Ramoth rested, lightly dozing with her head between her front claws. She kept her attention on her eggs. Usually this close to Hatching she did not sleep at all, but she had slept little these past few days.
No one in Benden Weyr slept well. The double deaths of the golden queens sent a shock through every person and dragon present. It was so sudden and fast that it seemed unreal.
Even the Oldtimers could give no advice. This was a disaster nobody even thought could happen. F'lar and Lessa were showing the strain of keeping the Weyr together. Meeting with other Weyrs and Holds, everyone asked them the same questions.
Are the queens truly dead? And what of their riders?
Ramoth knew from Lessa about Kylara. The shock of losing Prideth left the queen rider insane. She was locked in a nightmare of her own making, left broken and demented from grief and remorse.
The Weyrs could not heal her. She was sent back to her father's Hold, accompanied by Rannelly who would care for her.
Brekke survived. She lay in a coma, mind lost, unable to separate herself from the death of her queen.
F'Nor and Manora stayed in Brekke's weyr, watching for any sign of awareness or intelligence. She now opened her eyes, but that was all.
F'nor barely ate or rested and was wearing thin. F'lar also showed signs of exhaustion, blaming himself for this situation. He was Weyrleader. Somehow, he should have known what could have happened.
Canth perched on the highest reaches on the Weyr, grieving for his lost queen. Mnemoth stayed with him, trying to give his dragon brother what comfort he could. Lessa came to see Ramoth and the eggs, crying out her grief where only Ramoth could see her
The Weyr was almost at a standstill. The normal activities were done quickly and quietly. An undercurrent of tension was felt by the Weyrpeople. No one socialized for the only topic was the death of the queens. The dragons were silent and often the riders retreated with their meals to their weyrs
Only the promise of a Hatching lifted their spirits.
Ramoth had little comfort to give. Anger and grief filled her own thoughts.
She had entrusted to the humans two gifts. Treasures to be protected and loved. Her precious golden dragon daughters.
Prideth was her firstborn daughter, her priceless golden girl. She grew up so beautifully, as a joyful promise of hope that the Weyrs would start again and flourish.
Ramoth had never approved of Kylara, sensing something unstable in the girl. But Prideth chose her and they seemed to love each other, so Ramoth kept silent.
Then her newest darling, young Wirenth. She and Brekke were expected to do well with their future ahead of then
Now Prideth and Wirenth were gone due to human stupidity. Gone forever, gone between.
Distracted from her thoughts Ramoth heard some faint sounds, scraping noises that she knew so well. She lifted her voice in a cry that was repeated by all the dragons.
Hatching had begun.
Ramoth turned her attention to her babies. The flurry of activity as visitors found seats and young candidates were taken out in their white robes. The dragon mother was distracted from her eggs and turned to the entrance.
Two people, Manora and F'nor, were there supporting a figure. Ramoth hissed. The humans were going to do it and bring that barely alive Brekke to Re-Impress. Somehow Ramoth felt it was wrong, but when Lessa asked her why, Ramoth had no answer. She just felt it.
Lessa joined F'lar at a vantage point to watch. Many of the Weyrpeople watched Brekke. F'nor stayed at the entrance with Manora. The dragon rider watched Brekke with hollow-eyed intensity.
Swaying from side to side, Brekke did not move. Ramoth went into the human's mind.
Brekke. You need to walk. You need to wake up and walk.
To Ramoth's surprise it seemed to work. Brekke straightened up a bit and started to walk unsteadily to the queen egg. She joined the girls who, to give them credit, welcomed her and made a place for her. They formed a semi-circle. Ramoth felt her spirits lift.
Then a loud crack and the eggs started to hatch. Usually it was considered good luck for the first Hatchling to be a bronze, but this was a fine healthy brown. He stepped out, shrieked a greeting and was met with a roar of approval from the crowd. He went to a dark-haired boy from the Minecraft Hall who knelt in front of him. A second baby, a bronze, hatched. Blinking and looking about, he went straight to a boy from Fort Hold. Now a delicate green girl, stretching her wings to dry.
The queen egg was rocking, ready to hatch. Ramoth backed up several steps as the girls circled the egg for the best angle. The queen egg exploded open and the new queen stepped out.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The little queen seemed perfect. She stepped around the shards of her shell and examined the girls. She looked at two girls who knelt, arms outstretched. She went by a holder girl who made coaxing sounds to the Hatchling. Then she spotted Brekke and cocked her head to study her. The little queen seemed confused.
Brekke swayed from side to side, head resting on her shoulder, eyes were vacant and glazed. But Brekke was already a queen rider and that fact put her ahead of the other girls.
Ramoth felt somehow that Brekke noticed the queen hatchling with a vague awareness. Ramoth went into Brekke's mind.
She felt no joy, no sense of recognition of her surroundings, only a sense of remoteness and empty.
Then Ramoth caught a thread of Brekke's thoughts
.…...Wirenth? Is that you?... Are you here?...No, Wirenth, you are not here…I cannot find you…You are between….You are not here…
With a rush of horror, Ramoth realized what was very wrong
…Brekke was crossing into the darkness and she was taking the Queen hatchling with her!
She roared with urgency. Instead of scattering the girls froze in place, still between her and her hatchling. Several bronze dragons called back and Lessa suddenly turned to F'lar and gripped his arm but Lessa and the bronzes were too far away. Ramoth was too far away!
The little gold had approached Brekke but seemed confused. She took another hesitant step. Impression was a second away.
Ramoth sent out a desperate call.
STOP HER! STOP THE QUEEN!
The call for help was answered by Berd. The bronze fire lizard suddenly appeared above Brekke's head. He screamed and dove for the queen hatchling. She ducked her head. He angled himself again and went back for the queen, all clawed feet aimed at his target.
The gold queen was only a baby. Her thoughts filled with terror, unable to deal with this shrieking creature attacking her. She backed away, trying to spread her wings to protect her face.
Suddenly a girl crossed over, stepping in front of the furious fire lizard. The baby queen hid behind her for safety. Berd turned on the girl, who raised her arms to protect her own face.
"Berd, don't!"
Brekke suddenly woke, looking around the cavern. She seemed surprised at all the people and baby dragons. Realizing she was standing in the middle of a Hatching, she laughed.
Brekke faced the girl, who stretched out her hand in rueful apology. Brekke gave a nod of understanding. The girl knelt to comfort her new gold.
Brekke carefully walked to F'Nor and Manora with a big smile on her face. Berd followed her, hovering and calling urgently
It's all right Berd. I'm here. I am fine.
Ramoth felt herself calm down. She heard the girl call out the queen's name, "Pirith!"and Ramoth left the Hatching Cavern. Her duties were done, and she was starving. After she was full she looked to her mate.
Usually after a Hatching the pair went off by themselves to a section of beach they privately thought of as theirs
She heard some thoughts from Lessa. Apparently, the smallest egg did hatch and Impressed the young Lord Holder of seemed to be upsetting to the humans. Some of the visitors said a dragon rider could not be a Lord Holder. Ramoth saw little cause to concern dragons about.
It did surprise her the egg hatched. She tended the egg as carefully as the others but deep down had not thought the egg would hatch. The hatchling was white and very small. She promised herself to keep a careful eye on the little white.
She flew up to her mate and snuggled in. Both were exhausted from the events of the past few days. Finally, a happy ending.
The beach tomorrow.