently crossing his face was anything to go by. Wild dragons couldn't always be controlled and the drifters didn't often create all that much chaos while shepherding ferries to the isle, but he would have hoped trained dragons would be less impulsive. "The next time we have a group of riders-to-be arriving I suggest keeping her better occupied," he huffed, though he would soon have to bite his tongue as a pale shimmer could be glimpsed through the mist, heading toward the ship rapidly.

Not wishing to be outdone, it appeared Specter was shadowing Anu. It figured in the middle of an admonishment his own dragon would misbehave. Hoping his companions hadn't seen her and things wouldn't get too out of hand, Alistair was quick to change the subject, William providing such an opportunity once he mentioned Artemis. "Indeed," he confirmed, hoping for her sake she was being extra vigilant. "I asked her to escort the riders here as per usual. I'm sure if there are any issues she'll able to resolve them."

Name: Nikolai Vaughn | Gender: Male | Age: 18 | Role: Rider-to-be
Location: Ferry | Mentions: Jaclyn, Artemis, Anu, Specter [Indirect]

The ferry had grown rowdier and louder, which was to be expected, but this time around it wasn’t the drifters’ dazzling gleam that was to be blamed. To have an audience with a dragon in the flesh had that effect, he reckoned, to be this close and personal was an experience only possible in fantasies or dreams of which he had way too many of. Though he was a bit ashamed to be this flustered knowing that the island had more to offer than the rambunctious avius and docile drifters; some were simply downright beastial from what he had read. Nikolai would have hoped to at least reach the island not looking like a ripened tomato, however, if there was anything to take away from the avius’s rather touchy personality, he feared his wistful wishing was futile at best, thus he had to get away from their close proximity pronto.

As the avius’s attention was swiftly whisked away, courtesy of Jaclyn who had bigger balls than he did from the looks of it, Nikolai took the opportunity to safely relocate to a location that wasn’t within the dragon’s periphery, looking quite relieved while he was at it as he settled amongst the crowd as a chameleon would. In any other circumstance, he would’ve shared Jaclyn’s enthusiasm, although he was far better off being in the sidelines, for now, opting to stare than the conventional reaction that some riders-to-be were prone on doing.

An authoritative voice of indiscernible origin had his eyes flicker briefly from the dragon and toward where he suspected the voice to have come from. The woman, despite her stature, was quick to identify by virtue of the drastic contrast to the overly eager and excitable riders-to-be that surrounded her, as well as her peculiar hairstyle and--well, she was much older than the rest of us, unless middle-aged individuals were qualified to be rider-to-bes. From the way she had greeted the avius as one would to an old friend, it was relatively safe to assume that the dragon wasn’t wild, though she’s still quite free-spirited despite that fact. The woman, on the other hand, must be a supervisor of some sort; perhaps an educator like the ones he read about? Either way, Nikolai guarded his assumptions to save himself the humiliation of being wrong. She looked like the sort that didn’t tolerate such.

Loud, and labored beating of wings later captured his attention. In the horizon, as if one with the mist and haze, a white figure flew over the water’s surface, its reflection upon the sea distorted, like a crudely made replica. ‘’Christ. ‘’ He muttered, able to deduce what species it could be even from this distance. Those horns, in particular, were a dead give away. ‘’An albino wyvern? ‘’

⇺ [ Alistair Simmons ] ⇻
30 Years |•| Male |•| Chancellor
Location: Ferry Docks |•| Mentions: Barra, William (Directly) / Riders-to-be (Indirectly)

When neither of his companions pointed out Specter's pale form vanishing into the mist he relaxed a fraction, though it didn't stop the irritation he felt toward his dragon partner. Specter knew better than to cause too much trouble, but he'd specifically asked the wyvern to keep herself in check. Alistair supposed this was as good a reminder as any that even tamed dragons couldn't always be controlled, and as such, his formerly critical gaze had softened the next time he glanced Barra's way, as much of an apology for the scolding as she would receive.

A familiar shimmering glow beneath the water's surface caught his eye a moment or so later. "Right on time, The ferry should be here any minute then," he commented, sounding relieved. He doubted the drifters would have returned to the docks if anything especially chaotic were occurring, though a fearsome roar in the distance saw his expression grow taut with exasperation, bright bursts of light faintly visible through the fog. Specter was showing off and he could only hope she would reign herself before she set the boat on fire, or worse, burned someone.

He liked to think she had more control than that, but even after all these years together Specter could still prove unpredictable. The gentle click of tiny claws against wooden planks failed to distract him, though he remained remarkably still as a miniaturized version of the drifters swimming below launched herself up his body until she could stand across his shoulders. A soft chirr of greeting filled his ear as Jade made herself comfortable, no doubt eager to greet the new riders once they arrived.

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⇺ [ Jaclyn Casey ] ⇻
19 Years |•| Female |•| Rider-To-Be
Location: Ferry |•| Mentions: Anu, Artemis, Nikolai, Rafe (Directly)

As Anu spread her wings, presenting the future riders surrounding her with a magnificent display of color, Jaclyn found herself further enraptured. Whoever was bonded with this dragon was one lucky person. "Do you know what this species is called?" She asked aloud, assuming either of the men she just met might have an answer considering they clearly knew more about these creatures than she did. When Anu crept behind her Jaclyn moved to follow the action, not foolish enough to allow a predator to catch her unawares despite her awe, but much to her shock she hadn't quite been quick enough. The next thing she knew Anu had crawled between her legs so she was now settled on the avius' back.

As Anu lifted into the sky she hastily wrapped her arms around her neck, uncertain where to put her hands and not wishing to pull on her feathers. In truth, this was a bit unexpected and her heart thrummed against her rib-cage as panic began to set in. What if she fell off and fell into the ocean with the drifters or worse, what if Anu flew off with her and they landed somewhere uninhabited? Releasing her grip, she slid from Anu's back before she was too far into the air, landing rather gracelessly beside Rafe. "Thanks for the offer, Anu," she called up after composing herself, catching what Artemis had called the dragon as she approached them. "But I don't think I'm ready for a ride yet."

The sound of flapping soon drew her attention to the sky as another dragon came hurtling toward them. This one was much larger. Ghostly white scales covered her body rather than vibrant feathers and her eyes were as red as freshly spilled blood. The wyvern spiraled through the air in an impressive display, a roar so loud Jaclyn's hands moved to cover her ears emitted from her maw moments before bursts of electric blue fire lit up the sky. She flew rapid circles around the ferry, her hind claws occasionally skimming the water as if she were playfully teasing something despite the fact the drifters' glow had faded, causing her to cast a suspicious glance over the railing toward the waves before her attention returned to their newest visitor.

Artemis scolded this dragon in much the same way she had Anu and the wyvern's head tilted as she hovered above them, making an innocuous clicking nose before rising higher into the air. Jaclyn assumed this dragon, while a bit more unnerving compared to the beautiful avius, was relatively safe. She definitely wouldn't be trying to pet that one right off the bat though.

Name: William Maxwell | Gender: Male | Age: 27
Role: Terra-Class Mentor | Location: Docks | Mentions: Cennetig [Direct] Lei, Specter, Anu [ID]

Beneath the docks, Theodosia was busy with her machinations, of which William wasn’t keen on being involved in. He supposed that he should at least savor the few moments of peace since the pygmy’s retreat, knowing full well that any moment now, she’d soon emerge with better ways to torment him from the shadowy depths of the wooden foundations of the docks; a habit she’d grown quite fond of. ‘’Cennetig. ‘’ William managed to say, his thorough yet cursory glance through the mist saw to it that the rider-to-be was no more than a few feet behind them. ‘’You’d have more fun if you stayed at camp, you know. Don’t you think coming here yearly is getting a bit repetitive? ‘’ The young man’s footsteps rendered the silence obsolete, the quick succession of his questions effectively keeping William’s thoughts out of the more stressful details regarding the ferry.

As if on cue, Theodosia chose this moment to lift her head up between two planks of wood, though her attention was firmly focused elsewhere than usual and towards the vacant waterway, her sensitive whiskers flickering at the ends as if registering the faintest disturbance in the air. Like Cennetig had pointed out, distant cries of a dragon; deep and guttural like the ones that normally echo in the Wetlands, could be heard, and it didn’t take a genius to deduce that it was none other than Lei, which only meant one thing. ‘’They’re here. ‘’ He announced, though he reckoned his companions had already known even without his help.

The hull of the ferry first breached the deep haze of white and gray, groaning from the weight of its passengers and the unwanted added luggage of a pair of dragons judging by their faint silhouettes. ‘’When did Specter get there? ‘’

⇺ [ Alistair Simmons ] ⇻
30 Years |•| Male |•| Chancellor
Location: Ferry Docks |•| Mentions: Barra, William, Cennetig (Directly) / Riders-to-be (Indirectly)

Alistair's coppery gaze remained trained ahead of him, searching for any sign of the ferry or his dragon through the fog. Cennetig's approach did little to distract him and similarily to Barra, he left William to answer any questions the younger man had and converse with him. A roar in the not so far distance seemed to indicate the future riders were drawing closer and sure enough, the ferry appeared only a minute or so later. William's comment concerning both the ferry and Specter were met with silence, his eyes narrowing as Specter whooshed by overhead, the momentum from her wings pushing a powerful burst of wind against the people standing on the docks.

Bracing himself, an arm was lifted to defend his face from the assaulting blast of air, but he otherwise remained in place. Jade wasn't so lucky, chittering in aggravation as she was knocked from Alistair's shoulders by the gust, managing to land on her feet in much the same way a cat would. To say Alistair was less than pleased with his partner's antics was an understatement and under different circumstances, he would have given her a good scolding, but there was little time now with the ferry so close to the port. Besides, from the sound of Jade's retreating pawsteps and increasingly loud shrieking, she was on her way to tell Specter off herself.

A hand moved to fuss with his hair, but he eventually gave fixing it up as a lost cause and turned to ascertain his company was no worse for wear. Upon confirming such, he regarded Barra for a moment before speaking. "I want you to greet the riders this year," he announced. Normally he took care of that himself, but Barra was proving herself more than capable as vice-chancellor and he wanted to start giving her more opportunities to take charge and lead in her own right. "Do you think you're ready for that?"

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⇺ [ Jaclyn Casey ] ⇻
19 Years |•| Female |•| Rider-To-Be
Location: Ferry |•| Mentions: Anu, Artemis, Lei-Gilthi, Matteo, Myai

Jaclyn watched as the Avius rose higher into the sky without her, regret momentarily washing over her until she heard Artemis lecturing the feathered beast. While it definitely would have been a once-in-a-lifetime experience Jaclyn concluded her safety was probably worth more than an interesting story. Besides, she suspected there would be other opportunities once they reached the island. "Goodbye Anu! It was nice meeting you!" She called after the departing dragon, waving after her though it was unlikely Anu would see the gesture at this point as her colorful form disappeared within the mist.

The sound of splashing followed by an impressive roar saw her return to the railing, gripping the cold metal between her hands as she peered over the edge, catching sight of the brief scuffle between a Drifter and another new species she was unfamiliar with before the former fled and the latter received a rather amusing scolding. "Is that one yours?" Jaclyn asked Artemis curiously once she seemed to have the situation under control, recognizing there was a familiarity between them, perhaps even more than Artemis had shared with either Anu or the white dragon.

Speaking of which, Specter appeared to have heeded Artemis little mind, a puff of smoke emitting from her nostrils before vanishing into the fog only to reappear every few moments, gliding alongside the ferry as if reminding them all she was still with them. One boy, in particular, seemed to have caught her eye Jaclyn noticed. As they neared the port Specter drifted closer to the side of the ship Matteo and Myai currently resided on, blowing a puff of hot, but not scalding air at the pair before finally lifting higher into the sky and seemingly disappearing for good.