Good, bad, or indifferent. [Hatching]

[pandoraMisfit]

The sounds of a cheering crowd indicated that more eggs had hatched outside of the small enclosure, and maybe even had Impressed. Not that Zetairen could see any of this. Nor was his mind on it – the egg before the trio had begun rocking. And not just gently. Violently. The thing inside there wanted to get out NOW. Another jerk, and the egg fell, rolled towards a wall and rebounded off it. The noise coming from the egg escalated considerably. Much like he had heard, the dragonet inside seemed like a devil intent on starting the havoc as soon as possible.

Tair debated backing off, but much good it would do him. Firstly, it would make him seem cowardly. Secondly, in such a confined area, he was likely to end up as Amber-chow no matter where he went. So he stood firm in the face of the demon egg as it convulsed in anger, its contents bellowing to break free. Such an inappropriate time to be tuning, but that line sounded in his head as a line of an epic- the ballad of Silvyth’s final clutch. What a wherry head, he thought. In the face of potential death, he was composing! Not that he had long to think, as the contents of the ravaged shell burst forth in a spew of limbs and embryonic fluid. For a moment, it seemed that the hatchling was deformed, until the motion split the bodies and revealed two brothers.

Neither were small.

At the blast of noise erupting from the ‘smaller’ Amber’s throat, the other two candidates skittered backwards and quite rightly so. Such a sight was terrifying! Zetairen took a deep breath and steeled himself to remain in place. The impulse to run was almost overpowering – instinct dictated that this was a situation from which you get as far away as possible. But instead his body reacted by freezing. In a way it was what he wanted, but his nerves were screaming at him to get out of there. The combination had the effect of making him feel sick.

The darker brother exuded a malice that was more than tangible; it hung so thickly in the atmosphere that you could almost slice through it with a knife. It took a step closer and Zetairen’s body quivered as he fought with himself. Yes, he should run, run as far and as fast as he could from this beast. And he was less than half as close to the brutal pair as the other two candidates were. Maybe they were smarter in retreating.

Green eyes flicked between the two dragons, watching how sinuously the larger moved, how tightly would his muscles were, preparing to spring at any second. His own muscles were tense also, though how they thought to move him out of the way by the time the dragonet sprung, he had no idea. The moments dragged out for an eternity each. He couldn’t help but notice the sheer pleasure in the sounds the amber made when it realised how scared the candidates were. That, he thought, was malice personified.

Watching the smaller one, he noticed how its attention was focused more on the two candidates who had back away, as if their fear was more palpable than his. True, he was closer than they were but at least he wasn’t in the creature’s direct line of sight. Oh sure, it could probably still see him in its peripheral vision, but somehow it was comforting to know that he wasn’t in the direct line of fire. That is, it was comforting until he realised something. His face blanched visibly. If the other two held the attention of the smaller amber, then whose attention did he hold? Logic told him that in all likelihood, the other dragonet was considering him as breakfast. How spectacular. Thanks Silvyth, he thought wryly, at least you think I’d make a good meal, if not a good companion for your children. The thought didn’t last long.

Suddenly, the Amber darted into motion! Flinching away, although somehow his feet remained planted to the ground, the boy watched in awe as the larger of the two dragons barged his brother off course. Much to his amazement, he hadn’t made a sound since the egg had spilled its contents – most people by now would have let out some sort of cry or scream. But in his case, as it had frozen his muscles, the shock had rendered him mute. Snarls ripped from the small brother’s throat as he whirled to face his twin. Confrontation seemed inevitable. Zetairen twisted his body to peer over his shoulder at his two companions. Both were as pale as he was, and though he couldn’t quite see properly t confirm it, he thought one was shaking visibly. And he really couldn’t find it in him to blame them.

As the two Ambers looked ready to face off, a frenzied scrabbling caught Zetairen’s ear. “Nevaryth, no! Come back here!” The words flew through the air like arrows and quickly explained the source of the noise. Apparently one of the hatchlings from the main clutch had decided to dig it’s way in. What silly creature would be drawn to such an atmosphere of malevolence? He could only speculate as he flinched back from yet another ear-drum shattering roar from the small Amber. It was a challenge. As much as he detested death, a part of him wished that Silvyth had ended the egg while she could have done. It would have been a lot better for the Weyr in the long run! Then is thoughts softened. No, of course she couldn’t have done it. Even knowing what the egg held, it would have killed her to do such a thing.

As the egg-brothers stared each other down, Tairen found he had recovered the use of his legs. Shuffling as quietly as he could towards the other candidates, his progress seemed excruciatingly slow. Step by step, inch by inch he moved. In reality, it only took a few seconds to reach his destination and he prayed that the monsters were too absorbed in each other to have caught sight of the movement. He had been moving away from the wall where the digging sounds had been coming from – the last thing he wanted was to be knocked down by anything that managed to dig through. He found himself now a few paces away from a wall, not too far from the other lads. He didn’t want to get too close to them though as he knew a single group meant a single target. If he had any chance of escaping relatively unharmed, it would be through staying away from the other two boys. It could be construed as cowardly, but he had entered into survival mode – he could only look out for himself. He hoped that by presenting a smaller target, he’d be less attractive to the blood thirsty hatchling. More people meant more carnage.

[Lyrikitty]

The smaller Amber had lost all focus on the boys for the moment, now standing before his larger sibling and trying to make himself as big as possible. Wings mantled and body tensed up, lips parted to hiss balefully at the other Amber. Why was he being opposed? They should both make quick work of these little snacks and then break free, see how much they could kill before they were forced into the slavery of Impression or ushered into the chill of Between. He shook his head, snapping his jaws and then turning as his larger brother remained silent and motionless. He spun and reared back, pawing the air in the direction of the candidates help prisoner before slamming his paws back down and lunging forward. This time he did not aim for the ones who were shaking in terror, but the bolder of them, who stood his ground as if in challenge.

Inches from sinking both tooth and claw into flesh, a blur of color slammed into the attacking Amber, followed by a choked sound and a thud as the pair smashed into a wall, which preceeded to cave in at the impact. A very startled Snow creeled and skittered back, seeing the two Ambers now entangled with the larger one's jaws wrapped around his brother's neck.

The little Snow cried out and rushed back at the Ambers, pawing at the larger one as if begging him to let go. No claw touched his hide, no harm came from her gentle but insistent pleas. It was as if she was begging for the life of the small Amber, pleading that he be spared for some reaosn beyond all imaginings. Nevaryth stood her ground at a harsh look from the large Amber, his eyes giving obvious warning and his posture one of fighting. However the Snow continued to pry at his jaws and finally the larger Amber released, stepping away swiftly and blocking off the hol that gave entrance to the enclosure the pair had hatched in. It seemed as if he were protecting something devoutly.

The small Amber threw his head as he regained his feet, turning on the Snow who had saved his life with a snarl. "Nevaryth!" The Amber lunged, making to attack the Snow but falling short, the pained squeal that followed was drawn not form a fatal wound but a slicing of shoulder, as the beast landed on the ground again, this time by a young male candidate who had observed the scene and acted to save the merciful Snow. A bellow of rage followed by silence and the boy wrestled the larger hatchling, arms wrapped around the maw of the creature and head dangerously close to it's head. Close enough that as they stuggled, and the Snow once more moved into action, leaping and pinning the Amber beneath her, that te boy and Amber met eyes and a rainbow wheeled into light. A forced Impression, as was common for Ambers. ~Svenoryth hungers. It had best feed me now before I decide to eat it. Nevaryth!~ He spun around to the Snow who released him and now stood beside the rising Amber. ~You are not badly wounded? I meant only to make sure all would know you are Mine, just like C'lain is Mine.~ Nevaryth crooned softly, and the two newly Impressed pairs left the sands, with Svenoryth hissing at any who they passed.

That left one Amber, still standing guard, on the sands. No sound had been made by him in the scuffle, no overt signs of malice made. He seemed to not be an Amber at all, if one took these things into consideration. He was big, yes, and he looked like an Amber, but he acted too calm, too collected. He turned, no longer presenting the imprisoned candidates with his relatively harmless back but now his front, where the real threat could come from. His eyes surveyed each candidate, his lips quivering over his teeth as if in either thought or anticiation. Had they escaped a brutal death at the paws of Svenoryth, only to be attacked by his larger brother?

[pandoraMisfit]

The sun shined down on a hot beach, and Tekah was enjoying it immensely. Chores done in record time, he was sprawled out across a rock, soaking up the sun’s rays like a flower. Yep, this was the life. He’d spoken to a pretty girl earlier on, and she’d promised to meet him later when it had gotten cooler. It was a promising invitation to say the least. Well, skinny dipping with any beautiful person was somewhat more of an invitation, and he couldn’t wait!

Somehow the hours flew by and before he knew it, it was time. He could see her already. A mischievous smile crept across his brown face as she sauntered closer and closer. Just as he was about to stand to embrace her, something peculiar happened. As he watched, the girl’s body began to twist and turn, changing into ugly shapes as she contorted. Paralyzed, Tekah could only watch in horror as the girl metamorphosed into a Magma dragon, bearing down on his with death in her eyes. That’s when the cheering started. This puzzled him. He was about to be visited with a terrible, painful death, and someone was cheering? The noise got louder, and more voices joined in. Eventually a part of him realised he wasn’t quite asleep anymore, and that the disturbing images he had seen were nothing but a dream. But cold and clammy and tangled up in his blankets, he could still hear the cheering.

Shut up. Shut up. For the love of Faranth, why were there people cheering in the middle of the night?! Tekah turned himself over quite forcefully, burying his face under the sheets. Seriously, didn’t people know what time it was? A few seconds of grumbling to himself, and something clicked into gear. He couldn’t hear anyone else in his dorm breathing. And now that was odd. He shared the room with two other boys, who were usually a cacophony of sound at night – one snored light a dragon whilst the other whiffled and wheezed his way through the night. Digging himself out from the shroud he had created in his sleep, the boy stuck a fuzzy head up from the bed to blearily gaze around. The room looked like a dragon had rampaged through! Clothes thrown here and there and everywhere! Still in the fog of sleep, Tekah got very confused. Was there a drill? Why had nobody woken him up?

Sitting up with a sigh, he yawned widely, trying to give his poor tired brain some much needed extra oxygen. What would make everyone leave the room, cause such a mess and give people a reason to cheer? Not drills, that’s for certain. He pulled a face to himself. Looking slowly about the room, it took a short time for him to notice the major difference. No white robes. No white robes folded neatly on top of trunks, ready for the inevitable. Shards! Really, now why had nobody gotten him up! If Silvyth’s clutch was hatching – and e was becoming more and more certain of it – why had he been left asleep! Then he grimaced to himself. Oh yeah. When he was in a deep sleep, he was as hard to wake up as a wherry was to talk to. Still, you would have thought that sort of commotion would have woken him up. Oh but wait, he’d managed to sleep through tropical thunderstorms and screaming children all of his life, so two boys scurrying about would have been nothing. “Nice one Tekah, late for one of the potentially most important days of your life.” His voice sounded hollow as it echoed around the room.

Yawning again, he dragged himself upright, not caring for the covers as they fell to sprawl across the floor. It wasn’t as if the room could get much messier. Cursing as his feet got tangled up in them, he brutally kicked them away before proceeding to the piece of metal that served as a mirror in the room. Faranth, but he looked a mess. His hair was sticking out at all angles, bags sat heavily under his eyes and his face was blotchy from sweat. Stupid nightmare. He stuck his tongue out at his reflection and pulled a funny face before turning back to survey the room again. White robes. White robes. Where were they?! In the mess, it was almost impossible to spot them, especially as so many shirts and tunics in the room were white anyway. Why had they made so much mess anyway? Their robes were already out. Sometimes he could never figure his roommates out. Grabbing something white, he almost instantly chucked it away – it was far too big to be his, and wearing a shirt as a dress is never a good look for a boy. Eventually, he found a pair of nearly white shorts and a short sleeved t-shirt that would have to do. Robes be damned. He couldn’t find them for the life of him! By this time, he was pretty certain that if he was much longer, he’d miss out altogether.

Tekah pulled the t-shirt over his head whilst fumbling about with hit feet, searching for his sandals. He always left them by the door. But it took getting down on his hands and knees to throw things out of the way before he found them. Some considerate people he knew! He was getting more and more agitated as the minutes passed.

Thankfully, his sleep fuddled mind had woken up enough to remind him that he wanted to go the opposite way down the hallway before he got too far. Turning about, he hurried in the other direction, fretting all the way. What if they didn’t let him in? What if he did get let in, only to be rejected by the hatchlings? Then again, he thought, why would they turn a candidate away, no matter how late? After all, if the hatchling is meant to choose the rider, and all of the candidates aren’t present, how can it make an informed decision? That brightened him a lot. Picking up his pace, he jogged down the corridors and out to the path down to the hatching sands. He spared a moment to glance up to the sky, hoping for some glimpse of sunrise. No such luck. Yes, it was still the dead of night. And yes, he liked his sleep, But it most certainly wasn’t as important as the eggs hatching!

Jogging the rest of the way to the sands, he stumbled to a halt just outside t run hi hand through his messy hair, try to even it out a little. Not that it would matter, he’d already by the least formal candidate on the sands. No, he shouldn’t spare another thought for his attire. Taking a deep breath, he took the step that took him over the threshold, only to see a very strange sight indeed. Apparently someone had already impressed. And for once his impeccable memory for names failed him. That wasn’t what had surprised him though – it was the sproingy purple dragonet that was being fed that puzzled him. Purple? When did that happen? If his eyebrows could raise themselves even higher, they would have; even now they were in danger of jumping off his forehead.

Breathing deeply again, he strode out onto the hot sand, taking in the scene. Some strange black thing was wandering the sands, and it appeared to have.. .what were they? Whiskers? As if the day could get any stranger, he thought. Well, night. Trying to sidle into position in the boy’s semi-circle whilst it seemed that everyone’s attention was on the eggs was more awkward than he had thought. Until there came a great commotion form the area where the large egg had been confined on it’s own. A Snow dashed off in that direction, her Mine calling after her in desperation. He took this opportunity to creep into place, although he drew more than a few frowns from the boys around him. Not only was he incredibly late, he was poorly dressed and still yet had not offered any courtesy to the Snowqueen. A quick scowl crept across his face when he received these looks, until he realised his mistake.

Turning his body fully about to face the mother of the clutch, he found her attention was on the ruckus coming from the enclosure. Still, now that he knew his error, he could not in conscience hope to Impress without first offering his gratitude and humility to Silvyth, or at least the weyrwoman.

***********

Meanwhile, the ‘ruckus’ as Tekah had so wryly named it, was about to turn fatal for Zetairen. He stood alone, still hoping fervently that making a smaller target provided less antagonism. Oh how wrong his was. His eyes flared open in horror as the smaller of the Ambers wheeled towards him mid spin. If he screamed, he didn’t know it. All he could feel was abject terror. He was going to die. Silvyth hadn’t found him worthy at all, he was just a snack for her sons. Reason had fled at this point – of course the snow would never harm him, it was against her nature.

It didn’t register when his fate took a swift diversion. The larger of the pair slammed into his brother, knocking him off course and towards the scrabbling noise. Zetairen stood in complete and utter shock. His body beginning to shake as adrenaline pumped itself through his system. His nerves screamed with it, sending his body into spasm. Inches from death. Zetairen’s breathing was fast and shallow at this point, threatening to send him into the clutches of hyperventilation. Very few people can stand in the face of death and not react to it. Were they even human if they didn’t? Tairen didn’t care.

Whilst the two Ambers fought it out again, the lad took advantage of the adrenaline rush to move. No longer frozen where he was, he nearly fell over when he took his first step. Hurriedly, he righted himself and retreated to a wall. Propping himself against it, he panted as though he’d just run from here to Verixon and back. He couldn’t bring himself to stand unsupported ashis energy seemed to sap away, much less try to help the snow. Alarm sped through him when he realised how close she was to the ambers – shards she was almost on top of them trying to separate them!

It was all he could do to watch as the smaller amber lunged at the snow, only to be intercepted by another candidate. His brain told him he HAD to do something, but his body failed to follow through with the thought. From what he could see, the boy had forced Impression, although the amber was still hissing like a demon at everyone and anyone.

Round two. Thankfully the time it had taken for C’lain to Impress had given Zetairen chance to get his second wind. He still shook every now and again, but at least he could stand on his own two feet. Pushing away from the wall, he eyed up the larger of the Ambers. ‘So, do you want your dinner now?’ he wondered. Something was strange though. The beast in front of him didn’t seem like your typical rampaging monster that was the epitome of a newly hatched Amber – like Svenoryth. He couldn’t help but flinch when the creature turned about to face the candidates left in the shelter – for all the good it would do now there was a hole in the wall. Sharp eyes caught sight of the twitching lip. A growl? A snarl. Something was to come. But Zetairen couldn’t make out what the Amber planned. For all his calm demeanour, he could easily turn. And that wasn’t something Zetairen really wanted to experience again. A thought flitted through his mind, but he dismissed it almost immediately. How cowardly would he look if he were to hide behind the other two, using them as a meat shield? No, that was a foolish thought and he threw it away like a piece of offal. Actually, he was almost disgusted with himself that it had even occurred to him.

Looking over to his comrades, Zetairen pondered what to do. He didn’t have long to think either. If the Amber weren’t already blocking it ,his first plan would have been to stand in front of the opening. At least it would give some sort of barrier to the outside world, even if it were only his flesh. But that wasn’t going to happen. Glossy caramel hued hide already blocked that entrance. The only way out was up. And that wasn’t an option.

So he did all he could think of. Stand resolutely. If he rushed the beast, he ran the risk of a mauling. He didn’t think he was brave enough to do that. However, his thoughts and his emotions didn’t agree this time. Bubbling up from inside of him, now that the fear and shock had ebbed to a dull throb in the background, came anger. How dare these things look upon them as play toys! How dare they threaten their lives! A roiling rollercoaster of emotion, his insides churned with a sickening mix of anger, fear and disgust. Who were these creatures to dish out death and destruction as if they were fate itself? His hands had balled up into fists at his sides, brows furrowing into a deep frown. And before he could stop if, a feral growl rumbled in his throat. It almost startled him, but not enough to pull him out of the anger. Not for a long time had he felt so indignant or so livid. Not since his father. This was something he’d tried to hide away, but no. Only he got to choose where his destiny lay! Not some, fresh out of the shell baby dragon! His stance had changed ever so slight – a challenge. He remained where he was otherwise, staring the Amber dragon down. Foolhardy, definitely, but his feelings had overwhelmed him. He had things to live for yet, and shard it if some hatchling was taking that away from him!

[Lyrikitty]

Silvyth's attention was momentarily forced away from the scuffle of her young, the two Ambers and the brave little Snow who had rushed into the fray with a blind determination to help. A boy had entered her Sands, unannounced and miserably late with no regard for the longest time of the Snow Queen or his rudeness. She bristled, rage seeping through her bones as she lifted herself to prowl toward the candidates, stopping only when she towered over the males to look down her nose at the small figures. Even the largest of them were small to her, as the Snow had managed to grow large enough to rival an Amber in her size, so far a feat unmatched by any of her daughters. Her tail flicked almost lazily as she lowered her head, her warm breath beating down on the candidates as she placed her head low enough to turn her skull and peer at the late arrival with a single faceted eye. Her displeasure in his tardiness was apparent in the swirling orb, the grays of her sorrow tainted by streaks of enraged red.

She considered throwing him forcibly out of the Sands and into the stands, where he could watch his fellows Impress and know he had missed out on this clutch, but a voice ni he rmind spoke otherwise. There was an egg here, waiting for him. It was the voice she heard every time she looked at a candidate which belonged on the Sands, and with a grumble she backed away, still shooting unhappy looks at the boy. He couldn't even be on time for what was to be her last clutch, yet he was still meant to Impress. Hopefully he got stuck with something to make him work for his keep as a rider, perhaps one of those overly spunky little creatures that came out as purple blurs, or maybe a Bone. Actually... the more she thought about it, the more it seemed likely a Bone would be the best bet. He wouldn't be running late with a dependable Bone snapping at his heels to get things done promptly.

Kisa, amused by her dragon's thoughts, softly chuckled from teh stands. She had been holding her breath as the Ambers hatched and the interruption was much needed. Tension had coiled in her core and her muscles were so taut it was getting painful to watch, so absorbed was she in the events happening that she could almost feel the terror the candidates must be suffering from.

-----

Meanwhile, the large Amber who had the three boys cornered tilted his head in a most curious manner as one of the boys... Growled at him? Surely this could not be right. A mere child was making an attempt at intimidation? This was most curious. The Amber blinked slowly, his lip settling over his sharp fangs as he took a step closer, his head drawn high and his wings sitting against his back. He was a regal sight, bringing to mind a king far better than any Bronze or his smaller brother who had shown such violence.

Time would show Svenoryth calm with the aide of Nevaryth and C'lain, and in fact the small Amber would prove to be most useful so long as he was shown respect and not directly offended by anyone.

The fate of the larger brother was so far undecided.

He didn't seem to notice or care about a late arrival, or his mother's actions, ignoring everything but the bold child with balled fists. Curious of this sight which was so very odd, for he was an Amber and by all rights this bo should be acting like the other two, cowering and praying to Faranth they survive relatively unharmed, the creature stepped closer, his head tilting ever so slightly to peer at Tair as if the boy were an oddity at a Gather, put on display for all to gawk at. He didn't move so far as to open up the hole he blocked, though in hopes the two lads trapped within started to edge closer to it, hoping that the Amber would be interested enough in Tair -sorry as they felt for the lad- to give them a chance to escape. It didn't work, for rather than move his gaze from the one of interest, his tail lashed to the side, his wings flaring out and back to knock the two boys away and then sweep them forward, swiftly pinned beneath the Amber's front paws.

There would be noneof that nonsense while he was busy. Despite their howling which, to anyone who couldn't see inside, sounded as if they were being brutally murdered they were unharmed, perhaps alittle bruied but nothing which would leave a lasting mark. As if to prove this to the two boys, the Amber grudgingly moved his attention from Tair to the pair, grasping them one at a time by the collar of their tunics with his teeth and throwing them against the wall beside Zetairen. More bruising and a little roughed up, but none the worse for the wear, they shook as they looked at the beast, obviously terrified. It seemed not to have occured to any of them that the Amber had made no sound -considering how vocal Svenoryth was someone should have noticed only one was making a ruckus, as well as the fact that all hatchlings made some noise, be it croon, creel, or bugle- or made a move which was directly violent toward any candidate.

-----

As the Amber was inspecting the three further, several eggs hatched. Three, to be exact. Two blurs of purple shot out of their eggs and raced about, seeming to play with eachother and forgetting, momentarily, that they were supposed to be Impressing. The third was a large, powerful looking beast. At first glance it was hard to recognize him as what he was, save for the long protrusions on his wings, the sharply pointed bones which gave the color their name. A deep black, dull and somehow worn looking, the sort of color which simply absorbed light and left the creature invisible in darkness, was the predominant color of his hide. The bones were starkly white, in fact all of the boning in his wings was white, as if it were looking at a skeletal wing against an ebony sheet. His skull was the same shade of white, save around his eyes, there the black prevailed, making his face look like a skull. His neck ridges were white as well, trailing all the way down to the tip of his tail in an eerie appearance. His ribs were brinbled slightly with the white, his claws the same shade. He was a rather intimidating sight, on the large end of the scale for his color.

He did not frolic as his Violet siblings did, instead shaking himself and collectin his figure to stroll casually across the sands. It was as though he'd been waiting for the right time to hatch, and now that he had he was going to get on with things rather promtly. He stepped around the playing Violets, giving them a knowing look, before heading for the candidates, shocking he was pointed to the girls though.

Several backed away quickly, but he merely crooned sweetly to them. It was as if he were flirting with them, but that was a ridiculous thought. Yet...

Flirt he did. In a smooth manner he walked through the girls, lightly brushing against them playfully and moving on. As soon as it was realized he was harmless, despite his looks, the girls crowed over him, delighting in the sweet-natured cerature in their midst and marvelling at his coloring. He seemed to feed off this, drawing himself up and flaunting proudly.

The two Violets, on the other hand, seemed to realize that they should get on with the important things, and find their Bondeds quickly so they could feed their bellies and get to play for a much longer time later. Like twin rockets they shot off, side by side, not toward the group of candidates circled up and in easy access, but to the sand encosure which was being blocked off by a large Amber.

The commotion which came next could have been predicted by anyone with half a brain. The two hit the Amber's rear at top speed, with enough force to make him lurch forward toward Zetairen and the other two. He spun, turning with his teeth bared to snap at the two little dragons, only for them to dance around him, warbling and bugling merrily, as they praced with high-lifted paws towards the thre boys intently, ignoring the Amber save to jump aside when he lunged at them. Frustrated the Amber threw his head and fanned his wings, stirring up dust enough to cause the Violets to pause, creeling unhappily that their fun was being mussed up. With the pause in their movement the Amber was able to snatch one up, shoving it back and out of his way, the other quickly following suite and the Amber placing himself between the small dragons and the htree candidates, his head low and weaving like a viper's and the two Violets looking slightly less playful and a little more frightened. It was dawning on them that they were in a bad spot, and the Amber was not at all happy about it.


((I feel oddly drained after this post. o.o Especially since the Bone is one I had intended to make for myself at some point. He just... Well he wanted to be in this Hatching. -ponders this-))

[pandoraMisfit]

So the Amber was curious now. Perhaps the growling hadn’t been his best move. But then, when your body reacts whilst you brain is three steps behind it, there’s not much to be done. He raised his head imperiously to stare hardly at the dragon that was scrutinizing him. So what if this dragon was to be a king? As if following his thoughts, the beast raised himself up to display his full might. Something about that smacked of intimidation to Zetairen, and now that he had made his stand, he would not back down now.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw the other two boys sidling along the wall. He could see their plan in his mind’s eye, and secretly hoped it would work. They were too scared, too full of fear to react sensibly if the Amber were to lunge for them. And so they proved it. The dragon cut them of with a sweep of his tail and pinned them. Oh the noise was abysmal! Tairen scrunched his nose up at it, frowning all the while. Okay, so being held down by a potentially very dangerous breed of dragon was sure to be terrifying, but that’s all it was doing. It was as though his claws were raking through their skin. From all angles, they were the ones who were relatively safe, the dragon’s teeth safely away from them and directed at himself in the midst of a staring competition. And yet they sounded like they were being murdered.

Not for along anyway, they soon joined him with their backs against the wall, shaking in their boots. True enough a tremor still passed through Zetairen’s body every now and again, but that was more due to anger than fear. Yes it still swirled through him like an incipient snake, but it was just an undercurrent to his anger. Taking his eyes off the Amber for a moment, he looked to his companions. They were going to be bruised, they most certainly were shaken and still he asked a silly question. “Are you two alright?” It sounded ridiculous even as it left his lips, He shook his head to himself, almost in mirth. How were they? About as good as they looked, he imagined. And yet he still worried for them, even in the fog of his rage for the dragon that held them all hostage.

* * * * * * * * * *

Meanwhile, Tekah felt like he had shrunk to a quarter of his size. Silvyth had noticed his lateness and had come directly over to the boys circle, glaring down at him balefully. He felt like an ant looking up at a runner beast. The warm breath that came from the maw of the dragon only added to the discomfort. When she lowered her head to place her eye level with the boy, he realised just how pissed off with him she actually was. Oh shit. Stumbling backwards, he made a hasty bow, and screwed up his eyes, hoping that she wouldn’t kick him off the sands. He stayed like that for a long to, much to the amusement of the boys around him. Eyes shut and bent in a bow, Tekah didn’t stand upright until he felt the ground tremble underneath the Queen’s feet as she made her way back to her rider.

Grimacing at himself whilst the others chuckled about him, Tekah felt a fool. Why on Pern hadn’t he woken up for this? He really wouldn’t have blamed the queen for throwing him out. Stopped mid-thought by the cracking noise that only egg shells can make, he turned to face the main bulk of the clutch.

Two of the hatchlings exited their shells almost simultaneously, zooming about like they were mad. They were almost so fast that Tekah could only just catch a glimpse of their shape. Other than that, they seemed just to be purple blurs. Like Zetairen earlier on, he had to wonder what on earth they were. Was this a result of the firestone? Or was it just a natural evolution that New Cove was going through? His eyes twinkled with mirth as he watched the dragonets play for a little while, before his attention was summoned by another cracking sound.

This time it was a bone hatchling, although one unlike any he’d seen before. Sure he was used to patrol riders on Bones flying over the hold from time to time, but this one’s colouring actually made it look… well, skeletal! Now that was taking the name to another degree. Oddly, it went straight towards the girls. And then the strangest thing of all, it started crooning sweetly as though it were singing to them! Tekah’s face broke out in a grin at this. He could see this fellow being a right character.

Crash! Spinning on the spot to the sound – and wow, this night was turning out to be quite eventful in the way of having to look all over the place – he saw the violet pair crash into what looked like the backside of another dragon wedged into a wall. Oh. Oh, oh oh. That was the Amber then. Tekah didn’t relish the thought o f being in there, and his heart went out to the people who had been confined in that small space. More than that, he worried about the Violet hatchlings, what were they getting themselves into? Tekah’s eyes lingered on the spot in the wall where the violet hatchings had vanished, disturbed by the sounds coming from within. Something was going on no doubt. He fidgeted uncomfortably. Shouldn’t someone be doing something?

Sighing in a resigned way, he decided that no matter how much he wanted to be over there to help, it would probably look like he wanted to force the Amber into Impression himself – not an outcome he desired in the very least. Xyurith wasn’t too bad, it was just that he had heard what the Ambers were capable of. And he wanted none of it. Shards, he didn’t even want part in any dragon of rank, no matter how sweet natured. Put him in charge of a situation and everything fell to pieces. It just wasn’t a great idea really. At least he admitted this to himself, even if to nobody else.

Tekah yawned widely, and contemplated sitting down on the hot sand. Then again, the heat transferring through his sandals was uncomfortable enough that he didn’t want to try it. Also, he didn’t want to incur the wrath of Silvyth any more than he already had. Resigning himself to standing, he yawned again. Why the middle of the night? He wouldn’t even be able to go to sleep after this, whether he Impressed or not as it would be the morning and there would be jobs to get on with.



* * * * * * * * * *

And yet more surprises were on their way. Wham. Tair ducked and side-stepped as the Amber lunged towards him, only to turn at the last moment, wheeling around to face whatever is was that had made him falter. Zetairen, despite his quick movements, managed to get a lashing from the beasts tail, which knocked the wind out of him and sent him crumpling to the floor. Two purple blurs forced their way into the pen and proceeded to play like puppies. Anger gave way momentarily to exasperation. Not these things again. Yes, he’d have to put up with them around the weyr, but couldn’t they just calm down a little and find their riders?

At any rate, the Amber appeared to be having none of it.

From his position on the floor, Zetairen had a relatively good view from between the Amber’s legs. Until he began to kick up dust anyway. Coughing and spluttering, Zetairen missed what had happened next. Wheezing, he clambered back to his feet. It may have been a bad move as the lashing his stomach had received made him bend over double in pain for a second or two. Panting slightly as he righted himself, he turned to face the dragons that now occupied the chamber. Two violets – for once fairly still – and the Amber. It dawned on him that they had been cowed in some way, for they were no longer zooming about like the violet he had seen earlier. Judging by the scrapes on their hide, the larger of the trio had manhandled them. Well, the term was relative.

Again the rage bubbled up. How dare this thing throw the little ones around? Sure they were smaller than he was, and they were slightly annoying to say the least, but that was no cause for violence. He didn’t care as to what the Amber’s nature was supposed to be – so what? ‘We can all fight our nature’, he thought. Without another thought, he pushed himself away from the wall, staggering slight as he did so. Maybe he had a death wish that he didn’t know about. Nonetheless, he strode over to the three dragons, edging his way around the bulk of the Amber, to place himself firmly between the monster and the theoretical damsels in distress. Facing the largest of the three, he stared hard. “You will not hurt them. I didn’t come here to see anyone else get hurt!” His usually melodic voice had begun to crack as it had gotten louder, grown hoarse from the days struggles thus far. “I’ve seen too much pain already; I will not allow you to cause more!” Something had evidently come over him, call it heroism or whatever, he just could not stomach the sight of more suffering.

[Lyrikitty]

The Amber's head reared high as Zetairen stood before him, protecting the little creatures which had so brazenly tried to get in his way. His lips peeled away from his fangs and he tossed his head as if laughing. That was impossible though, right?

One would think so, until the Amber shook his head slowly for a moment, lowerng it towards his chest as if trying to hide his amusement in the boy before him. How could one so different be standing here, arms thrown out as if that would stop the Amber, protecting two Violets which had intruded on the Amber's inspection? It was all too much. He seemed to regain himself, lifting his head to look over at the two candidates he'd roughed up early. He turned, grabbing both by their tunics and dragging them forward, releasing them only to give them a shove with his nose towards the two Violets, who started to warble and croon in delight, their happy dancing resumed as each tackled it's respective boy, wriggling and making a slur of noises which was more annoying than anything else.

The Amber moved again, this time towards Zetairen, his wings extending to stretch forward and curl around the Harper boy, encircling him and closing them off from sight of all others. The Amber's jaws parted as he exhaled slowly, his muzzle wrinkled slightly as his neck reach forward to place his nostrils less than an inch from the boy. He inhaled deeply, enough that the fabric of Zetairen's tunic rustled, before blowing hot air on the boy. You are a very stange child. You are both brave and foolish, and you will make a good partner for me. My mother chose well to place you before our egg. Had she not, I doubt I would have found motivation to keep my brother in line. I am Numoth, and you are Mine. Now tell me, why do you try and protect those who are in no real danger? His deep mental voice, surprisingly so, rang through the boy's mind in a powerful sweep. The Amber's eyes wheeled a slow rainbow, the hues of Impression, as he gazed at the boy he had chosen, awaiting an answer.

-----

The Bone on the Sands, who had been gathering the attention of the female candidates, seemed to finally grow weary of it, still crooning he turned and slowly made his way to the boys. Among the boys he drew himself up tall, his neck arching proudly as he flaunted, crooning now to them. It seemed this intimidating figure was just as interested in the attention of the males as he had been with the females, however as he made his way through the crowd, he seemed to have more purpose in his movements. Now it was as though he were actually looking for his, while absorbing the attention around him.

He turned his head curiously, gently nudging aside several boys to poke his nose about at others, until he came to one who looked bored to death. He gave a soft exhalation, his throat vibrating in the quietest of croons. Why did this one look so very sad and lonely? Surely he must be happier than this, for this was an important occasion, a great and glorious day for so many young lives.

And not just the lives of those who surrounded him.

The Bone dipped his head and put it on eye level with Tekah, rumbling to get his attention if he hadn't already. His tail twitched slowly behind him, and he butted the boy's chest affectionately. You should look more enthusiastic. You may have been roused at an indecent hour, but you are meeting Zombith, and Zombith is meeting His. The Bone gave the boy another nudge before dutifully looking around. You are Mine, after all. Now, let us get moving and clear the sands, we have much to do and I hunger.



((Sorry this is a shorter one, ran out of things to say. So you know now, Numoth is mute, he cannot make a physical sound, and Zombith has been rattling around my head ever since Bones were created. Originally I had intended to make him as one of my own characters, but I never got around to it. When I sawTekah's profile, Zombith sort of came to mind a lot, and when you asked if you could throw him in I knew Zombith needed to go to him. Please take care of the pretty, it saddened me to let him go.

If you'd like the discussion between Numoth and Z'tair to continue as you and I let me know and I'll gladly post a little longer with him. He's fun. x3))

[scottie]

Late. So very, very late. This was an offense that would see that he saw no more hatchings be it from the stands or from the sands he was most sure. He was going to get eatten. His last possible chance to stand as a candidate and he was finally going to get eatten. Why would he get eatten? Because he was Ronon, and he was fairly certain it was a galiant way to go; attempting to fight off a hatchling that wanted to turn him into breakfast. He never ran late. NEVER. Of all the times to decide to start. Mentally, he was scolding himself, scolding in such a manner that if he weren't having a difficult enough of a time trying to pull on the propper robes as he ran full speed to get to the sands no more later than he would already be he'd be pulling his hair out or at least attempting to. He couldn't even blame the half sibling he'd only met on a few occassions, Ruen, the creator and mastermind behind more chaos than Ronon ever wanted to get involved with. This, running late, was way more than enough for him.

Finally, he got the robes on and out of his face so he could see again. He froze, squealling to a halt, blue-grey eyes about as big as could be. This was not where he wanted to be. Where did he go from here. Right? Left? He darted to the right, squealed to a stop again, thought a second then took off running again, back tracking and taking the left instead. He knew where he was going. He had been there a few times already, a few useless times where he got to watch others leave with dragons while he stood there like a left-over. It was almost enough to make him regret leaving Aleskal's care in the first place, regret not having been what Torran wanted. Then there was that nagging voice in his head that said everything would play out as it was supposed to. He was a great young man in his own right, he just hadn't found his place yet. The place he was supposed to be though was currently vacant and that wasn't a good thing. Not at all.

With his not unconsiderable speed and acrobatic talents, talents which kept him on his feet and moving when he ought to have rightly fallen, he got to the sands. He almost stumbled at the change of terrain, but managed to slide into his spot, dark hair a mess, slight sheen of sweat on him, eyes still wide, but he was there, in his spot and intact. The robes weren't on entirely correctly. They were laying across his frame like they still needed some straightening out, but at least they were on. He would take whatever small victories he could. Small victories like not panting from the act of sprinting the whole way to the sands, or being even later than he was. Still, such small wins wasn't going to help him look any better in the eyes of anyone around him and he was more than well aware of that. He was still late. His hair was a mess from the fight of getting the robes on. He was sweaty, not particularly presentable at all. He'd missed a good number of hatchings already and inwardly he just wanted this all to be over. Once this was over, he would either be on his way to being a rider or on his way back to Aleskal to try and return to the life he had. Even if it meant begging. On his knees.

He really didn't want to get on his knees. That would be a last resort if things really, really failed like he was really, really hoping they wouldn't.

The candidate gave the Queen Snow a guilty look, an ashamed one that clearly said he was sorry and regretted his actions. With that look, he gave a bit of a bow, respectfully lowering his eyes and hoping nothing tore a chunk out of his spinal column while he wasn't looking. Thankfully, he had the luck to be intact when he straightened up and looked to the activity on the sands. There was actualy one good thing about being late to this. It meant it wouldn't last as long and his humiliation, should it come, would be short-lasting. He just had to survive this one, then it was smooth sailing to where ever he was headed next. At least that was the plan. Things never went according to plan. He should have known that by now, but still he tried to set them in place. It was a short term plan anyways. After this, he was pretty sure he'd go back to working on the fly again, hoping for the best and wondering if things would hurt less if he didn't see them coming. Granted, that idea hadn't worked in the past. It probably wouldn't start working now.

[pandoraMisfit]

And now the Bone hatchling was coming over to nuzzle about the boys. Tekah noticed this from the corner of his eye, and couldn’t help but smile again. Yep, that dragon was going to be a charmer. The boy smirked. If ever there was a Casanova of dragons, well this youngster was proving himself to be it, even fresh out of the shell. As the dragon got closer, Tekah began to get antsy. True he’d been in the weyr for a little while now, but something about having one if its resident creatures quite so close was weird and amazing at the same time. Shuffling about, he quickly gazed about the sands, watching for any more eggs to crack. For some reason, the lovely that was displaying to his circle of candidates wasn’t the centre of his attention. There were plenty of boys between him and the hatchling; surely he’d go for one of those.

He let out a big sigh. These eggs seemed to be dragging out the whole procession for the longest time ever. That thought was followed by yet another yawn, which he smothered quickly lest he displease Silvyth again. He knew hatchings weren’t as quick as everyone made them out to be, but still. He began to rock back and forth slowly to ease the heat from his feet. His everyday sandals just weren’t equipped to disperse the warmth properly and the ball of his foot was beginning to get sore.

Preoccupied with his discomfort, Tekah hadn’t even realised just how close the Bone had come. The rumble from beside him actually made the boy jump physically, his heart racing ten to the dozen at the sound. And then the creature head butted him playfully and his heart nearly leapt out of his throat. When the metal voice hit his brain, it was like nothing he had ever felt in the world – not even falling in love for the first time had compared to this. Turning his deep brown gaze to the dragon – Zombith – the organ in his chest just about skipped a beat and for a second he forgot to breathe. Well, until he choked, ruining the whole thing. Wheezing he pulled himself together and just stared at the gorgeous dragon standing before him. He just couldn’t speak. Zombith butted him again, pulling the boy out of his stupor.

T’kah finally finding his voice, lifted his head and let out a whoop of exultation, making a few of the other candidates close to him jump back in surprise. The broadest grin possible broke out across his tanned features as he fairly jumped for joy. This was it, his dream had come true! “His name is Zombith,” he cried, “And he chose me! Me! Of all people, me!” His exuberance was somewhat over the top, but well within reason given the circumstances. Zombith crooned happily as the noise His was making drew attention from all over the sands. Well, until his stomach rumbled abominably. Mine, I really do hunger. I am glad you are smiling now though, you looked so fed up before. But can we celebrate when my belly is fully? The last part took on a plaintive tone. Like his brothers and sisters, the hatchling was famished from the effort of breaking out of his dark prison and finding his.

T’kah stopped in his antics when he realised this, his face flushing with mortification. Having to be asked twice for something so important wouldn’t usually have happened, but he was just so happy! He raised his hand to caress the strangely coloured face that Zombith was owner to, before turning from his position on the sands to start the walk over to the tables that had been hastily prepared for the dragon’s arrivals.

* * * * * * * * * *

Zetairen, puffed up by his anger, had to do a double take as it seemed like the brute before him laughed. That definitely knocked some of the wind out of his sails. What was going on? First off, he was being laughed at by the creature he saw as an opponent and secondly, huh? Dragons usually rumbled or some similar equivalent as a type of laugh, and yet this Amber had made no such noise, and had indeed seemed to pantomime his intended vocalisation. And come to think of it, the larger of the Ambers hadn’t made so much as a squeak. Odd.

Released, the two violets resumed their antics as each tumbled into the boy they had chosen for themselves. Zetairen missed it, for he was still staring at the Amber in front of him. Slowly he lowered his arms to his side, now no longer needing to protect anything. His brows knitted themselves together into a frown. He was at a loss.

Deflated by the ire of the dragon in front of him, Zetairen was knocked for six when the beast wrapped his wings about him, not having time to react. Now encased in effectively their own private room, this seemed all a bit weird, and his usually agile brain couldn’t make head or tail of it. And then the voice rumbled through his mind, deep and rich like nothing the lad had ever experienced before. Why do you protect those who are in no real danger? The voice resounded in his head. Such a swirl of emotions raged through him as to bring tears to his eyes. He no longer had a place to direct his rage, and combined with the intensity of Numoth’s impression just led to an overload, released in the form of tears. This was unusual for the boy and he scrubbed them from his face as fast as they appeared. A normal reaction for an emotional overload, but unusual for Zetairen in that he would cry on his own, but in public he would usually have a much better hold over himself.

And then the realisation hit home properly.

Numoth had chosen him.

Maybe that was why the tears came.

He swiped his hand over his face once again before gazing back at the slowly twisting rainbow hues of Numoth’s eyes. He raised an eyebrow. Eventually, he found his tongue and his voice slipped out, slightly quavery for all that had happened in the last swift minutes. “You yourself know what your breed is capable of. Your brother was a shining example of that.” Here his voice took a bitter twist. The brief date with Svenoryth’s teeth was not something he wished to repeat. “I was not prepared to see more violence. There has been more than enough in my life. I am sick to the pit of my stomach of seeing it.” Zetairen – or Z’tair now, he thought absently – ground his teeth together, almost spitting out the words. He meant every one of them. “I know I should be the change I want to see in others, but if it came to it I would solve violence with more violence. It would make me sick to do it, but if that was the only way, so be it.” He took a deep inhalation through his nose to steady himself, closing his eyes momentarily whilst doing so.

((Bleeeeeeeh sorry about the ickiness of this post (in my eyes anywho) a long day makes for hard writing even when i really want to.))

[Lyrikitty]

There was... Another... Late... Candidate.

This was the thought which went through Silvyth's head as she watched a boy charge onto the Sands. Her tail twitched in irritation, and she rose slowly this time. It was as if she didn't have the enery for the removal of the child from her Sands right now. Both Ambers had Impressed, gratefully, with no death in tow, but this mess was tiresome. She padded across the Sands as another egg started to make for breaking, cirling around behind the candidates to gently lay herself down. Her head was hanging over the candidates, watching the eggs for a moment as another one shattered, revealing a dainty little Snow, with a Bone close behind in hatching.

Her head dropped, just behind Ronon. In comparrison her skull was massive, though when put beside most things this was the case. She was by far the largest of her color yet, and considering the beast she called mate it seemed only fitting. Well... They may not be mates for much long the way this Hatching was going. A disheartening thought, but she needed to focus on the here and now. A low growl rippled in her throat, her teeth peeling away from her glistening fangs. She was sorely tempted to make a meal of this boy, however, she'd decided to discourage any other late arrivals she was simply going to lay back her and menace the candidates from a dangerous proximity.
-----
One the Sands, the little Snow who hatched had taken to tackling her Bone brother. The two were in a tangled mess of pure white and ash, with traces of dull black thrown in denoting the Bone's coloring. Creeling, rumbling, and some minor hissing all chorused from the pair, and when finally they were detached the Bone glowered at his sibling. She merely tilted her head and warbled merrily, before starting to bound excitedly towards the candidates. It was obvious the little white female was going to be a cheerful thing, however it remained to be seen about her Bone sibling who was shakig himself disdainfully, trying to dislodge the grit from his wet hide.

He was an attractive creature, though he paled when put next to the earlier Impressed Zombith. His overall shade was an ashy white, with a dull black marking the undersides of his wings and belly, as well his tail and paws. Heaving a rather large sigh he started towards the candidates as well, steering clear of the excited Snow who had reached the girls and thrown herself into their midst. He, instead, too course to put himself among the males, wary of his growling dam. He gave her a wide birth in his inspection of the candidates, though there seemed to be a note of distress entering his actions.

The final three eggs hatched, revealing a last Bone, Snow, and Violet. The bone was large, his mass proving him to be a likely candidate to reach the very tips of his color's size. He was darkly colored and handsome, holding his head up to look about after bursting free of his shell. His hue was a deep, dull black, no sheen or sparkle to him, but that was normal for the color. Not a hint of another color sullied his hide, and as he made his way across the hot sand, his body low to the ground as though stalking something, a natural musculature was obvious. He was a powerful beast who was meant to work hard. He was also a creature who would tolerate nothing. He crossed to the candidates swiftly, drawing up to the lighter colored Bone and hissing balefully at it. The lighter one turned, looking past his brother to spy Ronon, brightening, but unwilling to draw any closer for the massive Snow who was still menacing angrily behind.

The darker one seemed to have the same intention of Impression, and with a sudden rush he tackled his brother, the squeal of pain which followed and then the chilling silence broken by the happy sounds of an Impressed Violet who had just collided with it's rider.
-----
Numoth blinked slowly as his newly Impressed rider broke, tears dripping form his eyes. This was unexpected. The Amber waited for a long moment, listening as the boy spoke. This child who had such a detest of violence would resort to violence to fix it? Numoth had chosen well. He instinctively knew that he had come into a troubled world, and now that he was going to be staying he would need a strong and determined rider to be at his side.

With surprising gentleness he nuzzled Z'tair's cheeks, exhaling warm breath on the boy. Do not worry, Mine. There will be much violence to come, but we will change that. War hovers on the horizon, but we will stand to champion our cause. Smile, Mine, and sing of this day little Harper boy.

And indeed they would bring change. Numoth chose a child overlooked by those who had thought to set before him the right candidates, not because he sought a calm youth to live for, but because he needed to be bound to a person who wanted what he did. He was not a violent creature by nature, he could be almost compared to a knight of old Terran. The time when he showed his color would be when he was forced and in battle, when what he cared for was threatened. When his home was once more endangered. The effects of Silvyth chewing stone while heavy with egg, perhaps. Just as it was likely that the twin Ambers existing in one egg, and Numoth being utterly mute, were both caused by the same thing. Come, Mine. Numoth hungers and would have you sing as I cannot. I would hear you speak many things, and perhaps learn to better express my meaning with clearer actions. He nuzzled the boy a last time before folding his wings back to his sides and nudging Z'tair. He would not mind talking more while his belly was being filled and there after, but for now his hunger was terrible and he ached horridly.

[scottie]

His eyes snapped to the large and moving Queen and he almost grimaced over it. There was a slight impending sense of dread as the dragon closed in. The corner of his mouth quirked downwards as she approached, but his body language didn't change. There wasn't much he could do anyways. He wasn't sure that trying to mutter a 'sorry' towards the Snow would do anything. He could try to move away, but that was a coward move. Besides, in all logic, she was larger, she had wings and no matter where he went on the sands, she could catch him. If she really wanted to eat him there wasn't a whole lot he could do about it. So he stood. Still, as relaxed as possible on sands, though his mind was wondering what exactly the Snow was doing. He didn't dare look at her.

Then she growled. He winced, but only on a minor scale. He wasn't going to give in too much, no, if he was going to become feed for the Queen, he was going to get eatten then he was going to try to do it as dignifiedly as possible. It was likely that he'd be used as an example at some point if he did get eatten and he didn't want that story to include lines about how he did something embarassingly cowardly when the Snow Queen tried to eat him. It wasn't in him to show that kind of fear. He could at least fake confidence. He had for a long time. That confidence had wavered abit at the growl, hence the wince, but he was regaining it. A hard swollow. He put himself at as much ease as he could. There were still hatchings underway.

There were still hatchlings on the sand, marked as a snow tackled her bone brother. Ronon watched the playful conflict, eyes showing a silent laughter. This would be the last time he'd see that sight from dragons, though he was sure it wouldn't be the last time he saw two children wrestle in play. Still, he kept the threat posed by the angry queen behind him in his mind. To be quite honest, he was shocked she hadn't tried to eat him yet or otherwise maul him. He was hoping she'd find no reason to. He was working not to provoke her, standing straight and still, not daring a glance back to see what kind of position he was in. He couldn't explain why, but he didn't feel that gripping feel of dread, it was dull. The hair on the back of his neck wasn't up. It was just another hatching... only with the Queen to his back and angry at him for arriving late, as she had every right to be.

The set of three eggs bursting open to reveal more dragonettes didn't seem to catch his interest. They'd all passed by before. This was his last time to stand. He couldn't reason the odds that things would be different, he was ready to give up and go back to what he was good at - the back breaking work he'd done before. Back to the monotony of it, back to waiting for something to happen. He'd spent so long just waiting he wasn't sure he was capable of doing anything else no matter how he trained. Still, he kept his senses alert, observing as needed. The observing led to curiousity, concern almost. The newly hatched bone, darker than his brother that was roaming through the candidates, was looking predatory, like it were on the hunt for something.

It was the hiss that alerted Ronon as to what the large dragonette was looking after - the other bone. It donned on him rather quickly that he was pegged between one queen dragon and two bones. Not the best place to be. There was little room to run. The actions were unconcious as he sunk his feet into the sand, knees going from locked to slightly bent, shoulders tensing as if he were ready for something.

And something came. It wasn't what he was expecting entirely either. The darker bone went after the light. There was the sound of pain then that bone chilling silence. Ronon found himself wincing at it. The laughter had left his eyes, though the look in them did not return to the slightly bored if concerned one they had. No, they were the sharp and alert ones of the kind of man he'd been trained to be. He looked towards the scene as if sizing it all up before looking back over his shoulder to the Queen, almost waiting to see if she did anything about one of her clutch killing its brother.

[pandoraMisfit]

Absently the newly ranked weyrling raised his hand to cup the Amber’s cheek when he nuzzled him. He nodded as the dragon spoke, the tears rolling down his face drying almost instantly in the heat of the sands. They were stopping now, and he had given up trying to hide them. Numoth knew him. There was no hiding any more. “You speak words that as of yet I can’t comprehend. There is a storm brewing, I well know. But as for our role in such things, I leave that to the future. I would dwell on the happiness of meeting you here today instead of thinking of such things.” As he spoke it was as though a weight lifted from him. It was indeed happiness he now felt.

Again, the song that had so abruptly left him when Silvyth had scooped him up in her giant mouth began to thread it’s way back into his consciousness. Numoth wanted him to sing, and that was all he needed for the rhythm to insinuate itself back into his mind. A smile crept back onto his face, almost cautiously. The last vestiges of his anger filtered away, crumbling beneath the joy that was spreading through his limbs like a slow burning fire. He wasn’t alone anymore. Numoth was here.

And as he was bidden, a hum trilled to his lips – not fully fledged song, but a soft tune that wove its way around the pair like a blanket. He paused, to give his assent to going and retrieving food. His stomach too began rumbling, bringing a laugh to his lips. Of course Numoth would be fed first; he could wait for the hatching to end and the celebratory feast to begin.

Numoth folded his wings away, revealing them to the world once more. Or at least the room they had been encased in. At least now there was an easier exit route – the hole in the wall that had been such an enticing escape route not five minutes before. “Shall we?” he asked of his dragon, before taking the step out into the view of the rest of the candidates and their audience. He faltered for a moment, as Silvyth was no longer keeping guard over the enclosure, but menacing the male candidates. For what reason, he did not know. It was as though anything that had been happening on the main bulk of the sands had been erased from his hearing since Numoth had held his attention.

Looking to the dragon, he motioned in the direction that they should go. “If you wish it, I would sing for you day and night. Although I would rather we waited until we were off the sands.” Here he pulled a face. “People sometimes give me funny looks for tuning at inappropriate times.” He gave the sands a cursory glance, noting that all the eggs were now hatched. Beyond this, it held little interest for him. His stomach had started rumbling again. It was odd, for he hadn’t been hungry at all by the time the dragons had started their humming announcement of the impending hatching. Then it occurred to him that perhaps he was feeling some of Numoth’s voracity. As they walked, it wasn’t so much that he was leading the dragon; more that they walked side by side as partners. As they arrived at the tables that had been prepared, he turned to face Numoth. “Well then, I will aid you in filling your belly, what would you have me sing?”

* * * * * * * * * *

When Z’tair arrived, T’kah gave a wary glance to the Amber that came with him. And then he goggled at the calmness of the creature for a second, or at least he received a nudge from Zombith. It is rude to stare. Anyway, I’m still hungry. The latter was followed by a plaintive creel, so pitiful that T’kah had to chuckle to himself as he turned back to his beautiful dragon to shovel another handful of the bloody meat into the waiting maw. “I’m not sure you can eat much more dear, you’re going to explode at this rate.” Zombith snorted and promptly asked for more. Just how much food could these baby dragons put away anyhow?

It was hard to wipe the smile from his face as he watched the dragonet gorge himself. Up to his wrists in blood from handing out the recut chunks of whichever beast had been unfortunate enough to become dinner, T’kah couldn’t have wiped his face even if he’d wanted to. Raw meat just wasn’t his thing. And now, he didn’t care that it was the middle of the night either – although from his perspective, it had to be heading on for dawn now. Ah well, he’d have to get used to waking up at odd times – he could imagine feeding a growing hatchling would require some mid-night feedings.

The sandy haired boy looked about. Judging from the amount of pairs of newly Impressed leaving the sands, the hatching was nearly at an end. All the better, he thought, for now that his sleep fog had vanished, his belly was insisting that it was breakfast time.

Engrossed in his food, Zombith paid little heed to the approaching pairs as more of his siblings found theirs. As he chewed the meat and swallowed, he rumbled happily. For the moment at last, his stomach was more important that meeting everyone around him. He knew that he was attracting stares anyway, and he revelled in it. There’d never been a Bone with such a colouring as his, and it was true that many people were admiring him. And that was the way he liked it.

[Lyrikitty]

Numoth exhaled gustily in happiness as they made their way to food, ignoring the blatent stares they were getting. He did cast a harsh look to one though, as they passed. His Amber brother who's head was utterly covered in blood, and the boy who was offering the beast a bucket full of flesh. It wasn't wise to try and give that creature a bit of meat from the hand, one would have likely lost the forementioned extension, and more.

With food being pushed into his eager mouth by Z'tair, he was able to think a little more clearly. His was unaware of the dangers which Numoth had been born to fight, and though Numoth did not fully understand it all, he knew the basics. There was another of his color who had done great harm, and who needed to be stopped. There was a threat approaching Pern from above that almost none had realized yet. It was only logical that he, Numoth, exist to combat these dangers. The question came for what song he would like to hear, and immediately the Amber stopped chewing to think, his tongue flicking out to rask arcoss his muzzle. He'd not sullided his hide with drops of blood, having carefully taken each bit he was offered and not gnashed it or tossed it about like a little fool. I think I would like ot hear one about me. His eyes whirled gentle blues and greens as he resumed eating, noting one of his brothers having an intense interest. The oddly colored Bone who Numoth had not seen until just now. Strange marking, though, Numoth admitted, the beast was not ugly for his oddity. You are oddly colored. I am Numoth. Matter-of-factly, as if such things were absolutely common to say.
-----
On the sands, the dark Bone, now finished with his messy deed, steeped lighly over his fallen brother, green ichor dripping from his maw and clinging to his claws. Sand clumped about the claws, sticking to the wetness present. He would not tolerate anyone looking at His in such a manner! Calmly he made his way to Ronon, peering at the boy closely and sniffing. Yes, this was the one, this was His. He looked, for a moment, beyond the lad and to his mother who hovered menacingly, her lips quivering in a sustained growl which seemed to shake the very sand. His tail lashed behind him as his neck snapped out, teeth closing neatly in the fabric of Ronon's tunic and hauling the boy forward. You are Mine now, and you will feed your Haruth, and you will not be looked at by any other greedy, lonely dragons.

He gave another tug on R'non's tunic before letting go and turning himself about to point his nose to the side and the line of eating dragonetts. Hurry. He looked over his shoulder, making it almost painfully clear he wasn't in the mood to wait. There was a terrible taste in his mouth, due to the ichor of his brother, and his belly was making a fit of noise that made it hard to think. How was he supposed to properly protect His if he was so very hungry?

[scottie]

The candidate could do nothing but watch as the dark Bone headed his way looking almost gory with the ichor on his maw and claws. At that point, Ronon could only speculate what had led to one Bone killing the other. That speculation bred concern that the dragonette might try to bite into him. The queen hadn't seemed particularly concerned over her offspring, though he could still feel her growl. This Bone didn't seem intimidated or afraid like the ashy one had been. Strong trait. Ronon had to admire the strong, handsome Bone though he still didn't dare to move. He wasn't going to provoke it. He allowed it to sniff without taking his eyes off of it. It wasn't until the Bone lashed out that he tried to move, take an evasive step back, a step which failed do that and instead helped to put him off balance when the dragonette caught his tunic. He found himself stumbling and almost falling forward as the Bone hauled him.

Haruth.

"I can promise the food, and that I'll try not to get looked at by any other greedy, lonely dragons." A quirk of a smile crossed R'non's face over that. He understood why his dragon had killed the other and though he still didn't like it, he couldn't be mad for it. Instead he found himself feeling proud, excited and happy. That covered anything else. Years on the sands for a handsome Bone. One who he was ready to be tugged on by again. The young man sunk his feet into the sand to hold strong at the last tug.

He would not leave Haruth to go hungry. Not much could be done on an empty stomache and he wasn't about to make the young dragon wait. It just wouldn't be fair. He took the urging to heart and gave the Queen one last glance before he manuvered to try to get off the sands as gracefully and stealthily as possible. It was a task that would be far easier said than done, all things considered. At least he'd avoided becoming food himself. He'd much rather stick his hand in a pile of raw meat than become the pile of raw meat.

OOC:: Wow... that was... awful. D= I'm sorry. ::

[pandoraMisfit]

Z’tair smiled as he noted how fastidious his dragon was being, especially when compared with his twin brother. Also, how unnervingly quiet. Sounds of meat rolling down gullets, sighs of pleasure and the occasional creeling and snapping surrounded him, whilst Numoth remained silent. It was something he supposed he’d get used to with time – and probably quite quickly at that. He was glad for the mental bond they shared, and for the intelligence the Amber possessed. He mused a while, absently holding out a piece of meat that wasn’t taken from him. Numoth appeared to be thinking quite hard. And eventually, his request was made.

A song about himself? Well… perhaps there was something he could do about that. Z’tair hummed a few lines to himself, words forming themselves in his head, wrapping themselves in a tune that would later want refining, maybe and instrumental line added in. He would keep this one close to him forever he thought as he hummed up and down the scale, loosening his dry vocal chords. Being self conscious was not the trait of a harper boy, but even so he kept his tones low and husky, so as not to disturb any of the other newly Impressed. His voice lilted, wrapping itself around the lyrics that formed in his head like bubbles floating from nowhere.

”A hidden treasure,
Or so it had seemed,
A glorious queen egg,
The very thing of our dreams,

But such folly to think,
As the egg was stowed away,
Something wrong, unknown,
What would come from this day?

Black sands sought us out,
Trickery and malice in night,
A king full of madness,
Sought to extinguish our light,

Oh fateful day, fateful night!
What terrors will you bring?
Pray Faranth that our eggs hatch strongly,
Give us a reason to sing.

Born from hatred and envy,
Shards flew all around,
From the destruction you rose proudly,
Yet made nary a sound,

A brother in tow, a twin,
Came full of anger and rage,
But you so calm, so regal,
Would not join in his games,

Wondrous amongst your kind,
You stood and took me in,
Eyes like rainbows, like magic,
We were bound together therein,

Oh fateful day, fateful night!
We know what tomorrow will bring,
New Cove will stand strong again,
We have our reason to sing!”

He tailed off into a sort of brooding quiet. Sure he had tuned little ditties, mostly instrumental, but it had been a long time since he had composed anything of that sort of scale. And also, it hadn’t quite met Numoth’s request. Sure, he was in there, but more the song was about the happenings of that night. Frowning, Z’tair realised whilst he had been singing away, the bucket had remained empty. ”Are you still hungry dear one? I can go fill this up again if so.” Unaware of the colour that had risen to his cheeks, the lad looked solidly at his dragon. Despite his upbringing, he was aware that his impromptu tuning usually gathered a lot of attention and right now, he just wanted to share the moment between himself and his dragon.

* * * * * * * * * *

Munching away, Zombith was contented. His was providing him with a steady supply of food, and he was started to get sleepy. In between mouthfuls, he let out a draconic yawn, which made T’kah chuckle. His colouring was made even more eerie by the fact that his maw was now all over with blood, the young thing having been too hungry to care about appearances. If they knew about the old terran movies, those around him would have surmised that he looked fresh out of a zombie film or something very similar at least. As it was, the effect was slightly unsettling. T’kah grabbed a hold of a cloth that had been laid out for this very purpose, and wiped the dragonets face, without too much rebuttal. Zombith, after all the effort of hatching, and eating, was getting sleepy.

That was, until someone spoke to him. Instantly he was alert, or as alert as he could be, his white head swaying about until he cast his eyes on the one who had spoken. It was the big Amber His has been staring at just recently. Ina funny little way, he made a sort of bob, his way of greeting, although he wasn’t sure he liked his sibling very much yet. He had called him odd. He puffed up a little bit, for all the good it did him. I am Zombith. And I am not odd, thank you very much. His tone took on an almost a hurt timbre, despite the fact that he was secretly preening at finally being noticed by someone other than His. T’kah took in the silent exchange whilst wiping his hands with the cloth he had used on Zombith. A good long bath would be called for, he thought, as soon as he settled the hatchling to sleep. ”Are you almost ready to go? It seems to me you couldn’t fit any more meat inside of you if you tried, and I wouldn’t want you to burst on me!” He chuckled. Zombith however, was engrossed in his big brother.

He crooned at the beast, ignoring the fact that his human was making some sort of noise. That didn’t interest him. You are quiet. But that’s okay, some people are altogether too noisy anyway. Here the bone shot a look at the violet hatchlings, some of whom were still keeping up a running monologue along with various creels and grunts and rumbles of happiness. You don’t look odd. This was meant by way of compliment also, before he added on Well, I mean that you are quite handsome and strong looking.. He might have gone on to add more, but another yawn loosed from his gaping maw. The exertions of the night were starting to catch up with him.

[Lyrikitty]

The newly Impressed Bonepair didn't make it off the sands before a whirlwind of motion tackled the large Bone, sending him sprawling ungracefully with a sharp hiss to the ground. The blur bounced off and landed in the sand, spinning on agile paws and mantling oddly colored wings to bare sharp fangs at the Bone. It was... A Violet?

The watching crowd drew in a sharp breath, as did the candidates who had already Impressed a Violet. Thus far each of the boldly colored little dragons were hyper, slightly annoying, but otherwise harmless.

Violet and Bone stared at eachother as the Bone righted himself and looked in confusion at the smaller dragon, his tail twitching in irritation. Until something dawned on him. Something which made him freeze entirely, and filled him with a painful rage with such force it extended even to R'non. Mine! Mine that THING want to take you fone me! The words he cast at R'non were filled with loathing and malice, the darkly toned Bone coiling himself up and preparing to launch himself at the little Violet with intent to kill it. No one, absolutely no one, tried to take His. He lunged before anything could be said to try and stop him, though what happened next only continued to shock those watching, and put a deep srac in R'non's heart.

The Bone surged forward, neck and paws extended in attack, and the Violet jumped as well. It looked as if they were to collide in mid-air, until the Violet turned out to be a shade higher up than the Bone, and a good deal faster. Brightly colored claws sank into the Bone's eye sockets, gouging deep and pulling the small dragon above it's brother as he fell from the pain with a bellow of agony and rage. What was happening to him? How was this happening? Why could he not see?! Haruth creeled as he felt claws and teeth both dig into his wings, and he flailed, trying to dislodge his attacker or injure it at the very least.

The Violet crooned sweetly as it's teeth sank through the fine membrane of the Bone's wing, his flailing in vain as the sharp bone which gave the dragons their name missed the bright hide entirely. This was so very fun! Especially when he squealed so. Another squeal of pain came as the Violet wrapped her paws over the Bone's shoulders and her claws tore into his neck, puncturing the large artery there and causing a gush of ichor to pour forth. It didn't take long after that for Haruth to stop struggling, collapsing to the sand limply and fighting to draw breath through his torn windpipe. The Violet released him and stepped lightly away, planting it's rear in the sand beside Haruth and watching intently as life fled the Bone's wheeling eyes.

Only after it was certain the Bone was gone did it rise and turn to R'non, eyes wheeling a veritable rainbow of happy hues as it eagerly danced about him. Mine! Gracious that was such a hassle. Why did you go and let that nasty Bone Impress to you, when your Ruankyth was right here looking for you?! We are rather uspet with you for this, but we'll forgive you as long as you promise to love us and feed us, as we hunger very dearly and the taste of ichor is unpleasent. The voice which entered R'non's mind was nothing like the rich tones of the Bone. It was a feminine lull which danced ever so sweetly, a voice which should belong to an angel. It was the female half of Ruankyth's mind, in all her glory.

-----

Numoth listened intently as Z'tair sang for him, his eyes closed in concentration. It was a nice song, which His was singing for him, but... Well it was not exactly about him. It would suffice though. When the song ended Numoth nuzzled Z'tair in delight, a draconic smile on his fairly clean maw. That was lovely, Mine, and yes I would like more meat... I still hunger. He tilted his heasd to look at his stomache as if blaming it for him not being full after one bucket. The way he felt he could eat and entire herdbeast! Of course this was ridiculous, even if he was an Amber he couldn't fit that much into his belly just yet.

His ehad snapped back up to Zombith as the Bone responded to him, sounding somewhat hurt by Numoth's comment. He hadn't meant it as an insult, when he said the Bone was oddly colored. In fact it was complimentary. He found the odd pattern of the dragon most interesting, and he'd have to find out if that was a very common thing. So far all of the color he'd seen were mainly one color, nothing so bold as Zombith. I do not mean insult, brother. You're coloring is most unique and I find it interesting. His neck arched proudly at the compliment of his strength and looks. Yes, he was a fine example of an Amber, now wasn't he?

Numoth would have liked to converse more with his Bone brother, however the weaving of Zombith's head told the Amber his brother was weary and ready for sleep. There would be tomorrow when they could talk, of course. [color=darkgoldenrodYou should finish eating and go rest, brother. We have had a very long day and you are tired. We will talk more tomorrow, I am certain of it.[/color] He spoke ith an air of authority in this, and while he was no high-ranked beast as of yet, he did have a great deal of potential and the natural authority he assumed was the sort of thing that was easy to follow. Especially when one was so sleepy they could barely stand up and eat.
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