Name Pronounced: Vah-lure Character type: Dragonrider Rank: Wingsecond Age: 36 Gender: Male Sexual Preference: Bisexual
Current Location: Arolos Weyr
Appearance: V'ler is tall, dark-haired, and handsome. He has chiseled cheekbones that lead up to deep hazel eyes that tend to sparkle with amusement. His nose and lips are proportional for his face, but his nose has a bit of an arc from being broken in a fight. If you look closely at his ears, they're not quite even. The left one is slightly higher than the right. He can wiggle them too, a trick he learned as a kid playing with his siblings. He's handsome in the face, almost overly so. If he was arrogant and pretentious, the effect would be too much. As it is, his crooked half-cocked smile is constantly there, making it hard to hate him because he's beautiful. He has a casual confidence about him too, the kind where he just looks naturally good, as if he doesn't have to try to hard. Which is partially true; he's not one to put much work into his looks, but he's also a bit vain about them. He likes to think he just takes care of himself.
He was never one for exercising much before becoming a Rider. He comes from a family line with a great metabolism, and he eats a ton. Yet despite this, he's hardly more than a pound or two over ideal weight. He tends towards movement, so he'll never be accused of being lazy. But he dislikes exercising just to exercise. He prefers to be active and engage in games and activities with friends, and being a dragonrider isn't exactly for the weak. So he's got a decent frame on him with a toned body. He's tall too, standing around 6'2".
He has numerous scars across his body. Some he's willing to explain, others, he's not. None of them are disfiguring in any way, but if you counted even all the small ones, he has probably 30 or so, including some very deep scratch scars across his right pec and abdomen.
Personality: V'ler is naturally a fun-loving easy-going guy. He has an easy-going attitude that masks a more serious underlay. He understands that people perceive him in a particular way, and uses that natural tendency of perception to his advantage. People tend to underestimate him, so that the pressure to succeed is nearly completely internal. When he succeeds in a splendid fashion, he enjoys the surprise he sees in others. He also enjoys a sense of adventure, or doing something just because he's expected not to. He tends to move through life with confidence and a casual air of indifference. He doesn't consider himself magnetic or charming, rather he just is who he is, though the terms certainly apply. He lacks true arrogance, and usually only compliments himself in a self-deprecating way.
He's serious underneath it all and is guided by a very strong ideal of right and wrong. He'll stand up for what he believes in, always, but he's also smart enough to know when his "opponent" will defeat himself (with a little guidance from V'ler). It helps that he's good at reading people. He works hard and expects a lot out of himself and his wingmates. He's just not one to overtly stress about things, instead internalizing them. One of his favorite sayings is "you can only control yourself," so why stress out about others' actions? His sense of morality is less dictated by others and more by his own gut and heart, something that has gotten him into trouble before.
He became sexually aware of himself long before coming to the Weyr. Perhaps it's even why he came, to be somewhere that his attraction to men wouldn't be viewed as negatively. Still, he enjoys both sexes nearly equally. He's chivalrous to women and adores them. But he loves the feeling of a man's touch on his skin. Vivaeldi thinks his bisexual nature is due to some deep-seeded longing for his older-brothers that went to Fort. He just shrugs and asks her why it matters.
Unlike his sister, he has a weak stomach for blood. He fainted when he cut himself ship-building and nearly cut off a finger. Viv never let him live that down.
History: Valeron's father, Alderon, was a shipbuilder and his mother, Viviana, a creche worker at Ista Hold. He has several siblings including two brothers, A'ver, and V'ctor (deceased) and three sisters, Vivaldi, Vivia, and Avera. He grew up especially close to Vivaeldi, who was 2 Turns older than he was, in part because his two older brothers left for Igen Weyr to live with an uncle there. He never really understood why they left, and as a kid, it deeply troubled him. After Viv apprenticed to the healers, he decided to apprentice in his father's craft.
He had been Searched at the 'old' age of 21. He never knew why the Searchrider chose him. He just knew that he did, and V'ler, finding the entire situation humorous, went with the offer. He never actually expected to Impress and figured, at the most, he'd have a new experience for a little less than a Turn before returning to the Craft. As it was, he Impressed to brown Kiyosarath, and amazingly, Vivaeldi Impressed to a green in the same Clutch, even though she was 23 and just there to make a point, much like himself.
When his sister was severely burned, V'ler helped to care for her dragon. He was there during some of the earlier times when Viv was still bedridden. She frustrated him at that point, and it was one of the few times that his friends would see him struggle. It was hard to be Vivaeldi's brother, not to be overly protective, and yet she made it so hard to feel bad for her. She'd been a horrible patient for a good stretch of time, until she finally came to terms with what had happened to her. Looking back now, especially after First Fall, he's somewhat glad for his sister's injuries as she's less likely to be killed. During her recovery, V'ler treated Bajezeth like another sister for him. He loves her dearly, and Kiyo and Baj can usually be found together.
Since being at the Weyr, V'ler has had numerous lovers of both sexes. Kiyo loves to chase greens with no regard as to the sex of their rider. He's fathered a few kids. He lets the Creche system take care of them, but still visits them and interacts with them. He's never been in a long-term relationship, but tends to end most of his amicably with a few exceptions.
One of those exceptions was a Weyrborn girl name Annissae. He knew her casually around the Weyr, but they bedded together after a flight. He liked her well enough at first. She was pretty and nice. But something was off in her for being Weyrborn; she got jealous quickly and took their relationship to heart significantly more than he did. A fight turned violent one night between them, and V'ler still has the scars from her scratches to prove it. He avoids her as often as possible in the Weyr now. It's perhaps because of her that he tends to leave after flightlust before the other partner wakes up.
He's well-liked around the Weyr and has many friends. He is closest with his sister and a few other riders. He has also known too many who've died. The images from the first day he fought Thread still send chills up and down his spine. He'd soiled himself the first minute they were out there. Watching someone get eaten by Thread was horrific; no harper's song, wing drills, or weyrlingmaster's lessons had prepared them for what today had actually been like. And when Fall was over, waves of guilt and relief had washed over him, realizing that he was alive and without hardly a scratch on him. And yet, despite the fear and the guilt, he knew that Falls would be a part of his life from now on. He never really considered himself brave before, but now, he looks around and realizes that every Rider is brave for getting on their dragons and fighting Thread Fall after Fall. And he envies his dragon's short memory; some images are burned eternally into his mind.
He loved Ista Weyr, but the death of a close friend and lover left him bereft. So many of his friends had died over the Turns. His wingleader, sympathetic to the loss, suggested a change of scenery and new wingmates. He also didn't leave V'ler much of a choice, and sent him down to Arolos in hopes that the Southern atmosphere would help heal the emotional wounds.
Father: Alderon
Mother: Viviana, a creche worker.
Brothers: A'ver (bronzerider at Igen), V'ctor (deceased bluerider)
Sisters: Vivia, Avera and Vivaeldi rider of green Bajezeth.
Niece: Vaerynika, greenrider at Fort to Sonjath
Kids: Valerika
Information about V'ler's pets
Pet Name: Sunshine
Pet Type: Green Firelizard
Appearance: Though quite large for a green, she’s not the prettiest. She’s one of the few creatures to hatch that will almost match her egg, though her hide is a darker shade of lime green than the shell she hatched from. She’s almost uniform in colour except for a big, unattractive splotch of swampy-green across her neck and left shoulder that clashes horribly with the rest of her. She’s solidly built, clearly made more for stamina and strength than is usual for a green.
Personality: Some might say this green has more in common with a wher than a dragon, and its true as far as her vision goes. She’s painfully sensitive to light, hardly able to stand being outside in the sun, though on a good day she can tolerate it when the sky is very overcast. She’s a temperamental and moody thing and often snappish when she’s feeling extra irritated by the pain light causes her. She will be very attached to her owner, perhaps because she will rely on them so much throughout the day if she’s out with them, or because she will miss them when she decides to shut herself away in the dark.
Which she will do often and these will lead to her being much more active at night. She does fine in the dark, seeing fairly well though not with the excellent night-vision that a wher might have. In the wee hours is when she’ll show the sweetest aspects of her personality, often wanting to play or have an extended cuddle-time. Her owner will have to figure out ways to keep her entertained at night, or at least teach her some independence so she can entertain herself elsewhere and away from where they sleep. Otherwise they’re going to have many rough mornings after a night of being kept awake.
Information about V'ler's dragon
Dragon Name: Kiyosarath
Colour: Brown
Age: 15
Wing (Weyrling Group): Thunder Flame
Appearance: Kiyo is a simple average brown. He's average in size; average in color which resembles freshly-mixed mud; and average in capabilities. His biggest distinguishing feature is the interesting pattern of lighter spots that seem to decorate his left hind flank. When they were weyrlings, V'ler used to play "connect the dots" with the spots. Kiyo often stares at them, trying to see all the shapes that his rider has. He has minor Threadscoring on his right front shoulder and across his left wing sail.
Personality: Kiyo is very similar to his rider and a transcript of their running commentary would be a comedic play. At first glance, he is funny, sarcastic, and outgoing. But this covers a more protective nature. This is easily seen in his attitude towards Bajezeth. He is very protective of the green, often nurturing her and reassuring her of her value. His rider often calls him a big squishy (which Kiyo naturally feels is insulting). But the idea is that Kiyo doesn't immediately come off as taking things so seriously. He is very attune to his Rider's personal relationships and finds them interesting, often exploiting various aspects of them for his own amusement.
Like his rider, he usually exudes an air of casual confidence. This translates into a brown who is often still stretching when they're about to start wingdrills. Many a wingleader early on mistook the brown's indifferent attitude to be laziness. But Kiyo just needs to get warmed up; like a rock rolling down a hill, he tends to build up as he goes, often impressing his leaders with his performance. When he's shocked or startled, it takes him a minute to regain his orientation, though he'll likely try and bullshit and fake his way through it so it's not obvious. If dragons drank klah, Kiyo would be that habitual drinker who couldn't function without a cup in the morning. As it is, he usually has to make do with air and a quick dip in the lake or ocean.
And for a dragon, he stays well-informed of the Weyr's gossip, always seeming to know things before his Rider does, and always with an explanation.
Weyr of Origin: Ista
Abilites and weaknesses: He's also good at reading dragons, and has been known to be quite a charmer of female greens. He tries to keep his rider busy by participating in at least one greenflight a week. He doesn't win them all, but he's pretty confident he's got a winning record (though he doesn't actually keep track).
He's also surprisingly good with names for a dragon. Perhaps he's got a super memory...or perhaps it's just that he constantly reviews the lists of who's who and stays up to date on his gossip channels. Either way, Kiyo usually has the name before V'ler does.
The Dragonriders of Pern® is registered U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, by
Anne McCaffrey, used here with permission. Use or reproduction without a license is
strictly prohibited.