IF any dragon *could* survive the death of their rider, what would happen?

[Violetlight]

I had this idea for a fanfic, and just wanted to run it by the other fans out there.

9th pass, post SoP. Jaxom ends up badly threadscored. I know he usually doesn't take a very active role in fighting Thread -- like, he's not part of a usual fighting wing -- but he does help out, and bad luck can happen to anyone. Ruth is okay. On his deathbed, Jaxom's last, desperate wish is for Ruth to not die too ...

So he doesn't.

I figured that out of all Dragons, Ruth would, could be the only one who could possibly follow his rider's last wish.

My question is, what would happen next?

Ruth speaks regularly to Sharra in TWD, and I'd assume he would do so as well to hers and Jaxom's sons. He's arguably smarter than any other dragon, and has a lot of people besides his rider that love him.

Despite Kitti Ping's fears about uncontrollable dragons, I don't think Ruth would "go wild" like Fire Lizards presumably do if their bonds with their humans are strained or severed (with the exception of Robinton's Zair). Ruth is far more intelligent than any other dragon, but he's still a dragon, and I think he would still want to help and protect the people that both he and his rider loved.

Could he possibly be more like a Watch Wher? Do you think he could form a bond with a new rider, or could it be more like a Hold's Watch Wher's bond with the Hold itself over any one handler? Ruth of Ruatha would be kind of cool.

What are your thoughts?

[granath]

I think you're right in that if any dragon could survive the death of their rider, it would be Ruth, because he's so unusual in so many ways. That said, the fact that the bond between dragon and rider is so strong that neither can survive without the other is a part of why I think the books are so awesome. Sure, a few human riders have survived the deaths of their dragons, but they were basically all driven insane by the grief. Most wouldn't have wanted to survive and I always felt rather sorry for the riders who did. With the possible exception of Brekke, because she was so inhibited and unfit for Weyrlife that she shouldn't have Impressed in the first place, even if she could hear any dragon.


In short, if a dragon could survive the death of their rider, it wouldn't be Pern anymore.

[Cheryl]

Ruth would make sense as the only possibly exception to the norm of dragons reflexively going between when their riders die, because he seems to be so much more intelligent than even golds and bronzes. It could be a fun thing to explore in a fic.

I don't think a dragon (or rider) could ever re-bond. The dragon-rider bond is so unique, and so much more than that with a firelizard, that I don't think it can be repeated (I could do some hand-wavey science about unique un-alterable neural pathways being forged when the bond is set at hatching, if you like ). I would expect a non-bonded attachment between Sharra and Ruth, over their shared grief of losing Jaxom, and that Ruth would choose to communicate with and listen to her when he wants - but that she probably could not reach out to him when he's not paying attention.

[BD1]

If Jaxom died, Ruth would probably go Between! If Ruth lost Jaxom, how would he fight Thread???

[Bristol]

The dragon has to have a reason to stay that is stronger than grief. Nemorth stayed because of her eggs. She had a duty to dragonkind to remain until they were ready to hatch. She had to see that her daughter was ready to hatch and preserve dragonkind. Otherwise she would have gone between the moment Jora died. So it has to be that kind of epic need to stay, a deep draconic duty to dragonkind. If the dragon was unusual and had an ability that all of Pern were relying on and the rider, as they are dying can make the dragon understand that it is more important than grief, then the dragon might stay to complete the task, but no more than that.

One work around would be for dragon and ride to go into the future past the point where the dragon is needed and leave the rider there and the dragon go back and do what it needs to do. That any dragon could do, though not happily. Then the dragon can rejoin their rider shortly after they left and they can go between together.

[GinnyStar]

We see it even't more in Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern, and the other storry, that I can't spell N'sStory , When Lerri stays with the audio one with music, ttthat my libary had, really showed that.


Orlth turning gray, and her kening and if K'lon wasn't their, to support Leari I think that would have been even worst outcome, She couldn't get breath back into her lungs, and was racked with loss, and the two, waited for Orlth 's eggs, to hatch and then rematched with the right golds, in Anne's last short story, Beyond Between.

I just got done listening part ,, I do think someone elase here said that Anne forgot to removed the old queen, in the original nnovolette but, here is my personal view, I think they didn't teach the former pair to go between so that is why the queen is on the sand. She din't leave herher quarters without someone, to help here down, and when she could do it she took her queen to the feeding
ground, but not as offten as needed, so that is why she g ate too much, Later on
we see more of this from FF'lon POV in The MasterHarper of Pern, and how he managed his wyermate, .

That is why F'lar his sson, remind ed Lessa not to fainte during the maiting flight,
I think that he would have watched c how this worked or how he reacted F'lon to it, One time Joara fanted fainted right as her gold was ready to mate, so that it turned her dragon off to mate, just before we see F'lon telling Robinton about it, and I think its is when both his son impresses during this time.


I hope I gave some background on this, myself if I could I wonder if wha could a goof say a faint turned into something like I don't know, near loosing life or two. Dang I

By the way, I don't real ly care for Todde's handling of things, one isis D is , using timing to help a plot along, I know there is a time and place, but the way that its done, r rubbs me the wrong way, Or fightingb Thread twice, ?? the same one, Sorry I shall get off this box now