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 Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 2:51 am
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The feel of Fort Weyr that afternoon was one of lazy contentment. The summer sun warmed the stone of the Weyr, while a gentle breeze drifted through. Dragons lounged on their ledges and wallowed in the lake. Within the hatching cavern Malsalth slept, curled peacefully around her clutch. Lying on the great gold’s back was K’rin, staring up at the cavern ceiling, rising and falling with her dragon’s irregular breaths. Feeling every hitch and sharp intake. Her hand idly moved over the grey hide. There was little gold left now, Malsalth had completely lost the telltale sheen of a metallic and her bones showed harsh against her skin. She slept more than anything else these days, which was a mercy really. K’rin spent most of her time simply listening to the sound of her breathing, too exhausted to panic anymore when there was a change. Healers visited rarely. Only to provide Malsalth with relief in various forms. K’rin, logically, knew what was coming. She had known for a long time, maybe longer than anyone else had wanted to admit. They all held out hope that Malsalth would recover. They needed their Queen. For K’rin, it was not about a Queen. She did not fear for Malsalth, Queen of Fort, she feared for Malsalth, the other half of her heart. That Malsalth, who would never recover.
One of the eggs began to make a commotion. They’d started doing that over the past few days. Twitching and chirruping to each other. Malsalth was never concerned, convinced it was normal. They were overdue at this point. Few clutches ever hatched the exact five sevendays after laying, she had been assured by the dragonhealers. It was best not to worry and upset Malsalth. K’rin turned her head to watch the pearlescent egg as it shifted in the sand, a determined scratching coming from within. A second egg began to shudder, the pale pink shell vibrating as the hatchling moved around inside. Propping herself up on her elbow, K’rin watched as a ripple of movement spread through the eggs. Turning her head to wake Malsalth, she found the gold’s eyes already open, fixed on her eggs. The intent focus was so unlike the dragon that it kept K’rin quiet as Malsalth lifted her head and gently nosed at the shells.
They are ready, she said quietly, her excitement tingling in her voice as she turned to look at K’rin. Smiling softly, K’rin stroked the soft muzzle that pushed towards her. The humming started low in Malsalth’s throat, but it was not held for more than a moment before the gold swung her head away from her rider, harsh coughs tearing through her dry chest. K’rin slid down from her dragon’s back, landing hard in the scorching sand. There wasn’t anything she could do to stop the coughing, but she quickly moved to the side of the cavern, hefting a bucket and bringing it to Malsalth’s side. “Here, love, drink this.” It was some concoction that the healers had come up with. Parts of plants in water, it was meant to sooth Malsalth’s throat, if only temporarily. Once her coughing fit subsided, Malsalth made short work of the fluid, rumbling her thanks as the cooling mix took effect. Casting an eye over her clutch again she took up humming once again. Regardless of her health, the time was at hand, her children were to meet the world. It was not long before the Weyr was alive with the sound of humming and dragon and people alike came flocking into the cavern.
Iridescent Egg - Blue Nacreoth of Chrysicai
Layered Egg - Failed to hatch
Average Egg - Green Starelth of Moluli
Daydream Egg - Green Wanjouth of Endalil
Lightning Egg - Green Lithustoth of Vee
Lamenting Egg - Brown Deldowth of Iskosian
Enfolding Egg - Bronze Flueth of Joscelin
Snowdrift Egg - Green Veitrath of Zeeana
Noctis Egg - Green Naishanth - Adoptable
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 2:57 am
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It is time. Fiskenerath said sleepily from his ledge. Typical. He had been enjoying that nap. The old brown slowly got to his feet, mentally mumbling to himself about the inconvenience of it all. The candidates would be all over the place at this time of day. Well into their afternoon chores. That meant it was his job to round them all up. Typical. The dragon reached out a large broadcast as his throat took up the welcoming hum. Candidates. His voice echoed in each mind in the Weyr, it was far too much effort to try and focus it. The hatching is at hand. Leave your chores and go to the barracks. Make sure you are presentable and wearing your robes. If you are not fit to stand before Malsalth and her eggs, then don’t expect to get on the sands. The brown paused for a long moment. And any non-candidates, feel free to snap them in the right direction if they seem to be lingering. Fiskenerath chuckled to himself at the thought. He reached out for his rider and found her briskly making her way to the barracks from her temporary office. She would meet the candidates there and then lead the group from the barracks to the sands.
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“Come along. Don’t dawdle now!” Sh’shi barked as she herded the candidates along the tunnel. “You all know what is expected of you and how to behave.” They’d been drilled enough times. If any made a mistake, then Sh’shi would no doubt brand them as an imbecile for the rest of their days. A few who had presented themselves in a simply unacceptable way had already been removed. Filthy, despite the frankly generous time allowed, tears in their robes despite countless calls for them to keep their robes in impeccable condition. Honestly, this batch of candidates had to be the worst. Sh’shi shook her head. This is what she got for trying to do the work of five different ranking riders. Fiskenerath rumbled in her mind, well that would certainly be coming to an end soon enough. They just had to get this hurdle out of the way first.
Sh’shi herded them all out onto the sands. Watching carefully as they took up the semi-circle formation they had been drilled in. Her eyes drifted to Malsalth. The gold laying behind her clutch. To say she was a ghost of her former self felt like an understatement. More grey than gold, more bone than anything else. The dragon had held on far too long. No dragon should ever get to such a state, and yet Malsalth still drew herself up, her posture that of a clutchmother. Even if her body shook with the effort, it wouldn’t be noticeable to any of those in the stands, only to the candidates who stood across the sands from her. K’rin sat upon her dragon’s forearm. It was a break of tradition, she should have been in the leaders’ box, but, given the circumstance, who was going to force that tradition on her? Sh’shi turned on her heel, moving towards the feeding cavern to make sure everything was ready for her oncoming charges. The candidates were on their own now.
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 6:19 am
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Endalil had been on his way down to the laundry room. He hated doing laundry. Not because of the labor but because it was down below, away from the sun. The days were getting warmer and called for adventures outside. Just as he was passing into the caverns, some areas smoother than others, the call came from Malsalth. And then from others. The eggs were hatching! Today was the day. Privately, he wondered if today was the day that Malsalth would enter Between as well. Emotions would be high. Turning back around, he headed for his room and stripped down. A quick rub with a towel and a run through with the comb, Endalil was putting on his robes and lining up... The group for Impression was much smaller than it should be but that didn't guarantee an impression to anyone.
They moved to the Sands and it was a heart breaking sight. His easy-going smile faltered a little as Malsalth's breath hitched. Endalil would cry though he didn't know the gold or her rider personally. Because one should always mourn the loss of any dragon. Moving to the side, he watched as the eggs rippled with movement. He would do his best to make his weyrleader proud. His father. Vesunth. Ista. No pressure whatsoever, he wanted to joke but no words came out of his mouth.
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Isko was actually in his rooms. It was a small break from routine as the worker in charge had left to be with his wife when she gave birth. He was laying on his bed, trying to compose another letter to his family, with Clipper looking over his shoulder, adding chirps and his own flit comments. Then the call went out that the eggs were hatching. Iskosian tumbled out of bed and onto the floor. "Shards," he cursed. Clipper squawked and resettled himself.
"I know." Isko replied, speaking more to himself than Clipper. Moving quickly for a large lad, he shed his clothes and got into the silly cotton dress that they insisted on him wearing. It reached his knees, for which he was thankful, but it didn't cover as much as he would like. Moving into the hallway, he was grouped with the others. He spotted several that he knew but none that he had made friends with... Iskosian was torn between wanting to Impress, save the dragons, and returning home to his normal. His routine. Palms sweating, he wiped them on his sides as the moved forward like bovine in a herd.
It was a blur and then he was standing on the Sands. This time, eggs were rocking and moving, excited to break into new life. He looked over at the sad scene of Malsalth and K'rin. Things were about to change big time. He wondered if they would disband the weyr if no gold was hatched. Could he take his beast home if he Impressed and teach him...her...it a craft? It was an amusing thought and he snorted. He could only hope that things went the way everyone wanted them to today.
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 7:16 am
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You could've cut the atmosphere in the Weyr these last few days with a knife. It seemed like all of the eggs that'd been active at the Touching were still active - they'd've heard if they weren't, she was sure - but there was no guarantee that they'd be healthy when they hatched.
When the call finally came Vee abandoned the exhausting task of working dough in one of the massive troughs that supplied the Weyr's vast daily needs and started to hasten back to the barracks before she really registered what this meant.
They were about to find out how many dragons were healthy.
They were about to find out if dragons in the north had a future, if there was no gold....
And she was going to find out whether or not her dragon was among the survivors.
The less she thought about the point in the middle the better. Vee distracted herself by scrubbing her face and arms in one of the basins provided. There had to be a gold, dragons sort of knew right? That was why they clutched bigger when a Pass was drawing near. Something in Masalth would've told her a gold was needed now to save the north, it was just that her sickness had kept the egg from developing a sheen.... Or maybe it had been there but it had died. s**t.
Vee pulled on her robe and smoothed her hands back over her head, she'd had her braids re-done only a couple of days ago so they were still neat and tight against her skull just as she liked them. That was it then, it was crunch time.
"Alright you," Vee looked severely at the dark bronze firelizard, who had been watching her curiously this whole time. "You can't come with me, got it? Stay here or go up in the stands." She-She would go spare if he stayed with her.
The bulky firelizard snorted and twitched his tail, he understood the shape of her thoughts but he didn't like them. She was tense. When she was tense things were dangerous. When things were dangerous he was with her, and he bit and flamed things and that was just how the world worked.
"Not today," Vee jabbed a finger in his direction. "If you get me kicked off the sands I'll make you into sausages. Got it?"
It was got, and so Vee hastened along with the other candidates towards the sands.
Once she'd passed Sh’shi's inspection Vee strode out onto the sands and took her place near one end of the semi circle, and then she looked at Masalth. Shaff. The gold didn't look like something that should be alive, in fact if it weren't for the hitching breaths made all the more visible by her skeletal frame Vee might have thought that was dead and had somehow failed to between. She pitied the gold and her rider, nobody should die like that, but right now she had to focus her mind on the eggs.
Vee exhaled slowly and looked to the clutch, her gaze lingering in particular on the Lightning egg and the Iridescent egg; of all of them she'd felt those resonated with her the most. She knew that didn't mean either of them would choose her but she could hope.
Hope was about all they had at the moment.
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 7:40 am
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Where there was life there was hope and though Masalth barely clung to it it was clear that there was plenty to be found in the nine remaining eggs on the sands.
D'lana watched from the leaders' box as the candidates entered the sands in a neat line and filed into a semi-circle. There were fewer candidates than one would normally expect for a hatching but there were fewer eggs than one would expect from a bronze-flown clutch too. Small though it was everyone was watching with rapt attention, so many hopes were pinned upon it and though they were few they deserved no less respect than any other group of eggs. Masalth deserved the respect too, and K'rin. D'lana fully expected the clutch mother disappear between the moment she had seen all of her children Impress, perhaps even before then. If these were to be her final moments then let her see the regard she was held in.
It was these thoughts that had guided D'lana's choice of attire today, she was clad in a flowing white gown - like a supplicant to Malalth's clutch herself - and her hair was half pulled back with elegant simplicity. No jewellery, no embroidery, no adornments at all save for her rank knots and the gravid gold firelizard who lay draped across her shoulders. They were here to see Masalth's children Impress, not to show off their finery to one another.
Liarth took his own place up on a prime perch and looked down at the scene upon the sands with sorrow-greyed eyes, through which occasional flashes of blue pulsed when an egg gave a particularly vigorous movement. Your children are strong Masalth, they will do you proud, he said warmly to the ailing gold
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 8:28 am
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F'liel headed to the Sands when Vesunth started humming. He knew what that meant, memories of his own Impression coming back to him. His had been easy, Vesunth happy to find him on the Sands waiting for her. His perfect match. He spotted D'lana and waved to her. Heading as close as he could to her, he sat in the Stands, hopefully with a good vantage point to see his son Impress. Endalil should Impress. F'liel refused to say he had to Impress.
The past sevendays, he had done his best to back off and be a green rider, not a father to the boy who was a man. It was hard when it was your only child. F'liel looked over to Malsalth who was far, far worse for wear. She would go Between soon. Her scales gray, her breath shallow. And they would mourn even as they celebrated new life. He would probably find himself at the bottom of a bottle of wine. Hopefully Benden. F'liel sighed. They could only think positive, try not to get their hopes up but a gold was needed. Oh so badly. If not... Then the thought that this generation would be the last of Northern dragons preyed heavily on his mind.
Vesunth settled with near the other dragons, her eyes a slow whirl of green tinged with yellow. She did not chatter like normal, only dipping her head and wings to Malsalth. Down below, she watched Endalil and waited along with her rider.
Vesunth, please pass my greetings and such to Liarth, Malsalth. Pay our respects. F'liel asked of his dragon.
Liarth, Malsalth. I hope this Hatching goes well and is testimony to such a dedicated mother. My rider sends greetings and pays his respect to both of your riders. Vesunth could use proper greetings and have proper mindset when she chose. She dipped her head again. |
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 9:26 am
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Zeeana had been chopping tubers when the dragon's voice range through her head. Now? Well, it could have been worse timing, and she finished up the one she was working on before darting back to the barracks.
She didn't even have to wonder where her robe was.
After fixing a tear that Zee had noticed it having, she had hung it up on a hook. That made it very easy for grab and change into. Her hair only needed a little bit of brushing, and then she was ready to go.
Her green chirped. "Go stay with ma, Moss." The green thought about it for a moment, and then vanished. She wanted the treats that Zee's mother usually had with her.
Zee laughed, and then headed out of her room, waiting with the others before they were led to the sands.
She took her spot on the sands, and then glanced around. The Gold dragon looked awful, a stark reminder of the tragedy of the Weyrs.
She looked back at the eggs. They were rocking and moving, and they would soon hatch. Hopefully.
"Please let them all be healthy," She whispered to herself. That was the most important thing.
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 10:05 am
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 2:55 pm
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 3:35 pm
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 5:44 pm
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As dragons and people began to fill the cavern, the frenzied movement of the eggs grew stronger. Whether it was twitching, rocking or the quiet sound of scratching from within, almost all the eggs showed some sign of their readiness to hatch. Malsalth's gaze roved over the clutch, taking note of every shift, from her vantage point. Her anxiety showed in the way her tail tip flicked back and forth, forming a small fan in the sand. Congratulations and support filtered to her from the dragons of her Weyr. The gold knew that not all dragons in this cavern saw her as their Queen, even though it was only by her grace that they were here. Some were considerably more polite than others however and when Liarth and Vesunth reached out to her the gold rewarded them with a flood of warm. The characteristic surges from the dragon did not carry the strength they once had. A roaring fire dimmed to a flickering candle. Thank you, both of you, Malsalth replied to the Istan green and bronze.
A hush fell over the crowd as one of the eggs pitched suddenly forward. With purposeful jerks, the egg slowly rolled away from its siblings and toward the candidates. The pale pink egg managed to make it several feet, each jolt forward sending thin cracks lacing across the shell. One final shove, clearly with the baby dragon's head, destroyed what remained of the shell's strength. The front of the egg shattered, sending the young dragon pitching out head first. The pale green tumble head over wing over tail in the sand, landing in an undignified heap a few scant feet from the candidate. One wing was folded up under her, her opposite back leg crossing over her foreleg, the young dragon was a tangle of legs. The green seemed to be all long lines, too much tail and neck, with a pointed face that made her eyes and headknobs almost comically large. It wasn't even close to the most graceful start to a hatching.
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 5:57 pm
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 6:05 pm
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2017 6:10 pm
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