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The Whitemaster knew they would come, Adetsu. I heard him say so when I was still inside -- when he defended this ground and protected us.

It was not the first voice in his head since the hatching's start, and that alone was saying something. It had not been a pleasant event. Adetsu was only sure of one thing, and that was his own displeasure at how things had gone so far.

Oh, and the voice in his head. He was pretty sure of that too. It came with an emotion, after all. It was a slow, simmering feeling, that quickly increased in intensity, bubbling over and filling Adetsu with an odd sort of light.

While outwardly, a man who did not feel much, what Adetsu did feel, he felt deep, felt forever. Adetsu didn't feel many things, because when he did, he couldn't let that feeling go. It became a part of him, worked its way down into his soul, changing him, irrevocably.

In that, at least, this was almost familiar. He knew what it was to lose himself to another, to become part of an else.

Jacth was looking at him, and he was Jacth's. And Jacth was his.

I am very hungry, Mine.

Jacth was his and he had to feed him.

Jacth was his and he had to feed him and Kaeyne had not yet impressed.

He had to care for Jacth. He had to guard Kaeyne. Kaeyne who still needed to impress (Adetsu did not doubt that he would. Adetsu did not doubt things when it came to Kaeyne, period.)

A moment. Mindspeech came only after a second of thought, second nature to someone so internal.

"Kaeyne-" He grabbed his partner by the shoulder, leaned in, and kissed him, quick and hard. "Stand near the tables. Where I can see you. If you are hurt. I will kill you."

He began to walk away, his hand on Jacth head, then turned back. "He is Jacth. We will wait for you and yours."

We will feed you now.

Thank you, Mine. He will be safe. That one. Do not worry. J'aro is here.

Having finally gotten Curith over to the feeding table Mairin contained to run one hand over the green as she fed her. They grey in the dragonet's eyes had been replaced with a pale blue which was a slight improvement. She herself was still shaken by recent events and trying to focus mostly on building her relationship with Curith. Whatever else was going on on the grounds was just background noise for the moment.

Mine he is gone, he was just here! Eyes once again grey Curith whipped her head to the spot the blue had disappeared from. It was different from when the injured man had died but it still pained her. She swing her head back the other way and buried it Hers' chest. I am not hungry again

Mairin wrapped her arms around Curith and tried to send her soothing feelings. Now looking out towards the crowd she spotted Adetsu headed towards the tables with a brown trailing him. Well looked like the white candidate program had lost two tonight so far.

Turning to glower at Bekar, F'sey all but snarled.

"Keep your shirt on. Take the stage, Whermaster," the greenrider hissed, suddenly unimpressed with the future prospects of this damned Island. Stubborn or not, Brambel was still a very impressive old man and Bekar was going to have a hell of a time filing his shoes. "It's all yours."

As far as he was concerned, he was tired of helping those that didn't give a s**t. Brambel was dead, hatchlings were dead. The Gaurdmaster was no where to be see, and the Whitemaster and Whermaster were already ganging up like a pair of school yard bullies. (Perhaps that was a little dramatic, but it didn't make F'sey feel any better about the attached pair of men rising into power together. There was something decidedly biased about that.)

Turning away, F'sey returned to where the remaining Wingleaders stood, the Masters long since dispersed. Shutting his eyes, the greenrider rubbed the bridge of his nose. He should have stayed in Ista.

Throughout the proceedings, both horrible and joyful, Ren had kept her feelings to herself, in what was probably a freakish display of restraint, not likely to be repeated in that decade. She had stood at many hatchings, and while some of them had rivaled this one for violence, the sheer drama - not to mention the number of dragonets going between - would make this one memorable.

"Someone's got to do something about those damn tunnelsnakes," she muttered to herself. That had really been just plain absurd.

In hindsight, she was not ashamed of her action in rushing in the direction the creature had come from, but she was ashamed that she hadn't rushed the creature itself as the whermaster had done. True, she was unarmed and probably would have fared worse than he - and he'd died - but she should have made the attempt. What was she training as a white candidate for if not to take on dangerous, challenging creatures? And getting the gold riled up had just been stupid.

She decided that unless there were eggs suspected to belong to whites, she would not participate in the next hatching as a candidate, if she was even young enough still to be permitted on the sands. This one was leaving a decidedly sour taste in her mouth, mostly because of her own actions. At least some of the eggs were hatching and Impressing as usual.

If F'sey was unimpressed by Bekar, Bekar was certainly unimpressed by him. He had tried to help Brambel - which was noble, in a way, despite the unwilling and ultimately inadequate way in which he had done it - but he rubbed Bekar the wrong way. Whining, refusing to own up to responsibilities, snapping, striking J'aro ... Bekar loathed him instantly.

But he wasn't about to get into a fight with the man now. F'sey was clearly beneath him. Bekar simply waved a hand at him, just as he had tried to shoo the hatchling.

Bekar gave J'aro a pained smile but did not speak to him further, turning instead to the arriving wherhandlers. "Help me pick him up," he said roughly, grabbing Brambel beneath the armpits. As the others joined in, he began the sad task of carting Brambel off to the side, out of the way of the baby dragons and candidates. Brambel's death could not stop the hatching. It would not be helped by a clutch going Between because the candidates were in chaos.

If there are any more tunnelsnakes, I will bite them before they can get the little dragons, Beksk volunteered. The pretty gold will be happy with me.

As long as the wher kept himself away from the hatching dragons and candidates, Bekar didn't care what he did right now.

[Kaeyne response in which he veryquietly goes WOT. In good ways]

Kaeyne pushed past a few of the candidates in time with Emaleth, ignoring the dragon as he hatched. The sound of the shell cracking, a few murmurs, so what? He was headed to the rear and they could get the frag out of his way.

what a horrible name. You will have to change it.

Kaeyne (K'yne) paused. Adetsu and his brown had just come into view when Emaleth (who the hell was Emaleth?) Flooded into his brain. Pride. Strength. Arrogance and fierce condescention. He blinked once towards his partner.

hurry up. I will not wait. of course he would not wait - he was Emaleth, bronze and beautiful (why hellllooo, Curith).

"You will wait if I tell you to wait." K'yne said the words outloud automatically. Both he and his dragon, by then within one anothers view, glared at their new bondmate. Emaleths annoyance beat at his brain. "And don't give me that look. Mind your eyes."

Red swirled with various fire-colors. Emaleths voice came to K'yne as near gentle, patient even. Mine, you poor boy. You think yourself in charge? Alright then.

And he continued straight towards the Feeding tables, right up in both Adetsu and Jacths space.

Jacth! Brother. Friend. I see Mine will not have to punch Yours after all. Congratulations. Better at least a brown than some other color.

K'ynes lips peeled back. He took his sweet time getting to that Feeding table (Emaleth was not the only petty one in the bond), steps languid and eyes more on Adetsu than his dragon. Only when Emaleth was on the verge of loudly broadcasting to as many as he could on the neglect he suffered (Kaeyne doubt he would, boy was too proud to admit weakness) did K'yne pluck up a bit of meat to feed the ravenous dragon.

"So," he said to Adetsu, looking down towards the bronze. "So. This will be interesting."

Very! said Emaleth although he had not been asked. We must show Jacth how misguided he is.

Ten minutes in and K'ynes head already hurt.

Oh, Connor. Didn't your mother ever tell you to be careful what you wish for?

He was probably right about the dragonets they had lost. The blue had been looking for someone who was no longer there, most likely. That was not the case with the Sand and Sun Egg.

A brown leg broke through the front, withdrew, and was replaced a pair of dark, blue eyes. Not long after, the dragon wiggled out. After a round of stretching, he clumsily stumbled toward the boys.



Forget those bronzes, Connor. Feed your Lioth.