Everyone was extremely excited. Nobody, even the earlier Candidates, had gotten to come this close to the eggs before. They were practically tripping over each other as the walked across the hot sands.
The bronze rider stopped them several dragon lengths from the eggs. Almost everyone was wearing heavy boots, but the heat still crept through enough to make them uncomfortable and on-edge. As the rider turned to us, he grinned even further.
It took only a moment for the gaggle realize why. A queen rider walked up beside him. "Hello. I'm Jarnet, rider of gold Quizzeth over there. She's decided she's going to let you see the eggs. Don't do anything stupid, or anything that might harm the eggs. If Quizzeth growls at you, I suggest you get away from the eggs as fast as possible. That shouldn't be a problem, though, as she had promised she will behave." Jarnet flashed us a smile as she spoke the last words, then gestured toward the eggs. "What are you waiting for? Her patience wont hold forever!"
The Candidates walked hesitantly forward. Iyola and her friends all bunched together as they crept towards the eggs and the intimedating queen gaurding them. The eggs themselves came to about their shoulders, with the exception of the glistening egg in the center.
The queen egg.
The golden egg came all the way to Iyola's head, and gave off an aura of power. It was a comforting aura at the same time, though, and made Iyola a little more relaxed as she touched or stroked an egg.
They felt odd, like a hard leather that had been left out in the sun for too long. Briefly, Iyola remembered they were about three or four days old, and wouldn't hatch for a while still. As Iyola made her second round of the eggs, once more finding herself stroking the gold, the bronze's voice boomed out that it was time to go.
As the group gathered together again, everyone started chattering excitedly. After a little, they all decided they would continue their conversations in Tayl's room where there weren't so many ears to eavesdrop on them.
"Did you see the size of those eggs?!" Taylor burst out.
"Did anyone else feel as if an egg was calling to them?" Cydney spoke without bothering to answer Taylor's question. "That pretty mottled red-and-green one did to me, in a way."
"Yeah," Tayl agreed. "I got a brown, green, and red one for me."
"How did you get that close to the gold?" Amy asked Iyola. "It felt so… imtimidating!"
"I know," Iyola answered, "but at the same time it felt… comforting." She shrugged. "You never know."
The ecstatic friends continued blathering on until it got late and they got sleepy complaints from other Candidates.
It wasn't hard living at the new Weyr. The riders didn't judge you by rank, and, in turn, neither did the other Candidates. The Candidates did, however, have to help with the preparing of the Weyr for its new inhabitants. Namely, the dragonets that were growing on the sands. With everyone's help, though, and a good attitude about it, it wasn't hard. Not really, even if when you went to bed your muscles were so sore you could barely move. They also had lessons on how to care for your new dragon, what Weyr life was like, and the small significance of rank. Over all, though, everyone had fun.
It wasn't until they felt the odd thrumming through the soles of their feet that they realized how long they had been at the Weyr.
"Everyone, into your robes!" the Candidate master shouted. The Main Cavern and all the dorms that connected it were chaos.
As Iyola shrugged on her white Candidate robe and tied her thick brown boots as quickly as her un-responsive fingers would act, Amy's queen started flitting about the room excitedly. She was humming along with the dragons and tugging at whoever was being too slow. Amy was constantly scolding Yma as she finally finished tying her laces. She and Iyola ran out into the Main Cavern where the Candidate master, a man with thick arms and of normal stature, was giving orders.
All Candidates were filling out onto the sands, fidgeting more from nervousness than the heat of the sands. They made a semi-circle around the eggs on the opposite side of Quizzeth, who was pacing back and forth in her attempt to keep from harming the Candidates. Her rider was soothing her when the first egg cracked.
Rarrant, whom Iyola just remembered had been at the Weyr almost the whole time she had yet she hadn't actually seen him once, was standing near it as the brown-and-purple egg burst to shards. Egg shell hit him as he backed away from the dragonet, a glistening bronze. He creeled piteously as he stumbled forward and landed face first in the sands.
Where are you? Where are you? Help, please! Iyola heard a voice shout in her head. She realized it must be a dragon, but the only hatchling was the bronze. Girls couldn't Impress bronzes!
Then Rarrant came forward, as if pulled by an invisible cord, and helped the flailing dragonet to his feet.
Oh, thank you! Thank you! I am now yours, and you are now mine! Iyola heard the same voice. With a jolt, she realized she was hearing the bronze talking to Rarrant. She could hear the dragon talking!
"He says his name is Queeseth!" Rarrant called out to the crowd. It was just then that Iyola realized her parents were yelling, screaming, cheering for their son. With a twinge of guilt, she remembered that throughout the whole time she had been at the Weyr she hadn't once thought of them.
She didn't have much time to think, though, as another egg hatched then. A blue, crying just as piteously as the bronze, crawled away from his shell and stumbled toward the Candidates.
You are mine! No one else may have you, as you are mine! She heard the dragonet tell the boy. Iyola tried desperatly to block out the dragon-voices from her head.
A green slithered out of her shell at that point, and toddled towards the group of girls huddled near together. She let out a sound that was almost like a bark and raced as fast as her wobbly legs would carry her to but the legs of one of the girls.
My name is- was all Iyola heard before she shut out the voice.
More dragons hatched. A brown went to one of the first Candidates, Eeshaw. Vishay got a lovely blue. Dereath was claimed by a dark brown who almost maimed the boy beside him. Fenek was grabbed by a green, and shortly after Tarek started to leave the sands with a bronze. After that, Iyola started to lose track.
Then, Amy, who was standing at her side with Yma perched on her shoulder, stiffened.
"What is it?" Iyola whispered to her.
"Don't you hear it? Don't you hear her?"
Then Iyola realized what she meant. She did hear her.
Where is she? Where is my partner? My life, my soul? It came from a little green, her scales the color of jade, who was wandering aimlessly amongst her egg shells. The poor thing's eyes were sealed shut, and she couldn't see!
"Amy, you can hear her! She's calling to you! Go!" Iyola gave her a little shove toward the helpless green.
"Oh, I'm so sorry! Let me help you, Ameth!" Amy then lead the dragonet, with the help of her gold, towards where buckets of meat were sitting. Iyola heard Ameth telling Amy something before shutting her out, as well. Quizzeth says I will see, she says a healer can make me see!
Iyola sighed and tried to concentrate on the Hatching again.
There didn't seem to be enough time for everything that happened next. Taylor and Cydney both impressed greens, and most of the remaining eggs hatched. All that remained were two eggs: the gold, and a mottled brown green and red.
All of the remaining Candidates clustered around the eggs, each wanting to Impress to the remaining eggs. The gold egg cracked straight down the middle, then broke apart.
Standing where the egg had once been was the most beautiful dragon Iyola had ever seen.
She felt a dragon trying to push into her mind, but she valiantly tried to block it out. She couldn't block it all out, though, and hear a soft, Do you not want me? Would you prefer a green, or a blue?
That melted her barriers and Iyola fell to her knees. The queen creeled to her.
"No, no green, no blue…."
The little queen's creel became happier as she stumbled forward. You want me? You will be mine?
"Of course! Iyola exclaimed, and hugged the golden head that reached toward her to her chest. "I only want you! No other will do!" And the two minds, two hearts, two souls merged to form one.
I am Vexeth, and you are Iyola, and we are rider and dragon!
Yes, Iyola replied without her voice. We are one. She started to walk her dragonet towards the food, when she heard the last egg crack open.
Tayl was walking away, following Iyola to congratulate her. He didn't seem to have any hope at all of Impressing, and didn't care. He stopped mid-step as the little bronze cried out.
The bronze charged towards Tayl, tripping and falling only at his feet. Tayl reached down and scratched his new life-mate's eyeridge.
"Your name's Queereth, aye? I like it!" And the new riders, their dragons at their heels, went to feed their ravenous companions.