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 Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:12 pm
SaainWas the girl even noticing her? Saain huffed and snapped her fingers in front of Marue's face. "Look at me and calm down girl. You are not going to bleed to death. Now, can I have your sash to bandage your legs or are you going to keep crying?" It wasn't her smoothest or most comforting healer speech-rant- she ever gave but Saain wasn't in the mood to deal with prissy little girls sobbing on the sands and bleeding. --------- Joscelin
He wavered, eyes widening and swallowed as the hatching screeched and went between. That... that wasn't right. Joscelin gaze flickered, looking the direction the bolt had came and then back at the eggs. Okay, it... wrong yes but it had mauled three people. The grey could have mauled him as well. He didn't have to like the decision, he just had to accept it and move on for now.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:17 pm
Luka
YEP. HIDING IN THE BACK IS A GOOD IDEA. Luka practically shrunk into the backs of the taller candidates around her. Trying for the first time in her life to NOT draw attention to herself. She didn't even get to see the flash of gold from the Noisy Socialite within her shell. With one hissy green and some monstrosity from the depths of between on the Sands, she wanted to be elsewhere. Back in her cell sounded real safe right now.
Jaykkial
Jaykkial's eyes narrowed and her body became alert, wary for the approach of the strange little grey creature as it tore it's way through the bodies around her. She remembered that egg very well. Cut her? Please.
Jaykkial! Stand behind your Atheth before I rip his throat out!
Grey little monster forgotten, the small guard's head whipped around to the Green, her emotions disoriented and her wariness dropped. She ran for the green, not to get behind her but to practically tackle the young dragon in her joy. They tumbled, Atheth freeing herself with a swift twist and once again placing herself between the Kestrel Grey and Hers. Not now Jaykkial! Pull yourself together! She hissed violently at the grey but all too soon the creature was gone.
Jaykkial was stunned. One hand on Atheth's tail, shocked at both her Impression, and the fact that the little grey hunter had been killed. It hadn't betweened on it's own. It had been killed in cold blood. She'd seen hatchlings maul candidates before but they were often able to make an appropriate match. Her outrage was doubled by Atheth's as the green viewed the memories. It was because it was different. Because it didn't fit their idea of What Should Be! The little green glared viciously at the brown above and in the general direction of where the bolt had come from, hatred radiating off of her.
She turned suddenly, large wings raised and faced Jaykkial for the first time. That should not have happened. Her hunger was a quiet rumble in the back of both of their minds. The horror of what just transpired would not pass so quickly from their consciousnesses.
No beautiful. Jaykkial agreed. Shaking her head and once again, grasping the green to herself. It had been grey, which may or may not have been a bad thing. It was certainly something different and unheard of but he'd proven himself spirited (Jaykkial wasn't about to judge another for violent tendancies). Lets get you out of the line of fire. I'm starting to not like this place so much. Thoughts of hunger, of feeding Atheth spurred the green to move. She'd find who shot her clutchsibling, one of the superior few just by being related to her, and they would pay for what they did. She would remember.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:24 pm
V'tyai
Two greens, lively and alive and healthy. V'tyai felt a puff of pride at those two normal babies, though one a bit loud. Even the crack in the Noisy Socialite that showed something golden didn't bother him overmuch. A blue caught a gold but maybe it was the golds that produced other golds, not the sire, they merely upped the chance. It'd be interesting. Something for the scientist.
He balked at the gray, his face clouding over. Even that could be - a white, right? A strong, angry, rampaging, very dark white dragon. Ruth on steroids. Something. Odd colors happened, whites happened, and that was okay. Babies rampaged. Every time at least one hatched that did but they either Impressed or betweened on their own. He stood firm n his position even when Candidates fell, his jaw locked until --
Until --
"What is wrong with you?!" V'tyai broke his own rule of silence on the sands with a roar of outrage. He didn't look for Taavetti in the stands nor did he think of those around him. Like C'tis thought: poor stupid b*****d. The now-Weyrlingmaster drew himself to his full (unimpressive) height and pushed some Candidates behind him before he started a stomping trek on the edges of the Sands towards C'ross. A snarl twisted his face, eyes small and furious, hands balled into fists. "Put that shaffing crossbow away, you wherson, before I shove it down your ******** throat! Right now!"
Luckily for M'onk, he missed the old mans smile. The only person in his sight was C'ross and his big stupid face.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:26 pm
Fingers snapped before Marue's face, and the girl looked up, her face twisted between confusion and pain. How long had she been there? She clamped her jaw shut, and nodded as her fingers worked at the red sash. The woman before her might not have had the softest ways, but Marue could not have been more thankful. By the first egg, Marue would have curled up in Saain's lap and bawled like a child if she could have. The sash came loose, and she handed it to Saain. "Th-th-thank you.." Her words sputtered forth, mixed with rough breathing. She clamped her jaw shut once again, the muscles twitching in her cheeks. She had to find herself. She had to calm down. She was a Du'Lace for shard's sake. Marue wanted to thank the lady, just having someone else there was a comfort. She turned her gaze back to the eggs, praying no more terrible creatures sprang from them. She wanted to see the Noisy Sociolite hatch, she wanted to watch the rest. After all, the lady had said she would be fine, right? Marue looked back to Saain, wanting to ask so many questions, but as her mind swam she could hardly find the right ones. Instead, she kept her jaw clamped shut, and watched what she could.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:50 pm
Saain took the sash, folding it over a few times. She looked over Marue and her demeanor soften slightly. The girl was too young to be getting mauled on the hatching sands. "You should be fine," she shushed, hitching the robes up to get a look at the wounds. Bleeding steadily but nothing gushing, squirting, or any other nasty business what would speak of a cut artery. Saain took the sash, cleaner then the robes and pressed it to the wounds. "Now, if you would hold this for me, firmly, I'll untie my sash so I can treat your other leg. At the most you are going to need stitches and to have the wounds flushed out but I think you want to wait a bit? Perhaps stay to see a few more eggs hatched?" The girls color looked good and she was speaking. Saain would take her pulse in a bit and stay near to make sure she didn't go into shock. She would get the healer if she sense anything life threatening. At the moment, the girl seemed determined to stay and she wasn't going to force her to seek treatment.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:09 pm
Another egg on the Sands shook. Sure, it didn't have a bright yellow patch shining out of a small bright egg but it didn't have to. Strawberry Wine had a personality all of its own, shaking and shuddering in it's place among its siblings. The small egg rocked back and forth, tipped a bit to bump into a green mother, and then it started to roll.
Sand gave under the insistent rocking, the hesitation of a dragonet inside bracing itself before shoving against it's shell. The red striped egg started to roll towards the candidates in short bursts, pushing past Fly Away Home and Winter Visitor with a clink of a shell. It crunched against what remained of the Maritime Monochrome egg and continued on. A snails path followed it, as wobbled and crooked as its movements. With each roll, a more cracks webbed along the surface of the eggs. Some of it chipped away, though the hide under neath remained dark and super mysterious to the prying Candidates eyes.
It would get to its rider! Strawberry Wine will be triumphant!
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:23 pm
Canoake watched as V'tyai lost his s**t and snapped. Literally snapped. Faster than an angry tunnel snake, the man had pretty much charge C'ross and was yelling in his face.
She personally felt like cheering.
Something about shoving the crossbow down his throat. Personally, she felt it would do better to be shoved up M'onk's a** but one could only dream so far. This was much more interesting than the Hatching at the moment; Canoake moved around some of the more docile candidates to get a clearer view of the fight. It was just then that another egg got all busy and started rolling around. Torn between the shouting V'tyai and the red egg rolling around the sands. Cracks appeared and she could make out bits of dark colored hide though she could have no idea what the color was... Crossing her arms, she could only wait.
On both situations.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:29 pm
oops, apparently the Grey hatchling wasn't the only thing shot. C'ross' clever trick shooting also managed to hit Vit right in the survival instincts. Because that was the only possible explanation why V'tyai (a man not exactly blessed with an abundance of height or muscles) would start screaming at C'ross (a man not blessed with an abundance of patience, but was extremely blessed with the muscles of an ox).
It was not a good combination. Having an audience didn't matter.
“Excuse me, pardon me, watch your hands,” Taavi said quickly, long legs carrying him right back down the Stands. V'tyai had already been demoted once. The only way he could be demoted lower was... what, exactly? Weyrleader, maybe? That was pretty much the same as a death sentence for a Bluerider (or at least a 'no one will even know what happened to you' sentence).
It wasn't long before he reached the irate Bluerider and put both of his hands on V'tyai's shoulders, ready to pull the other man away. “Vit, come on,” he hissed urgently in the other man's ear. “You've already been demoted. This isn't going to help anything except give M'onk another chance to demote you further. And... look, you're more important than a hatchling.”
Well, he was to Taavi anyway.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:40 pm
Malta smiled cheerily at Ralvyn her mood brought back up by that lovely humming.
"Y-yes! You too!"
She hadn't thought about actually impressing, she just hoped all the dragons hatched alright and were happy! The first one to hatch was so... so...
CUTE!
If they were all like this, she thought she might be able to see the allure in dragonhealing. This early on, she wasnt sure what to specialize in. Healing meant helping and she just was happy to help.
Oh!
Wasn't that... the egg that had told her to stand up and stop slouching like a hussy?
She blushed and tried to stand up straighter, standing a bit stiffly as the Burrowing Owl hatchling started it's search.
A grey hatchling came out. As Ralvyn went forward- Matla guessed to check on the dragon- it SUDDENLY ATTACKED HIM!
She was horrified!
For a moment, she was stunned. "Ralvyn? Ralvyn!" she cried, forgetting her instructions and attempting to rush out to check on him. She was just a young apprentice, but she wanted to know... had to know... if her friend was breathing and if there was anything she could do for him!
Another, familiar scream, but Malta spared only a glance to the prisoner she had stitched up (something she was proud of, but not right now!)
The masterhealer Bereck was working on Ralvyn, and it was her job to help. Dragons aside! Far aside! This was her job and she liked Ralvyn and... And...
She missed the Burrowing Owl's impression, so intent was she on her friend and PATIENT.
Oh! Oh! Her mood went right back up to relieved joy. He was talking! He was alive! He was...
Matla's attention whipped up at the loud roaring and the feeling of distress that pressed against her mind, though as she was unbonded it wasn't clear as anything more than a headaches' pressure... and she saw the disappearance between.
Oh... Oh shards... What had... What had just happened... Had someone killed the dragon?
She swallowed, hard, her mood lower than it had ever been as she turned to her friend, the only thing that had ever made sense, mechanically helping Bereck. Another thing that made sense.
Before, as now, her eyes said only one thing.
WHY???
But now her heart was racing with fear.
Wardens was not a place for soft souls... but how could a healer not have a soft soul? Malta's was too soft for this place. Constantly.. CONSTANTLY... she kept feeling her world dissolve around her.
But still she had to keep going. there were people to help.
But still....
WHY...? She had to blank her mind. Had to... help... Ralvyn and others...
It was all she could do to hold the long-accustomed tears back.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:41 pm
Right now was a very bad time to get up in C’ross’ face and start yelling, V’tyai. Rather akin to cornering and shouting at a wounded wher, in fact.
C’ross’ instinctive response to being challenged, unfortunately for everyone involved, was to dig in his heels and double down harder. His response to V’tyai was in a far lower tone than the bluerider’s own roar, but it was far more snarl than his usual barked orders. “Back the ******** down, before I am obligated to do something that I won’t regret tomorrow.”
He took a step towards V’tyai, letting his own height and bulk do the work of threatening for him: one hand stayed on his crossbow, the other one balled into a fist at his side. Taavi’s interference then was indeed quite fortunate, because if the wherhandler hadn’t placed hands on V’tyai’s shoulders, C’ross’ next move would have been… well, he wasn’t sure what it would have been, but it would have involved physical force and it would not have ended well.
His gaze flickered only briefly to Taavi, only acknowledging the man in the slightest fashion before returning to lock gaze with the ex-Warden again. “We will discuss this later, Weyrlingmaster. Off the Sands.”
His posture, his expression, his tone all said I sharding outrank you now, remember that. Only the hand on the crossbow trembled.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:41 pm
Emmitod spared a small smile for the Osprey green.
So he wasn't what she was looking for, eh? Fair nuff. Let her get on with her story, then. He was, after all, watching.
He watched the rest of the clutch, trying to keep the infectious eagerness off of his face.
Ahhhh, and she impressed. Emmitod quietly clapped congratulations, fitting for an audience member.
Ahhh, the next hatchling was another green. He watched this one with interest too.
The grey that emerged was far more interesting though! It had taken down a candidate, and then.. It was after him!
WHAM. The sands rose to meet him and he crashed down in a flurry of fear, exhileration, and bizzare, exultant GLEE. he managed to squench a laugh. Look! He was a part of the show after all! Pain was nothing!
He was about to stand up, or at least sit up... with much pain... when a whirrr of air and a cry made him look.
The grey dragon was no longer there.
A flash of sadness, and then dissappointment, and then a shrug.
Oh well.
The opera just got more and more interesting. Killing dragons on the sands. What a plot!
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:44 pm
Looked like even the Whers were in on the 'fun'. Raolan glared grumpily around at all the healers and healer apprentices. Not really at them, he was just sullen today.
Poor bastards. They had to deal with him all the time.
The second Green hatched. Oh look. Someone that sounded like he felt! He saw a few people recoiling in fear.
They should be recoiling in fear from that grey one! He wanted to rush forward to check on the boy- a healer, but he felt that that might make things all the worse. His brow knitted from a scowl into a concerned scowl.
At least the angry one impressed. He wanted to snarl at the brave green to GET THE SHARDING HELL BACK YOU DIMGLOW. He'd hate to see her hurt by that tyrant of a... grey...
And then the grey was no longer a problem. He felt angry... and suddenly very cold. He didn't know what to do. He was a barber!
But you don't kill hatching dragons... right?
He scowled over at the brownrider and... the man screaming at him.
He knew these people, and he had a bad feeling about the altercation that was to come.
Not that he didn't want to punch that warden in the face for allowing this. It felt wrong.
But he knew he didnt have the guts to punch anybody, probably a good thing.
But he'd gripe. Oh, he'd gripe. And maybe Warden M'onk would come in to get a haircut soon.
Oh yes.
The distress on the sands was causing some rather uncomfortable sensations in his stomach, all the stress. all the action. And Raolan was not happy, not that he'd started out happy anyway.
Raolan had his own style of revenge. Maybe only he would appreciate it.
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 7:04 pm
V'tyai shook in his fury. Every part of him screamed in rage and violence despite the fact he stood very small compared to C'ross and his arrows. He bared his teeth in something that could have once been considered a smile, calloused hands tightened into a fist. He almost spat out 'bring it, shithead' but hands were on his shoulders then. The Weyrlingmaster jerked away, ready to snarl even more obscenities when the knowledge of it being Taavetti's voice sunk in. The other man liked to appear less than a genius to those around them, pulling off stunts that would get other people yelled at. Taavetti had a presence to him and even V'tyai fell prey to it, though he did it spitting and hissing like a rabid feline. As much as he wanted to kick Squadsecond C'ross in the groin - he was tall enough - there were slim fingers on his shoulders and a voice hissing in his ear about not being stupid, not being put further down the food chain.
Already demoted. Telling him to stop. Telling him he was more important than... well, maybe just a baby dragon, but something. Even if just his two friends thought him worth not being sent to wherever T'di ended, that seemed more than what the other bluerider once had. V'tyai bristled anyway, his shoulders tight under Taavetti's grasp. That snarl did not fade but at least he didn't lash at the man trying to intimidate him with muscles and a scowl. The wherhandler's reminder of his downgrade in the Weyr meant C'ross' words hit harder, his reminder of Weyrlingmaster. The bitterness in him stung. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair. Standing up for those people on the Sands lost him his job and his ability to do something about not allowing infant dragons to be killed in cold blood.
It wasn't fair.
V'tyai stepped back slightly and moved from Taavi's grasp but not to throw himself at C'ross. He grabbed the wherhandlers hand instead, slight fingers interlacing with the bakers, and he pulled just once. "There's unmurdered dragons to look after. Stand with me?" His hand trembled where it clung to Taavi's. He scowled at C'ross to hide as much as he could and hissed his words. "Go Fly yourself, Squadsecond. Weyrlingmaster. I stay. Murderous shaffing smear you are, but these are my Weyrlings and my Sands so watch yourself."
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 7:51 pm
All right. This was getting ridiculous. Noisy Socialite was missing everything good, and that was clearly unacceptable. There was some scuffling from inside, a bit of annoyed growling, and then the egg burst open, scatting shell fragments every-which-way as the dragon inside burst forward. And the Common Starling hatchling was already done with the bullshit. She screamed at the Sands, at the assembled Candidates, at her siblings who had already Impressed, and at the greens watching the clutch. Just for variety. And she charged briefly toward C'ross and V'tyai, too, for the sake of screaming at them. Her eyes whirled red with annoyance, but shriek though she did, she attacked nothing. Instead, she huffed, snarled, and flared herself around, making absolutely sure everyone was paying attention to her. Teeth bared, she snorted and snapped and strode her way straight up to her chosen bonded. Marue. How the shards did all this happen while I was still stuck in an egg? I'm not missing anything ever again, and you need to work on not getting yourself mauled.And then, from the back of the clutch, apparently obscured beneath the other, larger eggs, there was a rustling and cracking. Two eggs were moved gently aside and, half-buried in sand, the Solitary Weeper egg hatched, its contents emerging quietly and smoothly, upsetting little and parting the sand around it with deft sweeps of its wings. For a moment, the Mourning Dove hatchling stood, poised and quiet, surveying the sands. Then it moved, shook its hide, preened its nails and its talons. The sand sloughed off it with the wetness of the egg, and beneath the coat of wet tan, the hide was - once again - unmistakable. Another gold?Apparently unaware of her appearance and the significance of her hide, the Mourning Dove moved to the side of the cleared area, skirting around and crooning softly as she walked past people. No Candidates received attention except her chosen, toward whom she moved with her head down, eyes whirling concerned yellows and greys. She stopped alongside Bereck, plopping her hindquarters into the sand and curling her tail around her hindlegs. Is he all right? she asked softly. Then she lowered her head to eyeball Ralvyn, the rainbow of Impression muscling out the yellow of concern. Ralvyn, are you all right?
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Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 8:24 pm
Technically, Vit's expression could only be called a smile because he bared his teeth. It was more of an expression that loosely translated to, 'I want to bury my teeth in your throat', a expression that Taavi commonly saw on whers. And C'ross was seriously not helping in Taavi's quest to keep his friend from being killed. Taavi's hands tightened a bit on Vit's shoulders, perfectly prepared to haul the Bluerider away physically if he had to. He was pretty certain he could manage it. Vit couldn't weigh that much and, if he needed to, he was pretty sure he could call the other wherhandlers...
Thankfully, it proved unneeded. Something, maybe it was Taavi's words, but the wherhandler doubted it. He was pretty sure it was the reminder of Vit's duty. The sight of the newly-Impressed weyrlings scurrying around, the unhatched eggs, that reminded V'tyai that he had a sharding job to do and he couldn't do this one if he got his a** demoted again. Someone needed to look after the weyrlings.
And, apparently, he wanted Taavi to stand with him. His fingers tightened around the Bluerider's and, for a moment, there was a temporary squeeze over the wherhandler's heart too.
“Of course, I'll stand with you,” he said simply, trying to fight back a smile as his friend snarled back at C'ross yet again.
Two more dragons hatched, shining gold for a few brief moments. Wait, two golds? … … …
“I thought Golds were supposed to be really rare... was the secret getting a Blue to father the clutch this whole time?” Taavi asked, semi-seriously.
~.~
ohshardsandshells, V'tyai was at it again. There was a thin line between brave and foolhardy and he was pissing all over it, especially considering that C'ross had probably saved lives. You know, human lives? And other hatchlings as well to boot, including hatchlings who had already Impressed.
It was a tough job, but someone had to do it. Meera was just glad it wasn't her wielding the crossbow. Thankfully, it seemed like V'tyai's boyfriend(?) was there to calm the man down. Or... something. Well, they were holding hands. In Meera's experience, that wasn't a thing 'just male friends' did.
She returned her attention to the clutch in time to see two more eggs hatch. Golds? More Golds? How did... th... Not only two golds, but one Impressed to Ralvyn.
Meera was pretty sure Golds only Impressed to women.
Which really begged a few questions: either everything she knew was wrong or Ralvyn was hiding something.
~.~
Meanwhile, Leevi was still being traumatized at how C'ross had killed a hatchling. It wasn't even a particularly violent hatchling, as far as such things went. Was it possible that Warden's just didn't realize that? No, of course not.
There was an argument down on the Sands between V'tyai and C'ross. Well, not really an 'argument'. That implied that ideas were being exchanged and received.
What happened was a flaming row.
Another egg hatched, revealing a gleaming Gold. Even if she came from a non-gleaming shell, she was most certainly a gold. She had the right color and everything. She sought for hers or rather simply screamed.
Her native tongue was screaming. Lovely. It wasn't long before she found her equally shrieky lifepartner in Marue.
Another egg hatched, one that had been so buried in the Sands that it was invisible. And it was another Gold? Leevi frowned. That wasn't right. It was... Golds didn't happen often and now there were two in the same clutch? One fathered by a Blue?
But that wasn't the end of the little gal's surprises, as she marched right up to one of the boys----poor Ralvyn, who had been mauled earlier by the Grey----and sat down. Which meant she had either Impressed him or Bereck.
Leevi was pretty sure she hadn't Impressed Bereck.
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