The Rabbit Flees: I Follow }{ Zodiac Hatching

[lredd011]

NPC Journeyman Healer Liseli

Although by now Liseli had managed to stop the majority of the bleeding, the truth was, the girl was not in good shape. Thankfully she wasn't losing any more blood, but she had lost far too much to be in the clear. In fact, it didn't take a healer to look at the unconscious girl, the way her lips were discolored, the way her dark skin looked deprived of fresh, oxygenated blood, and know something had to happen and happen quickly.

"She needs more blood." Liseli said aloud, more to herself than anyone else. "It's a risk...but we need to perform a transfusion. Otherwise, I'm afraid she won't make it."

The Healer, of course, was quite oblivious to any hatching related activities going on around her. She hadn't noticed the Iron that was perfectly content to sit there licking itself clean, nor had she noticed the brilliant Copper dragon that had spilled out onto the sands from the Rat Egg. Not until the brilliant metallic-orange dragon was nudging Ansй's face encouragingly right in front of her. Surely this was not an Impression. Surely the Copper had come for the girl who had called for help, the one with A'rys. But no. It was clear the little hatchling wanted this unconscious girl. It was so tragic, the whole situation, and for a moment Liseli could only sit there and stare.

---

Candidate Illissa

It wasn't right. None of it was. It went against the laws of nature. Against everything she had ever been taught as both a Candidate and a Weyrbrat. Dragons did not fight each other. Dragons did not stay behind when their Riders died. They did not kill their own children, their own mates. They didn't strike down humans. They were peaceful creatures.

Yet here Illissa was, taking in the aftermath of this nightmare. It was a nightmare, indeed. A living one. She hadn't planned on stepping foot onto the hatching sands that day. She had been feeling ill herself, and quite honestly, at 19 turns, was beginning to lose hope that she would ever Impress. She had found other joys in her life. They made her happy enough. Or maybe that's what she told herself to keep from feeling like a failure every time she left the sands without a Bondmate. To keep from feeling the pangs of jealousy whenever a dragon Impressed to the girl next to her.

Grenth's rampage had been so bad that they needed backup. Even though she was feeling under the weather, there were people in much worse condition than herself. As soon as she had gotten word that they needed more help, she had practically leapt out of bed, perhaps a little too eagerly for someone supposedly feeling so sick. She grabbed some supplies and hurried over to the hatching caverns with another team of healers.

It was worse than she had imagined. But there was no time to figure out how she felt about it. Not now. There were dying Candidates. Her eyes immediately went to a group huddled around a dark-skinned girl. The Weyrlingmaster, A'rys was there, along with Benny, whom she knew from her weyrbrat days and from Candidate lessons. But the girl laying unconscious on the sands she had not seen before. The first thing she noticed about the girl, other than how she looked to be on the brink of death, was that her skin, her hair, everything - matched hers almost perfectly (if the girl hadn't been ripped apart by an angry Queen, that is). It wasn't every day she saw someone that looked so similar to her. She decided that the girl must be new to Solace. But new or not, she was fading fast. Illissa noticed there was another healer there who seemed to have stabilized her somewhat, but - why was the healer just sitting there? What was she looking at?

Illissa had been so fixated on the injured girl herself that she had not noticed the Copper dragon that now joined the company of the group huddled around her. Oh no. No no no. A thousand times, no! Please, little one. Don't do it. Impress to some other girl or boy. One that's alive! Illissa pleaded. Begged. Maybe the girl wasn't dead yet. But she was well on her way. Illissa took a moment to scan the frightened, confused faces of the Candidates that remained dragonless. Why weren't any of them good enough? But it was no use. The Copper had already made up its mind. He wanted Ansй. There was only one thing left to do. They had to save her.

Springing to action, she strode over to kneel down besides the other stunned Journeyman Healer. She took one look at the girl, noticed the grey tint to her skin, her discolored lips. She needed more blood. But there was such a strong possibility that her body would reject it. But they had to try, right?

And then, the girl made a sound. It was hardly human, but it was a sound. She stirred. The girl must have felt something. The Impression. Illissa looked up at the Copper dragon in amazement. This newly hatched dragon may have given this girl a better chance at survival. The girl's hand twitched and an arm struggled to reach up towards the Copper beast. Illissa, more determined than ever, looked to Liseli, to the group huddled around and announced, "Let me do it. I'll give her my blood. She- she looks like me, this girl. She might have a chance." Her voice sounded more confident, more hopeful than she actually felt. Her dark eyes were wide, frantic. This would work. This had to work. Right?

Not waiting for a reply, she began to make the preparations. Two fresh, hollow needles. A hose-like structure in between to transfer the blood from point A to point B. They were ready. "Liseli," Illissa addressed the other healer. "Prep her for the transfer." Liseli moved to do so, as Illissa prepped herself. Before Liseli could offer to help Illissa, the Healer-Candidate tied a tourniquet-like device around the upper part of her arm and made a fist. She slid the needle into her own vein with her free arm and watched as the clear tube began to fill deep red with her own blood and make its journey to the other girl's body. After a couple minutes, she began to feel a little dizzy. But she would be fine. She could handle it. This girl had no other hope. Just a little longer...

"Ok. That's enough," Illissa announced, somewhat light-headed, but otherwise satisfied with the amount of blood that had been transferred to the other girl. Liseli moved to unhook the girls from each other and then wrapped a bandage around Ansй's arm where the needle had entered her vein.

Now all there was to do was wait. Wait for the fresh, oxygenated blood to replinish Ansй's system. Illissa fixed her eyes on the newly Bonded pair. She clung to the hope that they would see each other through this. That the transfusion would work. That they would get to fight Thread together one day. Attend Weyrling lessons. All of the things Bondmates should get to do together. She hoped that their journey would not end here today.

But at the same time, she thought, "What is wrong with me?" Try as she might, she still couldn't shake the jealous pangs she felt every time she witnessed another Impression. And though she had just given her own blood for this girl, this time was no different.

[danaphantom]

It felt like years had passed... decades, centuries even, yet when Caelen drifted enough into consciousness to actual comprehend a thought, he realized he couldn't remember anything. Even then, it was not really a realization. With the adrenaline from earlier long having passed through his system, there was little to sharpen his thought process enough to compute anything.

Vaguely his mind registered something. Pain? Was that was it was? Something in his legs. But they felt distant, miles away. It was if he had approached a black hole and had begun the spaghettification process, his legs having been pulled away from the rest of his body. He would be grateful about the fact he could not clearly sense the pain, but he had lost the ability to do so.

Slowly, though, as the healers went to work, he began to drift back towards the land of the living. His legs and hips were one matter... more important was the fact that Somgai was working on increasing Caelen's blood pressure. With more blood being pushed out, more could be pushed back in, and oxygen to circulate through his system again. His pallid face began to regain some color as his heart began to pump more rapidly.

He was far from one-hundred percent, but at least he was no longer on the brink. It would take more time to stabilize him and get him ready for transport, but at least this Candidate was no longer threatened with the honor of being the next corpse on the sand.

[izzie]

The candidate who had come to help him, Bennet, had quickly gotten a healer -- a journeywoman who rushed to stabilize the dark-skinned girl on the Sands. A'rys followed the directions Liseli gave him, continuing to put pressure on the wounds as she worked. Healers were attending to Caelen as well, and the boy who had Impressed the injured red should have been safely in the infirmary by now. Aside from the iron sitting carelessly away from the candidates, nothing very interesting had happened since Grenth's final attack.

Well. A'rys guessed he spoke too soon.

The Rat Egg hatched, quickly, methodically, and the telltale sheen of a metallic peeked through the broken shell. A second bronze, perhaps, ready to pick up the slack after his brother's death had started off the hatching? No, he realized as the dragonet emerged fully, this was a copper. It didn't look much like Lyanoth, the copper A'rys knew best, but a copper it was. He couldn't tell if it was male or female at first, until the creature spoke. This one was a male copper. It was also heading straight for them.

Liseli was too old to be a candidate; A'rys was as well, and furthermore he was already bonded. Naturally, he assumed that the copper had chosen Bennet. It was as much a surprise to him as to everyone else when the baby dragon nudged the girl fallen on the Sands. Who? What? A'rys had never met this girl before today, he was sure of it, and yet here she was, one of his new students. If she survived, that is, which Liseli took that moment to state would be impossible, should the girl not get blood to replenish her own lost supply. Oh Faranth. He was already close to losing one student, the boy with the red, and now a second one? What was wrong with this sharding clutch and why were they so insistent on Impressing to critically injured candidates?

Just then, as if his prayers had been answered in the blink of an eye, a candidate called Illissa came, dark-skinned like the one bleeding on the sand. "Let me do it," said the girl. "I'll give her my blood. She looks like me, this girl. She might have a chance." A'rys was a little skeptical that physical resemblance was reason enough to make a blood transfusion work, but who was he to question it, especially when the life of his future student was on the line? He moved out of the way and let things go on without him, hoping that at least half of his class managed to live long enough to attend lessons.

The first girl to come to help him, Bennet, gravitated vaguely toward him as the commotion around the mysterious new weyrling intensified. She asked what they should do about the copper. "At this point I think the best thing we can do is wait," he sighed. Even with the blood transfusion, it wasn't clear whether the young woman would survive her injuries... though at least now she had someone greater to live for. A'rys looked at Bennet for a moment, picking up on the undeniable jealousy in her eyes and the slight slump of her shoulders. "Dragons are funny like that," the young weyrlingmaster mused, "they know who needs them, you know?"

This copper wasn't Bennet's dragon. Maybe none of the remaining dragons in the clutch were hers, either. But he was sure that somewhere out there, there was someone waiting for her too.

(And when that someone found her, A'rys would hopefully be around to teach both of them.)

[izzie]

Most of the people on the Sands were clustered around Caelen; a smaller group was attending to the girl who had been clawed. Rinnian was left unsure of where to go. Sure, he knew most of the candidates around Solace, but there weren't any he considered good friends. This wasn't something new to him, really. Since Auria, no one had measured up. The candidates around here weren't adventurers. Rinnian had come to the Weyr to find a place where he could fit in, not be the screw-up unworthy of a place in his own family, but maybe there was no point. He was pretty much just a troublemaker here, too.

A copper hatched -- it Impressed to the injured girl. It seemed like being mauled half to death was a sure way to Impress at this clutch. Serves the rest of us right for running away from a forty five foot tall dragon on a mad rampage, huh? he thought with a snort.

The iron was still just hanging around, apparently unshaken by the copper's criticism. Rinnian managed a smile, looking at the huge dark gray hatchling. None of us are good enough, are we? he chuckled to himself. I guess that's fair. But surely the iron would Impress eventually, pick one of the boys who lived in the candidate barracks with him. Either that, or he'd between away into nothingness, and all because he couldn't find someone to stand with.

That was pretty sharding stupid, wasn't it?

Rinnian stood his ground alone, the hot sand crawling into his shoes. He didn't need friends. He didn't need a dragon. And he wasn't about to fade away into oblivion because no one else was good enough.

---

The Cat Iron hatched and lingered. The Rat Copper hatched and went straight to find His. All eyes on the Hatching Sands were fixed on the two of them.

Oh no, that wouldn't do at all.

The Tiger Egg rocked furiously, the creature inside straining against the shell with all its might. It rocked side to side and rolled forward away from its siblings, into an open stretch of sand closer to the gathered crowd.

The candidates and riders cooed over the copper's tragic Impression. They waited with bated breath for the Cat Iron to choose a candidate for his own.

The Tiger Egg shivered and flopped, vibrating back and forth like a pendulum. It practically hummed with frustration.

The new copper weyrling was receiving a blood transfusion from a concerned bystander. "I wonder who the Iron will Impress," murmured a candidate to their neighbor.

The Tiger Egg exploded.

Volleys of eggshell shards rained down on the nearest observers. The little creature left standing on the Sands shook itself, spraying candidates with egg goo in the process. It stretched languidly, raising its hindquarters into the air and flicking its burgundy tail sassily. Hello, brother, the red purred as she approached the iron, circling around him. Taking your time, aren't you? She paid little attention to her copper brother or the humans around him.

Honestly, the dimglows I call brothers, snapped the fiery red dragonet. The unspoken ending of her speech was, of course, "pay attention to me instead." She spoke to the Sands at large, but her attention was focused on one person, perhaps the person who would be most surprised by her choice.

Ah, Sh'kal. My Sh'kal. Don't waste your time on my siblings. Your Laohuth is here.

Tiger Red Laohuth
"The Rebel Flame"

Impresses To: Sh'kal
Final Size: 28 feet
Color Codes: 960007, ED4F01

APPEARANCE
Laohuth is a striking dragon, small for a red but possessing the confidence of a queen. With a basic hide the color of fine red wine, she has an elegant look that is made suddenly wilder by the streaks of bright burnt-orange that cover her forelegs, chest, and headknobs, deeply colored at her toes and wafting, drifting upwards like fading smoke. Altogether, Laohuth has the appearance of a thin, flickering flame, beautiful and dangerous at the same time. With the slender body of the typical red, Laohuth is whippy and agile, capable of executing quick turns and fascinating tricks. This red has a markedly feline way of moving, slinky and predatory as if she's always on the hunt. Daring, sensual, and a bit of a show-off, she's the type who can probably be found executing loops and corkscrews in midair. With her rebellious personality, it remains to be seen how she'll fare in her weyrling lessons. If she's interested in learning the curriculum, Laohuth throws herself into it and will learn quickly and well, but if something bores her, she has no motivation to continue. She's a vibrant and colorful young dragon, and whatever she does, she does with her entire body and being. She has a somewhat unusual structure -- set low to the ground like a crouching predator, she is more long than she is tall. Her tail, though slim like the rest of her body, is longer than seems right for her body, flexible and agile. Furthermore, some part or another of Laohuth's body is constantly moving. She's always restless. This is one dragon who is, pretty much, inherently unable to stay in one place for more than a short amount of time.

Contrary to the maternal nature most of her sisters are known for, Laohuth's burgundy and vermilion body has no room inside it for a great mothering instinct. While she is highly protective of those she feels strong affection for, and would be ready to come to the aid of her rider at any time, any place, she has no particular desire to bear her own children -- she accepts that her thin hips will never bear eggs, and she craves a freedom that children would interfere with. Unusually aggressive for a red, she is impulsive with a fiery temper. Even so, due to her slimness and small frame, Laohuth will never be the strongest dragon of Solace Weyr. This is a fact that she is not pleased with, and indeed something that she loathes to acknowledge. No matter how she tries, though, she will always be a tiny red, smaller than large blues and only able to last an entire threadfall on some occasions. When she is in the air, however, she is fast and beautiful, gliding with an enviable grace and willing to break from the pack if it means success. Like a living flame, she is eye-catching and sensual, with a stubborn streak to rival a bronze's. It should be obvious from the way she carries herself that Laohuth is a big dragon in a small body, and no one can convince her otherwise.

Personality: Bold, rebellious, passionate, stubborn, impatient

MINDVOICE
Laohuth's voice rolls out in a contented purr, rich and melodious and, frankly, very sexy. It's all things hot -- the swelter of the summer sun, a roaring fire, a warm embrace, foreign spices rolling over your tongue. It's musical with a quick, enticing beat, the kind of song that gets you on your feet whether you want to dance or not. Across the wide range of female dragons' voices, hers is no girlish giggle or high-pitched melody, but neither is it especially deep, and there is nothing at all masculine about its tone. Laohuth speaks with a teasing, seductive lilt that, as she grows older, she'll find is capable of enthralling males and females alike. Her formidable temper does affect her voice when it emerges, though, turning the flirtatious drawl into a snarling hiss that seems to unravel the ground beneath her addressee. Her usually teasing insults are suddenly imbued with real vitriol. (In the right mood, time and place, Laohuth could probably make someone cry faster than they could even respond to her accusations. Luckily, that mood only comes around once in a while.) She is a natural leader and attention-grabber, a trait more suited to the metallic ranks, but still a trait that shows up clear as day in the Tiger Egg's former inhabitant. This little red's voice contains no slight trace of uncertainty, no pauses of hesitation. Probably one of the least, if not the least, pensive hatchlings of Grenth's final clutch, Laohuth has no time for or interest in waiting. She knows what she wants, and what she wants, she'll get.

[escape]

Ria was really getting tired of the iron, sure she was a very patient person but she really had no patience for the drooling people were doing over the sharding beast. If that creature didn't get off it's lazy rump soon and find someone, they'd all drown in the amount of saliva and other bodily fluids the males were having over that creature. She ticked her glance towards it before giving a shake of her head and looking back towards the other eggs. There were about five eggs left and the candidates left were overpowering the amount of eggs left which meant there would be a lot of desperation and a lot of hurt feelings once this was over.

The Tiger Egg was rocking and Ria turned her attention towards the egg out of interest. Everyone else could watch the iron till their eyes hurt, but she was going to turn her attention towards the other eggs and hopefully the less egotistical ones. The egg continued to rock until it broke apart to reveal a beautiful red. Ria's breath caught, yes she had said that she needed no dragon to make her life perfect but the creature was beautiful. She swallowed, finding herself irritated by her momentary flash of longing. She watched the red circle her iron brother and Ria rolled her eyes, what was sharding wrong with everyone and their need to be seen by the iron? Faranth, you'd think some of them wanted to sleep with the sharding beast from how they looked at it.

The red left her brother and went towards a male, it didn't surprise Ria at all since she saw the healers drag out a male with a red following him. She saw some of the sour expressions on the girl's faces around and she came to the conclusion that this was a contest to some of the girl's. A contest to get the biggest and prettiest creature so that they could be above everyone. It was sharding sickening and Ria didn't want to be a part of the crowd so she wove her way towards the males to see if they would be any better.

Ria noticed someone that she recognized and smiled a little to herself at his sour expression, it was just like the female's. She stopped by him and glanced at the eggs again, totally ignored the idiot iron on the sands as she looked over the four remaining eggs. "You look like you're trying to shit a rock, Rin." She was surprised that she actually remembered part of his name, she glanced at him and smiled a little but it was unclear whether she was joking with the male or being cruel.

[spades]

Not used to seeing other boys shy away when he was sharp, or firm (in fact, he was quite used to being forced to duck whenever he spoke up). Having no idea that Tinsley was thinking the same of him, the blond shuffled awkwardly, still trying to decide what to do with the small pile or wraps in his arms. The arrival of the Copper dragon nearly had him dropping them into the hot sand. If that didn’t do it, the shock of the beautiful dragon Impressing to the dying girl certainly was. At least Tinsley agreed with him. Huffing softly, Shark glanced back at the other candidate. “I don’t understand,” he complained, though it looked like Tin had no more idea than he did.

Glancing sideways, he realized the Iron was still sitting on the Sands. Waiting. Waiting for what? He couldn’t help but wonder, trying to make contact with the young dragon. “Come here,” he whispered again, trying to convince the Cat that he was the one for him. But the metallic dragon seemed to be fine where he was, allowing his siblings to come and go as they saw fit. After the Rat Impressed, the Tiger decided his time had come. (The Ox egg still remained unhatched, and it didn’t seem to mind terribly, either. Maybe being tossed around by Grenth had scared the dragon inside. Honestly, if that were the case, Sharkal wouldn’t blame him much. Seeing the gold toss Meltel and that girl around, he’d be frightened…he was frightened. Given, they also Impressed, but that couldn’t mean much, could it?)

Before he could considered it any further, the Tiger Egg literally erupted, shards and shells flying through the air like shrapnel. The blond was taken aback - he hadn’t expected a red dragon to come from that egg. She was much darker than Meltel’s dragon, stripped with fiery orange as she went to investigate her clutch mate. “What is she doing?” Shark hissed, thumping Tinsley’s shoulder as he watched the pair nervously. They wouldn’t fight, would they? Surely not, dragons didn’t…

Honestly, the dimglows I call brothers,

Sharkal startled - the Tiger’s (Tigeress‘?) request did not go unanswered. For a moment, all he could see was the red - and then he glanced back to the iron again, his heart in his throat. Surely, this red would go to one of the girls. That was what they did, right? And that iron-


Ah, Sh'kal. My Sh'kal. Don't waste your time on my siblings. Your Laohuth is here.

The boy visibly started this time, dropping all the wraps as the newly hatched dragon continued to approach. “…nnn?” was all the lad could muster, face screwing up as he glanced over at Tinsley, searching for an answer. “Did you hear that?”

No, he didn't. Sh'kal, come here, Laohuth tried to sooth the boy, amusement rippling through her as she watched him take another shaky step backwards. Indeed, the blond was probably the most shocked of all, shaking his head as he trembled and worried his lip. He held out a hand, trying to stop the red in her path. “I think you’ve made a m-mistake,” Sharkal tried convince the baby, pale skin shivering. Instead, the tigeress thrust her head into the open palm, producing a low, purring noise. I am not mistaken, Mine. Do not worry about my brothers, they are not good enough for Mine. You have always been Mine. They know. Come, now. Laohuth was beginning to tire of his shyness - what was there to be so worried about?

With a breathless sob, the teenager crumpled to his knees and pulled his dragon close. His, his dragon, all for his own. He was a real dragon rider now. It happened, it had finally happened to him. Finally!

“Laohuth,” Sh’kal hiccupped, tears welling in his light eyes and rolling down his cheeks. “I thought…”

I would never leave you, Mine, the red insisted, her tail lashing as she nuzzled her new rider. As hungry as she was, the young dragon was clever enough to realize the young man needed a moment to process this great upheaval in his life. Left behind so many times, it did not ruffle her that Impression came as such a shock.

[escape]

Shark complained about not understanding and Tin nodded along like the faithful bobblehead that didn't want to get hit. He really wasn't quite sure why Shark was upset, yeah the dragon didn't come anywhere near them but wasn't it all right for coppers to impress girls? She might have been dying, but so was Meltel and Shark hadn't seemed upset about that...well he was upset about Mel dying but he wasn't upset about the red bonding to the male.

Tin glanced at Shark when he whispered come here, he had almost complied to the male's order until he realized it was towards the iron. He glanced towards the iron, feeling a deep longing for the beast but unsure if any of them were really all that worthy of the creature. Maybe he didn't want the iron, he really just wanted someone to look at him and stay. Mel could die and Shark seemed a bit confusing to understand though he gladly would have stuck around the male.

Another egg suddenly exploded a part and Tin looked at the beautiful red in awe as she came out and began to circle the iron. She was beautiful, gorgeous and hard to look away from. Shark hissed something before thumping Tin on the shoulder, Tin had forgotten about the male beside him for a second so he squeaked in surprise before coughing a little. "I...I'm not sure." He responded.

Something strange happened and suddenly Shark was dropping the wraps and backing away. Tin looked at him in shock and surprise. "Hear what?" He asked, looking around unsure what he missed until the red passed him and pressed her head into Shark's outstretched hand. He stared at Shark for a moment, before he understood that the other had impressed.

"Congrats..." He whispered, saddened that the other male had impressed even though he was happy for him...and lonely. He watched the male drop onto the sands and sob before he turned back to the eggs. Shark deserved a private moment with his dragon, certainly everyone was watching them and wishing that was their dragon.

[spades]

Candidate Bennet

The strange girl came as a shock to Bennet, offering up her blood to share. Honestly, the candidate didn’t even know you could do that. (As dearly as she loved her father, all A’ur had ever taught her were the ins and outs of dragons. He even took her on board Gideoth one time - much to the Iron’s great protest - which only solidified the teenager’s desire for a great Iron beast.) Given, that didn’t prevent the brunet from wishing she had thought of it first, but there wasn’t much she could do about the nameless girl now. Hopefully it would work - the new Copperrider certainly wasn’t looking so good. It would be such a waster for the dragon to go Between so soon after hatching. (Especially when perfectly good candidates like her were standing right bloody next to him.)

Glancing back over at A’rys, Bennet sighed heavily and rolled one of her shoulders, trying to play off the disappointment and heavy heart as tiredness or a sore arm. “Yeah, I guess so,” she agreed, watching the newly formed pair with a barely concealed grimace. “I hope it doesn’t cost him, though…” Raising her eyebrows, Benny shook her head. There had been more than enough death on the Sands today. The copper wasn’t hers…it had been so close, he had stood right there. Maybe if she reached out and grabbed him, she could have saved him…but what’s done is done.

While the Iron still refused to select His from the boys Standing (though if he decided he’d like a female rider, Bennet was more than ready or willing - how proud would her father be, if she Impressed an Iron just like he did), the Tiger Egg made it’s own statement. After some unobserved rocking and shaking, the egg all but exploded, a beautiful red dragon left where the once stood. She was a beautiful thing, stretching and slinking across the Sands to tease her brother. Benny couldn’t help but grin - you go, girl! - as she watched, enraptured by the way the little flame flickered hither and fro. She approached a pair of boys - the blond one scuttled away like a coward. But when the hatchling thrust her head into his hand, the candidate knew she’d made her choice. Of course, she wouldn’t choose Sharkal, the boy was a bit of a jerk, but it seemed oddly appropriate for a little girl willing to agitate her brothers. (Bennet fully supported this behavior.) With another shrug and an amused shake of her head, she glanced back at A’rys.

“Good luck with that one,” she chuckled, surprising even herself. It was good, though, to feel that bit of mirth, instead of that constant, suffocating dread.

[mandafloon]

NPC Healer Somgai

Somgai's efforts were rewarded soon enough. Open wounds that were present were sealed, keeping what blood was in Caelen going 'round and round. Color flushed the downed boy's face. Good, good. Of course, any signs of color in his lower half were likely to be bad rather than good. Blood from burst arteries and veins, from shattered bones and sliced muscle. Ruptured membranes. All inside the skin. Images of limbs gone hard and black, flooded with blood just under the skin, one massive bruise flashed in his mind. That could not be allowed to happen. It would surely spoil what chances the boy was starting to have of living, let alone walking again.

Another thing was that blood moving again meant cells and nerves reviving. Hurting. The male for now seemed to be lost in a haze. He'd heard the sounds of the fallen girl having a small seizure. That was not something he wanted for this boy. Numbweed. Fellis. Hm. Fellis could be dangerous. Maybe diluted? Or maybe... He had many salves and drafts to use, and he selected a coupling he felt was the boy's best bet. He worked in silence, totally absorbed. Bracing and binding the boy's other leg before he came to too much. He was completely unaware of the iron, and the copper, and the red. He wasn't here to trifle over the dragons. He was here to save a life.

((LOL SHORT I still dunno what I'm doiiing.))

[danaphantom]

Everything was coming back and going away at the same time. In his confused mind, Caelen was trying to piece together what had been going on. Now that he was no longer on the brink of death, he found his mind slowly working, though his abilities were dampened by Somgai's work. The flash of healer purple at the edge of his vision at least brought some clarity. At the very least, he knew he was being helped. That was enough. He had faith in his fellow weyrfolk. He had to.

Gaze drifting, partially unbidden, he settled his attention on Keeliah. At least it was something to focus on besides his numbing injuries, besides how close he had come to being a goner. He attempted to speak, but quickly gave up when it became apparent that was quite beyond his current abilities. Trying to conserve energy to heal did not quite occur to him. There were too many unknowns in his mind, too many questions he wanted to ask. He did, however, manage to twitch his good arm enough to gently bump into her. At the present time, he couldn't quite ask the questions he wanted, but at least he could try to make contact.

With any hope, he would be back on his feet (or at least coherent) soon enough.

[kolstoi]

The joy that fizzed up in her heart and pinged about in her rib cage was acute and almost painful, a fluttering creature all its own. Despite her doubts and spiraling anxiety from having lived underneath Grenth's oppressive grief, Gwen was here, feet planted in the scalding sands of the hatching caverns, face to face with the rocking, shuddering eggs. Her hands flew to her collar to pick at it, dragging the thin material into her mouth and chewing on it unconsciously. She was so excited! So nervous! She had gone through the appropriate genuflections when she'd first entered, bobbing along nervously in front of the mad Queen, squeaking out her gratitude for the opportunity. She wasn't sure if the gold had even heard her, or knew that she was there.

But even the tide of happiness that swept about inside of her was not large enough to stave off Grenth for long. Eventually, the soul-crushing monologue was stirred again. This time the words had changed, but the tenor and tone were still the same, absolute despair tinged with madness. She watched Grenth with eyes the size of dinner plates, the collar of her candidacy robes still pulled up over her mouth. The way the massive dragon swayed above her clutch made her heartstrings clench uncomfortably. Gwen took her place with the rest of the female candidates, feeling with a kind of quiet shame her body hunch over into itself. She'd heard that hatchings were supposed to be miraculous, beautiful experiences, but the entire atmosphere stunk with fear and the tingling of hovering catastrophe.

She peeked at the scattered males that were nearby, eyes catching on Rujin's flaming bright hair. He seemed largely unaffected by the whole thing, standing with his arms dropped loosely at his sides, chin up, eyes alert. Inhaling a shuddering breath, Gwen dragged her eyes back to the eggs, not bothering to remove the locks of hair that tumbled into her eyes.

Hope began to flutter inside of her again as the bright red egg began to rock and shiver, and her fingers curled into tight knots with one another. The first baby was hatching! Her lips began to curl in the anticipation of a smile.

Grenth's cruel paws came crashing down upon the egg, wrecking devastation on the small life that had been inside of it. Gwen recoiled with a strangled scream, one hand flying to her mouth to fight the urge to retch. One more staggering step backwards and she'd stumbled down to her knees, tears welling in her eyes. This was...this was...this was abominable! Her gaze tore itself from the splatters of green ichor across the sands and back to Grenth, who was now sagged despondently against her bronze mate.

Rujin felt his breath leave him. His arms curled protectively over his chest, and he took a step back, mouth hanging open. All that was left of the young bronze was a haggard corpse, and with a thick swallow, he turned his attention to the new little green that had newly impressed. It seemed that things would carry on as normal, then. Two more blues, beautiful little animals, wound their way from their eggs, as well as a black. He felt his muscles relax, arms dropping once more from their shielding position. Grenth must have finally tired herself out -

He couldn't have been more wrong. True chaos broke loose as the Queen attacked her mate. He stared, aghast, as two of the largest dragons in the Weyr tore at one another, until Grenth finally delivered her death blow. It all happened too quickly for him to move. One candidate snatched and thrown, yet another clawed as she fled. He opened his mouth to call out - something, anything - but then the deranged gold's body crumpled and fell, finally broken as badly as her mind. He wasn't entirely sure, but Rujin thought that maybe a candidate had been standing somewhere in the area that the gold had fallen.

Abruptly, it occurred to him that Grenth was dead. Rekhath was keening her screeches of grief for her mother, and had suddenly burst upon the scene. While it should have probably shot another jolt of adrenaline through his system, the sight of the young queen was oddly calming, and Rujin did as she asked, trotting back to the far wall to be as out of the way as he possibly could be. He kept his eyes carefully averted from the strange ways that bare bone protruded from bloodied skin, instead staring at the remaining eggs. They were WHY he was there, weren't they?

Gwen could no longer see, or hear. She had remained crumpled on her knees, hands pressed to her mouth in horror as the gruesome scene played out. Heavy, fat teardrops rolled out of her eyes in streams, and every once in a while she shuddered and choked on her sobs, abdomen sore from the effort. The keening din that clanged over her head had been dimmed by her shock and terror, images of blood and ichor dancing before her eyes. The air positively stank, and whenever she took too deep a breath she felt the need to spit. So much death...SO much death! It occurred to her now that perhaps she should have left, she was far too weak for the grisly bloodbath that the hatching had become. She was absurdly lucky to have been left untouched, Grenth's wrath somehow missing her in the chaos. Rekhath now presided over the remaining eggs, and Gwen made an attempt at pulling herself together, managing in removing her hands from her mouth and gulping down a breath. Maybe, just maybe, the nightmare could be salvaged after all.

[lredd011]

Finally, a healer did come, and Keeliah did what was asked of her. Soon, they were joined by more healers, who soon took over. Keeliah kept her eyes on Caelen all while they worked. She tried not to think about what this meant for this young man's future. She just focused on seeing to it that he got better. Color slowly came back to his face. He seemed aware what was going on at times, but these moments were brief, and he would drift away again. But each moment of coherence, however fleeting, was a good sign.

At one point, she caught Caelen staring directly at her. Was he really seeing her though? Or did his eyes just happen to settle on whatever they could? But then he opened his mouth. He was trying to say something. Keeliah's shook her head, "Shhhh, don't try to speak. It's ok. I know. You're going to make it. You're going to be ok." He was so strong. So kind, this young man. Even in this moment of weakness, he had been trying to reassure those around him. And then, somehow, Caelen managed to move his arm, bumping into hers. She gave a small smile, and squeezed his hand. He really was going to be ok. It would take time. But he would make it.

---

Illissa sat, eyes glued on Anse, waiting for signs of improvement. For restored color. Regular breathing. Consciousness. Anything. Illissa gritted her teeth. Come on! Come on! She couldn't stand the waiting. And the more frustrated and anxious she got, the more light-headed she felt from having given so much blood. It's not like she had any food or drink here to help. Illissa tried to calm herself down, inhaling and exhaling slowly. But ultimately she had to find a way to distract herself. She fixated on the Copper dragon. He was a beautiful creature. Although Hatchings had become sort of mundane by now to Illissa, it's not like she had seen that many Coppers in her time. They were rare. And now here one was, right in front of her.

There was something about the nature of a dragon, no matter what the color, that was comforting. They were such peaceful creatures. Well, generally speaking. Recent events would make it seem otherwise. But truly, Illissa found that when she was in the presence of a dragon, she just felt safe. Protected. Although Illissa was a fairly trusting person, she would trust her life with any dragon over just any human being. Humans were so...complicated. Always out to please themselves no matter what the cost. But dragons...they were such giving creatures. Well, shards, Illissa thought. She spent so much time trying to convince herself that she would be fine without a dragon. But did she just want to be "fine"? Shouldn't she aim higher than that? Illissa sighed and directed her attention back to the dark-skinned girl in front of her. She exchanged a look with Liseli, who looked to be just as anxious as she. It had been a gamble, yes. And sometimes gambles went in your favor. And sometimes they didn't.

[bloodfire]

The iron paid little mind to the world around him as everything fell to pieces, sadness from the former queen's passing and the younger queen's rise to power making itself blindingly obvious. Such things were to be mulled on later, he decided emphatically as he continued to get the slime off of his hide. He couldn't go out into the world like this; it wasn't very awe-inspiring, stepping out of the Hatching Grounds with goo from his egg still coating his body. He glanced for a brief moment when the Rat Egg broke shell, the hatchling inside simply spilled out onto the sands, rather unceremoniously at that. Hmph, clumsy beast. Something about this young copper didn't sit well with him, and a feeling of disgust started to bubble up in the back of his mind, like a long forgotten memory of something horrible that the copper had done him. He curled his lip up into a snarl as the other male walked by him, and even snapped at the end of the copper's tail as he dared to call him a lounger. Say what you will, brother, he commented, snorting his displeasure at having to speak so cordially to this dragon. I wash myself of this, and need not explain myself to the likes of you. The copper continued on, and the iron was more than thrilled for that simple act, going back to cleaning the last vestiges of the slime off of him.

The copper Impressed, not that the young iron cared, and went about his business, making sure his mauled rider did not leave him. Finally, the last of the slime was gone, and he drew himself up proudly, still sitting, but for the first time truly looking at the people around him. Yes, they were all paying attention to him, not his copper brother; this sat well with him, and he thrummed in pride at this thought. Movement caught his attention, however, and his eyes drifted towards the black and orange Tiger Egg. This egg looked so much like his own, which now rested in shards in the sands around him, and he found himself watching this one closely for a moment, eager to see if another brother would hatch from this one, or if it would be a sister. He had honestly had enough of brothers, if the copper had been anything to go on there. Luckily for him, it was a rather pretty red that hatched from the striped egg, and he crooned a welcome to his sister as she stretched, raising her hindquarters into the air like a feline. Yes, she was a lovely one indeed, and she was approaching him, at that! Hello, dear sister, he purred to the red as she circled around him, choosing to ignore the comment she made after that. She was female, after all, and it wouldn't do to get on her bad side. That would prove to harbor ill will towards him later, and it was never good to get on the bad side of a female.

Finally, he felt it was time to take the spotlight once again. He spread his wings wide for balance as he stood, allowing everyone around him the chance to see his markings and revel in his handsome build. Sure, he wasn't as physically imposing as some of his brothers, but that simply didn't matter; he was as powerful as he believed he was, and there was no persuading him otherwise. After a few steps to ensure himself that he was confident enough in walking to do so, he flicked his wings back to his sides, holding his head up high the entire time. A thought that had drifted past his mind from one of the candidates earlier had caught his attention, and he turned immediately towards the male candidates, wishing to find the human responsible for such a thought. Where have you hidden, I wonder, he mused as he slipped between people, snorting derisively at one or two as he moved past them. They were not good enough, not worth his time nor the time of the one he sought. Yes, he would show this person where they were wrong, that much was certain; at least, he would once he found them.

Finally, another brief tug at his mind as he caught a feeling. This feeling intrigued him, and he finally came to a stop in front of a young man who was standing off on his own. Don't need anyone, do you? he asked the lad, snorting at the very idea of such a thought entering the young man's head. Why stand for dragons if he felt he didn't need one? No, he was merely angry because he hadn't been chosen...yet. An amused rumble resonated deep in the iron's chest as he curled around the young man's legs, glancing up at him with red eyes sparking with rainbows. How misled you have made yourself, R'ian. You need me, and I will show you why in time. For now, I need food, and I could not properly sustain myself with such filth clinging to my hide.

Iron Charenath
"The Cheeky Aristocrat"

Impress To: R'ian
Final Size: 40 Feet
Color Codes: 171515 & 57240b

Appearance: When one thinks of an iron, they don't think of a creature like Charenath. To put it simply, this young male just doesn't fit the general thought of what a dragon of his size and rank should look like, and this is for several different reasons. To start, he is simply massive for his color, and will easily reach the maximum length for his rank when fully grown. Smaller bronzes will likely feel something of an inferior vibe when this iron is around, though that is merely because he matches up to them perfectly in both height and length, and will proudly flaunt it whenever he gets the chance. He is powerful, but not the sort that is obviously so; rather, the young iron walks with such an air of confidence and feline grace that he seems that much larger and stronger than he truly looks. This young dragon doesn't walk, or even waddle; he struts, pure and simple. Each step that is taken is perfectly calculated before his foot even reaches the highest point of the gait. But above all, the young iron's true sense of pride lies in his long, sinuous body; it is, after all, the reason why he is considered among the largest of his color. Charenath has a light, willowy build in everything there is about him; long, graceful legs support a body powered by lean muscle, each one allowing him the sort of strength that a being of his particular shape needs to stay aloft for quite some time. This is further accentuated by a rather deep chest, allowing for deeper breaths and allowing more oxygen to rejuvinate him while flying. And flying is simply what this iron does best; his wings are large and broad, perfect for long distance flights, as well as surging forward at great speeds when the need calls for such behavior.

If one didn't know better, one could almost say that Charenath was some abnormally large black at first glance. His base color is rather deep for his rank, an almost oily gunmetal in hue, with only the metallic sheen indicative of the iron dragons telling what he truly is. He would be handsome enough with just this one color marking his hide, but then he simply wouldn't be an iron, would he? No, instead, two colors make up this handsome beast's hide; the deep gray as well as a lovely burnt orange in color. Both of these shades are unusual for his color, but he finds that he loves the fact that he is, in a word, unique. Even his markings are unique, and Charenath revels in that fact above anything else; he is simply unique, and unique means that he is unforgettable. Burnt orange saturates the points of his body, all four limbs and snout coated in this color. On his limbs, it starts to fade into the dark gray at the knee and elbow joints, giving the illusion that he has a bit of fiery red on him as well. This same rusty orange marks all of his spinal ridges, and even colors one half of the forked end of his tail. The trailing edges of his wings are marked with the same color, this time standing out harshly against his main color as it clashes with it in a jagged line. Finally, spots of various sizes, once again in this rusty shade, mark both shoulders and hips in a sort of random design, almost appearing to be freckles or spots of paint left by some errant child. Of course, he doesn't mind, as they make him all the more beautiful in his mind, all the more remarkable.

Personality: Suave, Pompous, Aristocratic, Brazen, Boisterous

Mindvoice: Smooth and rich, even Charenath's mindvoice makes one remember exactly what egg from the Zodiac Clutch he hatched from. Like a full mug of warm milk and honey, this iron's voice simply pulls one in, makes them feel safe and secure, and there's no denying that he takes pride in that fact. However, if one where expecting this dragon's mindvoice to be soft, they had best think again; just like the large felines prowling the forests, Charenath's voice has a proud, confident quality to it that makes it seem all the louder than it actually is. It lingers in the mind, stalking its way through one's thoughts and makes them believe whatever the iron is saying. There is also an air of aristocracy in this voice, almost as if the iron is all too aware of the fact that he is superior, and he wishes those that hear him to know that fact as well. All in all, his is a rich voice, but can roar in anger, causing a sort of mental pressure that can actually hurt, causing a powerful headache in those that hear his extreme anger. Although this power is indiscriminate, when happy, there is the vaguest hint of purring deep in that voice.

[danaphantom]

He was completely oblivious to the Copper, the Iron... none of that mattered to Caelen. They were all just passing memories, just like every other hatching he had been to. Perhaps the numbed pain, perhaps the narcotics pumping through his bloodstream were affecting him in adverse ways, but the candidate was feeling decidedly nihilistic. There was no doubt about the fact that this hatching was a turning point for him. The fact remained that it turned in a much different direction than anyone could have ever imagined.

Caelen's hand twitched as he attempted to return Keeliah's squeeze, finding that he had absolutely no grip strength to speak of. He wanted to thank her, to ask she take care of L'ren if Caelen wouldn't be around to do so. Though, with Fahimth, L'ren would never be alone... he still needed someone.

But Caelen could not talk. Even less so as the healer's treatments took away what consiousness was returning to him. Better to have him out cold and unaware of what pains and surgeries there may be in his future. Still, one last glance was cast to the four remaining eggs before his eyes slid closed, blocking out the hatching and what would likely be his last chance.

[ricci]

To put it simply, the rush of fresh, bright, oxygenated blood... Knocked Ansй out.

It was only pure luck that she wasn't additionally allergic to Ilissa's blood, meaning that either they matched, or Ansй's blood could handle it. Thet truth was that, if they had managed to test, Ansй would prove to be a universal recipient. Lucky her. Not so lucky for anyone else if they ever received her blood, as only folks with her blood type would be able to survive as massive of a donation as she had received from Ilissa.

Fallath and Ansй stuck together mentally, but Ansй couldn't even answer anything that Fallath said to her, not even in her dreams. Ansй had no dreams. Her mind was overwhelmed, outdone. She clung to life by a thread. Ilissa had saved it with a gamble, a gamble that could have lead to an even quicker, even more painful death with hemoglobin bursting into her bloodstream, poisoning her with proteins her body didn't recognize... but she survived it, and would survive it.

At some point, some more Healers came to her side, joining Bennet and Ilissa and Liseli.

"Is she stable enough to be moved?" asked Journeyman Arendon, staring her down, hardly noticing Fallath. He briefly nodded to the Copper in appreciation of his sheer calmness given the situation, but for the most part, his attention was on the girl who sat precariously on the edge of death. "I take it from the fact that she is still breathing that it was her femoral vein, not the artery, that was nicked?"

He indicated to Fallath to shift. The Copper half-hissed, half sighed as he irritably shifted aside from his newly made rider. The two Apprentices that had joined Arendon white-faced on the Sands looked to be in their early teens; they lowered the stretcher down onto the Sands in the place that the Copper had originally taken.

"When you're ready, Liseli, you and I can lift her here."