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The day had come, and all of the saa in the Valley were in attendance. Yes, all of them. There weren't really that many, but they still managed to fill every tree around the large nest their precious eggs had been placed in. This was a risk for them - there were fifteen eggs, but it was almost guaranteed that almost half of them wouldn't hatch. That was normal for the Saa. What was worrying was the fact that they had decided to let the candidates see the actual hatching, which meant a greater chance of their younglings bonding, but also a greater risk of leaving some candidates disappointed, if not enough eggs hatched.
The nest was pretty big, maybe five feet in diameter, and stuffed with greens and soft moss to both warm the eggs and cushon the hatching dragons when they finally managed to free themselves and began looking around at the world for the first time. Candidates had never actually been allowed to see the community nest, since all the outrealm hatchings (even those of the Saa who had risen with outrealm dragons) had taken place in a patch of warm sand some distance away. And the last batch of Saa to leave the Valley had been presented to the candidates after hatching, on a lawn of soft grass. It was a tense moment when the first shell cracked. Well, except for Eikida. That Saa loved hatchings, any hatching, and particularly enjoyed watching the joy in candidate and hatchling alike when they first saw one another. She herself was becomming a bit round with her own brood mysterious, but was still as cheerful and childlike as always, humming to herself as she wandered through the gathered eggs. The hatchling struggled within it's ovular confines, until finally, it toppled out with a pitiful (and somewhat startled) squeak. The gathered Saa gave a collective gasp at his coloration - he was stunningly reflective, a rare silver. This was a good omen for the hatching indeed. He looked first at Eikida, who giggled when she could see her reflection in his hide and then sent him out towards the candidates. The little hatchling grinned and surveyed his options, before chirruping and attempting to bound over to his chosen one, only to find that his newborn legs wouldn't really allow for much frolicking; he fell more than he frolicked. Still, he managed to land at Kinta's feet and wiggled happily, his young mindvoice comming in loud and clear. ~We have fun? Like play!~ He was having some trouble putting thoughts together yet, but that was to be expected. While that exchange occurred, another egg split and a multihued green hatchling blinked around at the multitude of both her own kind and those outworlders who had come to attend the hatching. Eyes of Stars, who had been watching the previous bonding with some interest, started and then blinked at the hatchling as she stared straight at him. ~Stars? Like stars.~ she said happily, ~Like day, too. Like sun. Stars like day?~ She chirped then, adding an extra note of curiosity to her question. Meanwhile, two other eggs were rocking, and a third had a long, jagged crack running practically all the way around it as the little hatchling fought it's way out. This one, a little red-brown lacewing (though it's markings would show up later, with age) tumbled out head over tail and landed squarely before a startled Janice. She blinked big, eyes the color of spring leaves up at the woman, and grinned. ~Hai!~ she was on her back and upside-down, but that didn't seem to bother her. Instead, she buzzed a little set of wings on her hind ankles and rose a couple inches into the air, feet first. And then promptly flopped back down again with a squeak, looking up at Janice again. ~Too tall! Come down here! She demanded indignantly. The next two could have been siblings, for both their timing in hatching and the fact that they looked similar. The first to fall free of her egg was a little sky blue girl, flittering orange wings in a frantic attempt to right herself before toppling over. It didn't work very well, but she managed to get her wobbly legs to work a little better. Finally she made her way over to the elf, Náremiri, and flopped down with a soft 'oof.' ~Too much walking.~ she said, a plaintive note in her hatchling mindvoice. Her [possible] brother, meanwhile, had stepped free of his eggshell and half walked, half hovered over to where Gawain sat, waiting patiently. He peered up at the shade curiously, his 'gold and silver' colors almost as strikingly opposite as his new bond's pale skin and dark hair and eyes. His little mindvoice was quiet and curious, but by no means timid. ~I come with you? I help.~ As the newly bonded pairs made their way clear of the nest, a hush came over the assembly. That was four. Surely that wasn't the entire hatching... was it? The gathered Saa shifted uneasily. There were five candidates left, would they all be disappointed? This was why they usually waited. What if the remaining eggs just didn't hatch at all? A long moment passed, until one of the candidates, Damyen, edged forward cautiously. And jumped when the egg nearest him gave a sudden violent shake and cracked wide open. The hatchling within shook himself and stood, a rich, midnight blue. He eyed the thief, almost suspiciously, and then grinned. ~You fun. I go with you.~ And then other eggs began to rock, and the gathering breathed a deep sigh of relief. There would be enough. Now they could watch in ease as the remainder of the hatching eggs cracked open and spilled forth their colorful contents. A pale, pale green lacewing female managed a short trip over to one of the few non-humanoids gathered, Alenna. She would have hovered longer, but she was just a little hatchling. Still, she managed that much, and chirruped at the dragon curiously. ~I help?~ She knew her new bond was in some kind of trouble, and that somehow she could make it better. The other hatchling, meanwhile, sat for a while before making his way over to Rikoe and his mate. He stepped carefully, so as not to trip or stumble much, and then looked up at the two of them when he finally reached them. ~Can't hunt. Can still come? Pleeeease? Can learn,~ he said, giving them both the absoultely most adorable (and hopefully helpful-looking) face he could possibly muster. ~I learn good.~ Lastly, a little while after those three had gone their way, a tiny little brilliant blue head poked out of the eggshell it had been hiding in and looked around. There seemed to be no other candidates left, and she made a sad little churbling noise, climbling out of her shell. Was her chosen not here? Had he been forced to leave because she was so late in hatching? However, there was one last candidate, hidding in the shade of a nearby stone builing. It was old and in disrepair (practically falling apart, actually), but it offered enough shade that it's occupant would be out of the sun. And there was a Shield on hand so that, should he actually decide to come out of hiding, the dappled sunlight filtering through the trees still wouldn't touch him. Still, the only reason she noticed him at all was because there was a large... thing. Standing in the doorway. she squeaked again and charged forward, well, would have had she been in better controll of her limbs at the time. As it was, the Beast of Eyes had to carry her, just as she had carried the Nameless, to her chosen bond. She cooed softly as she was set down at the doorway to his hiding place, and nuzzled the many layers of clothing lovingly. She would protect him from any demons that dared try to harm her new bond. ~I stay with you,~ she said to him, her mindvoice as gentle as a soft breeze. And then it was over. The Saa breathed yet another sigh of relief, and began to disperse. Hopefully those hatchlings that had been sent out today would ensure their species' continued survival. At least they would be new emmisaries to the worlds. Eikida grinned and watched them go, each new pair being portaled out to their various home worlds. She knew things would work out just fine, didn't she? They always did. It was only when the last of the outrealmers had gone that she peered at one of the unhatched eggs, nudged it with her nose. "Silly little one," she murmured, and sat waiting for the very last tiny hatchling to emerge from her shell. PICKUP |