Fic: The Summer Intern (cont.)

[jeriendhal]

To Nan's disappointment they didn't follow the Sky Walk all the way to the small ferin village nestled in the treetops at the end. Instead they snuck down a service ladder hidden inside one of the support poles and climbed aboard the electric cart once again, which had been following them along the ground as they walked. Freya drove it down a small dirt pathway, honking at the occasional pebble gray ground scavenger lizard that got in their way. The flyer was waiting for them in a small clearing, whose only purpose was to serve a convenient parking area if one of the ferin in the village, effectively invisible in the trees even if it were only some ten meters away and thirty above their head, needed a sudden medivac or a more leisurely delivery.

The pilot was in fact a ferin, the first one Nan had seen since she'd gotten to Newspring. He was typical for his race, no taller than a cub in early adolescence, with grey skin, a pair of thin, mobile spurs rising up from hair an unlikely shade of purple, eyes a slightly more sensible violet, and dressed in not much more than a mottled green utili-kilt and a pair of aviator mirrorshades resting on his forehead.

“You can call me Skyler if you like,” he said, shaking her hand.

“Or you can call him, “For the Den Mother's sake slow down!” which is what we usually do,” Freya said wryly. She grabbed Nan's bag from the back of the cart and tossed it into the flyer's cargo compartment, then settled into her seat next to Nan as they both buckled in.

“You the new Freeman Scholar?” he asked, bringing up power to the thrusters and easing the flyer upward until it hovered about hundred meters above the trees. Perhaps in deference to Freya's unflattering moniker, he accelerated with relative leisure until they were skimming along at about 250 kph.

“Yes, I'm supposed to be working directly with the First One himself,” she said. “It's an incredible honor. I'm hoping to learn a lot from him.”

“Oh, most vulps who do say it's an... experience,” he said, with peculiar emphasis. He flipped his mirrorshades down over his eyes and banked the flyer as they approached a large natural clearing the forest, home to several low slung buildings made of the ubiquitous native wood.

TBC

Comments

[mehhayperson.livejournal.com]

Bwah ha ha an experience indeed. Skyler doesn't seem to have the same reverence for Terinu as Keelan and the Vulpine do. I suppose it makes sense that to the ferin Terinu wouldn't be anything else (to a certain extent) than another ferin who happens to be really old and strong.

[mjkj.livejournal.com]

Wow, great :)

Hmmm, nice nick-name Skyler got there...

...so pilot is among the jobs for ferin - how do they do the training? and tests? or do they not need a "driver's" (or rather flyer's) license? or did they already figure out how to teach the ferin to read and write?

mjkj

[jeriendhal.livejournal.com]

I imagine that Skyler and other ferin can fly with enough training and controls modified to use iconic displays instead of lettering. They still can't read or write though.

[mjkj.livejournal.com]

Awww, what a pity...

...so training on the job and teachings and oral exams and practice tests...

Do they also have some sort of school for the little ferins or do they only learn what they want (like unschooling)? or do they not learn at all - only those who want?

*looking forward to learning more about ferin society* :D

mjkj