The Darkest Hour (Loraketh's 2nd Hatching)

[Akira]

I will stay dear sister. I will be here for you. His shy voice was gentle and sweet as he crooned and tried to comfort his sister. He felt terrible that he couldn’t do anything more for her. He gently reached out to nuzzle her neck. He was trying not to cause her pain, or get in the way of the healers, but he wasn’t exactly sure how successful he was being. He turned his head and crooned to his sister’s rider, he wanted to make them feel better, and make them happy again. It was supposed to be a happy moment when a dragon found the human that would be their life-partner.

I’m here Xae, and I’m not going anywhere, don’t worry. R’as was feeling more protective of the little woman that he had ever been over anyone. He let her pull his other hand around her, and held her tightly. He gently placed his head against the back of hers, and wished there was a way he could make her happy again. It will be alright Xae. Virath and I won’t let anything bad happen to you or Moth ever again. His voice was soft and sweet as he spoke to her, but his face was cold, and emotionless as he watched the terrible creature that had done this, enter the feeding area.

R’as wasn’t upset with the man that the blacklight had chosen to impress; no he was mad at the blacklight herself. Virath moaned sadly when he felt the feelings of hate and anger came from his rider. He didn’t know what was going on, or why his rider was so upset. Then he turned and saw what was causing so much trouble. He growled at his sister, and even though he wasn’t much bigger than her, he did his best to seem intimidating. He was only an inch bigger than her, but that didn’t stop him from trying to protect their smallest sister. He wasn’t going to let her kill this one like she had the other one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pandora glared at the man who had stepped forth to claim the little green pest. No, she has caused me no physical harm, but I was quite content in my thoughts till your firelizard came and interrupted them. Her voice was cautiously emotionless as she responded to the man’s question. All she had wanted to do was sit in the shadows and watched the hatching that had become so interesting to her, but then she got interrupted, and had to deal with a man who couldn’t even control his own firelizard for Faranth’s sake!

That’s when Pandora realized that the night wasn’t going to get better for her, and that after she dealt with this pain in her butt, she might as well go back to her room and go to sleep. Or she could stay up and wait for the hatching feast she was hoping for and get drunk enough to hopefully forget the entire night! Well…a girl could dream couldn’t she? She shook her head and attempted to rid herself of those unhelpful thoughts. She needed to think clearly so that she didn’t talk her way into a giant mess, though, she doubted that was even possible.

[Aarin]

As Aarin walked over to the tables with the necessities for a newly-hatched dragon, Aarin heard himself hailed by another young voice. Of course, it sounded like the youth had choked on the first syllable, shortening the long “a” of his name to more of an “ah”, with a definite break before the following “rin”, before it dawned upon him that he would have an honorific now that he had Impressed. He could scarcely believe he had Impressed at all, and he never thought he would, so he hadn’t given the entire process much thought at all, surprisingly. When he looked over to see who had addressed him, he saw it was the boy he had been standing next to, the poor sap. He was beckoning Aarin to join him as he fed the dragon he could tell that the boy definitely was uncomfortable with. Well, unfortunately, they were of compatible personalities, somehow, and he had been Chosen. Aarin girded his loins and walked over, Zekieth trailing somewhat apprehensively behind him. “Zion! Um… Z’on? Congratulations.” Impressing the beast was probably still quite the sore point for Z’on, so he wouldn’t bring it up.

Aarin leaned over and grabbed one of the bowls of food that had been so kindly left out for them. “Now, open up, Zekieth,” he told his dragon, the name feeling fantastic on his tongue. He could not believe this was happening. The dragon cocked his head, but obliged, and Aarin stuck a large hunk of what was probably herdbeast meat on the Garnet’s tongue. While he had mostly specialized in breeding and caring for animals, he had learned how to butcher them as well. Providing food for his dragon was not going to be an issue in the future. “Be sure to thoroughly masticate your food.”

Masticate?

“Chew it. Use those molars.” He sent a mental image of what a molar was, and what he meant by all this. Zekieth nodded, closed his mouth, and set to thoroughly grinding up his meat as not to choke on it. It was hard, and he probably ground at the meat a bit harder than was strictly necessary, but he was already a dragon well-used to self-control. Choking out of sheer gluttony was not going to be a problem that Zekieth had. Once he was done, he opened his mouth again obligingly, and Aarin gave him another piece. The fresh Weyrling looked back over at Z’on. “So, was it at all what you were expecting?” Aarin asked, the hint of a knowing smile at the edge of his lips.

[Zirin]

The Lost Sun Brown kept his stance as he attempted to attract the attention of his evil sibling. His shoulders drooped when his challenge to her went unheeded. Should he just rush in and attack? No, that was not the honourable course. He needed a duel! And a fair maiden to protect as well. He grumbled as his oddly coloured sibling hatched out of his egg, but purred when the obsidian entered the world. There was his damsel in distress! He would protect her from the menacing beast.

He chuckled awkwardly to himself when the sub-queen proved how capable she was. Well, it appeared his sister had put the monster in her place. An awkward fidget was seen as he tried to figure out what to do now, completely confused by the strange turn of events. So he wasn't needed here... no matter! There were injustices elsewhere in the world and he would see to them instead! Ha ha! His sister could hold the fort here, she could be his home base! Pleased with the result, the Lost Sun Brown turned about and finally looked at the gathered candidates.

A-ha! The next great battle for justice! One of these humans needed him! Now which one was it? With a snort the Lost Sun Brown flicked his tail and stared down at the humans before him before beginning to wander. He went first to the boys, walking by each and stopping in front of each, one at a time, to look them in the eyes, like a Sergeant with his recruits, he judged each one. Occasionally he would poke or prod at one with his snout, as if testing their physical strength; however, none seemed to match up to his desires. With a let down nicker of sorts, he left the boys behind and turned his attention on the girls.

He had wanted someone strong and brave, not a damsel in distress.. but there had been none that matched in the boys. So, one by one he repeated the process to the girls, but again, none seemed to match what he needed. His eyes began to show the hint of worry as he returned to march through the boys a second time. Where was his partner? The Lost Sun Brown looked defeated. His wings, previously held high to display his saddle-like marking, we now drooped low as he trumpeted for His.

There was no one on the sands for him. Had his quest for justice been cut short already? He had failed his first act of honour and justice, and now he was paying the price, was that it? No! No there had to be more! His was out there, he could feel it! His would show themself soon and they could begin to rid the world of all the nasty things in life.

The Lost Sun Brown's eyes shot to the stands; if there was none of the sands for him then surely someone up there must be meant to meet him. His eyes swept over the stands and finally settled on a woman. One who looked strong. Yes... yes she was the right one.

A-ha! I see thee now, mine loyal deputy! His booming voice echoed in the mind of only one person in the stands, but to her it would likely feel like he had been right beside her. Getting a bird's eye view I see. Very clever! Thine view of injustices must be great from such a height. But come now, Pandora. Come down here so we might collaborate thy views with mine own. He paced restlessly on the sands, his eyes never leaving the woman's form. A loud growl rose from his empty stomach. I suppose mine stomach has other plans; however. Might thee hurry down so thine Guarximuth might eat before our glorious quest?

---

Brown Guarximuth

Impressed To: Pandora
Pronunciation: Gar-zih-muh-th
Rank: Brown
Size: 35 Feet
Color Codes:
Base: B8A98F
Marking 1: DBD2C2
Marking 2: 7B694A

Appearance:
A sturdy, muscular brown who sits just above average in the size scale. His body is the perfect example of toned beauty, with just the right amount of muscle to show off his strength and intimidate where necessary, but also subtle enough that he doesn't look abnormal or overly bulky. He has pretty average anatomy, as far as browns go. His neck and tail are both perfectly proportioned to his body, and wings are just the right size to carry him with a fair balance of speed and stamina. It is easy to see, however, that the bulk of his muscle seems to be formed in his front legs, wings and chest.

His hide is a light, mocha brown colour that spreads across his form in soft bumps of shadow and light, much like the foam on the top of a cappuccino. His muzzle, wings and tail are almost white in colour, as if acting the part of the frothed milk. His markings, however, are a darker, nutmeg colour and look more like a bridle and saddle than natural markings.

Personality:
Guarximuth is a dedicated dragon, believing his call in life is to uphold the justice system at any cost. He is brave, daring, and bold, without an ounce of cowardice. He can be quite intimidating when he sets his sights on something, as he will follow through with his goals until the bitter end. He is the type of dragon who keeps his friends close and his enemies on the run, and could one day be quite the leader. He is usually a well behaved dragon, but even he has his limits and will occasionally disobey for the sake of justice, and sometimes friendship. Strangely enough, his favourite treat is fruit, such as apples.

Mind-Voice:
You there! Pandora! Something foul is afoot, I can feel it. Hurry, we must prepare and put a stop to it!

A strong-willed fellow, Guarximuth's voice is just as powerful as the rest of him. Gruff and booming, he leaves no doubt in anyone's mind that he means business. He tends to use thee, thy and thine in place of the you pronoun, and mine in place of my.

Why:
Pandora, my partner, you have all the things I need in a deputy. Your confidence, strength, loyalty, not to mention your cunning, calculative nature, will all be a great asset in our quest for justice. We will do well, you and I.

[derek]

Z'on let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully A'rin wasn't going to run away from him because of his vile dragon. A'rin looked a bit confused though, and Z'on figured it must be the honorific. Truly, he wasn't really used to his, either! It was so strange... he had thought he would never Impress, and then he did... but not to a dragon he wanted. A'rin congratulated him, and Z'on snorted. "There's nothing to congratulate me for. I Impressed a... a monster." Odilyth hissed and nearly bit Z'on's hand, but he got it out of the way just in time. Stop insulting me! I chose you, now get over it![/color] The Blacklight hissed again and nipped his arm. Z'on winced and whacked her on the nose. "None of that!"

He turned back to A'rin. "You should be the one being congratulated, not me!" He smiled at the other male, nodding. "He's quite a beauty, eh?" he asked, pointing to the Garnet. At A'rin's question, however, Z'on let out a full-throated roar of laughter that caused Odilyth to hiss and lash her tail. "It wasn't what I was expecting at all, to tell the truth. I'm twenty turns, so I thought I was going to be left standing again. Instead, I get this monster." Despite his words, he sounded rather... fond of the dragon. "I suppose never Impressing would have been better than her..." and then he just sounded depressed. "You're lucky to get a dragon that at least doesn't kill for fun. So what about you? Was it what you were expecting? I was hoping for a peaceful, bloodless hatching, so I was definitely surprised."

[Akira]

Pandora was about to let in on the fellow who’s flit had interrupted her thoughts when a very loud voice entered her mind. She spun around quickly, looking for the source of the noise that had interrupted her. The voice had been so loud that she could have sworn whatever had spoken had been standing right beside her. When the voice spoke of a bird’s eye view, she finally looked down at the hatching sands, and at the large brown that was staring at her. Had he just said thine? She shook her head, completely confused as to what was going on.

Pandora gulped, and very slowly, almost mechanically started walking down to the sands. She ignored everyone that she might have upset with her passing, and kept her eyes on the brown. She shook her head, disbelieving, as she watched him. She had impressed a dragon…but she wasn’t a candidate! How could she have impressed to a dragon without being a candidate?! Her thoughts were once again interrupted when he spoke of food, by this time she was already out of the stands, and slowly making her way towards him.

Pandora was met about half way to the sands by the dragon who had called himself Guarximuth. She had some difficulty saying it in her head, and wondered how hard it would be to say out loud. You wanted food right? Ok, even she thought she sounded totally stupid. This left little room for her to think of what her new dragon would think she sounded like, she shook her head again, and tried to keep herself from thinking those thoughts. She had to focus on what was going on around her; she had to figure out what in Faranth’s name had just happened to her.

Pandora was about to let in on the fellow who’s flit had interrupted her thoughts when a very loud voice entered her mind. She spun around quickly, looking for the source of the noise that had interrupted her. The voice had been so loud that she could have sworn whatever had spoken had been standing right beside her. When the voice spoke of a bird’s eye view, she finally looked down at the hatching sands, and at the large brown that was staring at her. Had he just said thine? She shook her head, completely confused as to what was going on.

Pandora gulped, and very slowly, almost mechanically started walking down to the sands. She ignored everyone that she might have upset with her passing, and kept her eyes on the brown. She shook her head, disbelieving, as she watched him. She had impressed a dragon…but she wasn’t a candidate! How could she have impressed to a dragon without being a candidate?! Her thoughts were once again interrupted when he spoke of food, by this time she was already out of the stands, and slowly making her way towards him.

Pandora was met about half way to the sands by the dragon who had called himself Guarximuth. She had some difficulty saying it in her head, and wondered how hard it would be to say out loud. You wanted food right? Ok, even she thought she sounded totally stupid. This left little room for her to think of what her new dragon would think she sounded like, she shook her head again, and tried to keep herself from thinking those thoughts. She had to focus on what was going on around her; she had to figure out what in Faranth’s name had just happened to her.

Thy has just impressed! That is what has just happened, and yes, I would like food. Guarximuth snorted at his rider’s thoughts, he would definitely have to teach her how to be a better deputy! He walked beside Pandora as they made their way over to the feeding area. A low growl escaped his parted lips as they passed by his smaller sister. She might have been put in her place by their obsidian sister, but he wouldn’t tolerate any more injustice coming from that certain female.

Pandora shrugged, and mouthed a silent, “I’m sorry” to the man who had impressed the blacklight female. She knew Guarximuth wasn’t growling at him, but she wasn’t sure if he would know that or not. She shook her head and walked over to grab a bucket of meat for Guarximuth who crooned softly when she brought it back to him and he started eating. After we are finished here, Thy should go check on mine white sister’s rider. While I check on Moth. The brown raised his eyes to his rider as he spoke, and made sure he meant business.

Pandora sighed and nodded; she still hadn’t quiet gotten a grasp on the fact that she was no impressed to a large male dragon. She had never planned on impressing one of the large beasts, but she was positive this wasn’t the type of dragon she would have wanted anyways. After all, he was all for justice, and damsels in distress, and here she was, more willing to be on her own, and avoid others. She really did believe that something had gone wrong, and he had impressed to the wrong person, but there would be time to talk about that later, she had duties to attend to after all.

[jillianna]

For not the first time today, Alessandra found herself praying to be overlooked. These dragonets. They were violent, cruel beings. Everything was such a mess. One dead already, the sweet little white maimed, almost every other candidate was bleeding from bites and slashes. Then she saw the green. She seemed like she would be better than her siblings, but she was still a bit apprehensive. When she came to her, she could see the agitation in the dragonet's eyes.

For just a moment, she thought she'd not feel this one's wrath, but there it was. The vicious stinging slap across her legs that she never saw coming. She yelped and fell to the side, not having expected such force from a newly hatched dragonet. The hot sand found it's way into her sleeves and under the neckline of her candidate's robes and a soft whimper escaped her as she tried to scramble away from the heat, making it worse before she finally found her feet.

***------***

As Keegan watched, his increasing stress levels over his sister's safety seemed to be reaching ungodly proportions. To the point that he drowned out anything and everything but what was in a three foot radius of his sister. The rest of the sands and stands were a blur. Hazy and unfocused. Then...

The bottom of his stomach dropped. The green dragon was focusing on the female candidates now. He held his breath and it was like it was happening in slow motion. With one vicious slap of her tail, his sister was on her side on the burning sands, scrambling to escape the heat. He stood saying nothing to anyone and ran, shoving people out of his way on the stands until he reached the edge of the sands.

He would not allow this to happen. Not to his little sister.

[Zirin]

Z'nil was a little annoyed that this woman was being so rude about it. He had apologized, so why throw such a fit. He was going to reply to her and mention her disrespectful tone, but suddenly her face took on an odd expression and she rose. Look Mine! She is just like you! That dragon down there found her just like i found you! Isn't it wonderful?!

Z'nil chuckled. Well, at least this would stop them from fighting. he watched her go down and claim the brown as her own. Would she hate it as he originally had? It was hard to say; he didn't know her at all. Anuth crooned sadly beside him. {i]Don't worry shorty, I wouldn't give you up any day.[/i] He stroked the green's muzzle warmly before turning his attention back to the sands, wondering what else might happen. There were still a few eggs left, and the sub-queen and strange male hadn't impressed yet. There was still more to come; hopefully it would be only good things from this point on.

[Lark]

The Reckless Dragonet shook his wings out as he watched his black and purple sister leave with Hers. Good ridance, she was taking all the attention anyway! That brown brother of his wasn't much better with his high and mighty attitude. Who did the brown think he was? He was no King, he was only a Sub! No, this dragonet was a King, and rightfully so. He had had to endure months and weeks of protecting his sister only to get yelled at...speaking of which.

The Warrior Obsidian was still standing where she had left her sister and their fight. Giving one last glance in the Blacklight's direction, she shook her head. This was ridiculous, this was wrong. One did not kill those that one should love and cherish. Noticing that her brother was watching her, the Obsidian swiveled around and hissed at him in a sharp note. She did not need to be protected! She was plenty a fighter to keep herself safe! She lashed her tail in frustration, hating herself for having to play the part of a damsel in distress. It was the last thing she wanted.

The male shrugged, so what. He didn't care much about his sister's feelings, he just knew that it was his job to protect her...no matter how much he hated it. Mother said so, and Mother was never wrong. Looking up at the Queen, he squeaked when she leaned down to lick his gooey hide. He. Did. Not. Need. This! Growling at Loraketh, the green and red male sauntered off, holding his head high. Where was His, surely the boy could make everything better and prove that he was the best once again.

Stopping at the male candidates, he pushed his nose against one before shaking his head. Nope, not this one. Going down the line, he finally stopped at one boy in particular.

You there! Yes you! You didn't touch your Aerinth's egg Kite, not that many did anyway. Why didn't you? Oh, forget it! There are more important things to do like watch over my sister. Mom told me to over there. It's not much fun though...she tends to just yell at me.

Jade Aerinth

Impressed To: Kite
Pronunciation: Air-in-th
Rank: Jade
Size:40 Feet
Color Codes:
Base: caf071
Marking: b3003a

Appearance:
The first Jade, Aerinth is the poster child for his color. His body is not quite as bulky as a Bronze King's, but instead has a more proportioned look. His body does not have a metallic shine either, but a marbled appearance instead that seems to glow like stone in moonlight. At 40ft, he will be on the larger side of his color.

Personality:
Just like his Obsidian sister, Aerinth is one tough cookie. He is brave, and will be the first one to step up for a fight. his courage, especially at a young age, though can be a problem. Often, he is too brash and quick to make judgments. He is also easily swayed by his anger, and by others while angry. However, in this King is the stuff to be a great leader. It just has to be molded carefully. He will often act a bit too confidently at first as well, but the confidence means that when he matures he won’t be too timid to take action. He needs someone to be there beside him and to work with him, not against him.

Mind-Voice:
Oh, forget it! There are more important things to do like watch over my sister.
A bit whiny at times, and strong at others, Aerinth's voice changes as much as moods can. When he is trying to act like he's important, it shows in his tone. When he isn't, but he's doing something that is brave or leader-like, again it shows. It is constantly an even tenor though, not entirely unpleasant to the ears. Just never ask the dragon to sing.

Why:
You're a fighter like I am Kite, and I appreciate that. You're brave and strong, and will help me to get what I want. No one can ignore us when we're together, no one will beat us!

---

Meanwhile, The Hopeless Truth Egg had rocked onto its side. Oh no, it was upside down shardit! Hissing in frustration, the egg wiggled and cracked, only to stop. What was it doing again? Crooning curiously it wobbled again. Oh no! It was upside down! Sighing, the Obsidian dragonet shook her head and padded over, turning the egg right side up once more and giving it a gentle bang with her tail. The shell split open to reveal a brightly hued green, the stalky female blinking huge eyes and opening her mouth in a wide gasp.

Wow......just, wow. She flexed her wings and looked at the black and green Obsidian in front of her. Well, wasn't this green weird? The Hopeless Truth Green sniffed her Sub-Queen sister, drawing back when the Obsidian hissed at her. She was no green! However, the Obsidian could see how the less little fighter could become easily confused. The poor thing was as bad as those purple ones. Shaking her head, the Obsidian walked away leaving the Green crooning with its head tilted to the side and its tail wagging behind its body.

[/center][/blockquote]

[Rawla]

Sari watched more than a little relief when the blacklight hatchling impressed after getting put in her place by the obsidian. The reaction of Her new chosen, when it was clear that she had finally impressed, toward her, encouraged Sari. It was quite harsh but perhaps that was what she needed in order to stay under control.

The brown, she admired also impressed, but from the stands. The look of confusion and uncertainty upon the girl's face was understandable. She wished though that it could have been her. Turning back to see yet another impressed Sari began to realize that the number of eggs unhatched and the hatchlings that had not yet chosen were dwindling in number quite quickly.

There was a spark of hope still resting in Sari's chest when others began to hatch out but she was practical too. Her odds of impressing this time was not good. Resigning herself to this fact, she kept her alert gaze upon what she could see nearby and waited for everything to be over. Her feet were burning and her body was sweated under the robes. The salty sweat stung the bites and scratches upon her body, making the wait that much harder.

Were her brothers still watching? Was her little sister? She hoped they weren't too worried. She would be just fine.

[kitsuneko]

For a while B'den's full attention had been devoted to Kohenkyoth, but now that her belly was full of meat and her hide was clean, he glanced around to see what all he had missed. It looked like the blacklight had bonded safely after all; B'den grimaced at that, but at least her rider seemed to be a decent sort, for all that B'den hadn't really gotten to know any of his fellow weyrlings during candidacy.

He was pleased to see that the garnet had Impressed to the boy Kohenkyoth had knocked over. B'den gave him a friendly nod of congratulations. He was surprised to see that a brown had hatched and Impressed from the stands--and to a girl, no less. He glanced down at Kohenkyoth; the green had finished her meal but showed little interest in conversing with her siblings. She just sat silently at B'den's feet, tail curled loosely around his legs.

She was the first to point out the dragons hatched from the Warrior and Reckless eggs, and the two of them watched as the first of them Impressed. He smiled at Kite. "Congratulations, he's a beauty."

[Aarin]

The way Z’on spoke of his dragon made Aarin a little sad. Eventually his tone displayed some of his affection for her, but the words were all wrong. He fed Zekieth another piece of meat while he looked over at the other boy and his dragon. “Of course a bloodless Hatching is ideal, but it is still rare. Even in the Weyrs that have just the ‘normal’ colors, there are still maulings. They just tend to be less… deliberate. “Honestly, though. She chose you for a reason. Hopefully that reason is to keep her in check, as Zekieth here has asked me to do.” The Garnet cautiously nodded, then looked at Aarin entreatingly for another hunk of bloody, raw meat. “I’m sure as much as she’ll hate to hear it, she can be trained. After all, anyone can be trained. Hopefully you won’t have to do it alone, though. That would be too unfair.” He shook his head. “But never say that it would be better to have not Impressed. Think of the signal you’re sending! You have to shower her love, right?” As much as he still felt absolute detest for the black and violet dragonet, anyone could be redeemed eventually. It was part of that whole “being accepting” mentality that Aarin bandied about. That was partially why Zekieth had been attracted to him. Aarin would never have forced him away.

“However,” Aarin warned, “I would not suggest letting her ever forget what she did here today.” He spared the Blacklight a glance that could have sullied a pile of dirt. But it was there for only a moment. Then he turned around and obliged his own dragon once again. He had a feeling that it would take a lot to satisfy him. Even though he was only a baby at the moment, he was still huge, and yolk couldn’t sustain him forever.

[Zirin]

W-W-W-W-Was it safe to come out now? Had that crazy psycho dragon finally gotten off the sands? The Witchdoctor Egg had beenshaking rapidly for quite some time now, though it seemed it had no intention of hatching. Rather, it seemed more like the egg was shaking out of fear than anything else. Finally though, cracks began to appear along the shell and pieces began falling away.

A loud squeak was heard from within the egg as it shattered to bits, and after a flurry of activity, the only thing the could be seen of the hatchling was its long-legged body. The hide was, for the most part, a light grey, almost white colour that was marred by a variety of colours, which, when coupled with tis size, most likely meant this fellow was an opal. Grey-greens, grey-purples and even grey-blues made appearances in various places on his hide. But his head... Where was his head? There was his neck.. leading down to a mound of sand.

D-D-Don't look at me! The Witchdoctor Opal seemed to cry as it tentatively pulled his head from its sand shield. So many eyes... so much judging! Was it because his tail forks weren't the right size? or was it his legs? Ooooh his left wing was bigger than his right and they could see it couldn't they! He shoved his head back under the sand, as if that would stop people from looking his way.