At last the joy I've been seeking has come.

IC Time: Month 12
IC Setting: Mid afternoon, the hatching sands


Sashike had just gone to the dining hall to grab her something to eat. Delanth was doing much better since her flight, but the wounds were healing slowly. The gold's attitude was improving just about as slowly as the wounds. Sashike felt so sorry for her dragon, but she knew that Delanth would get out of this funk she was in as soon as she laid her eggs.

She got back to the infirmary where she was still staying at. The doctors didn't want Delanth moving too far away from them just in case. As she came back however, her gold was gone from her spot. 'Delanth?! Delanth where did you go?' She asked panicked.

'You took too long getting food. I tried waiting for you but they would not let me wait any long. Come see.' Delanth said, the happiest she had sounded in quite a while.

'Where are you?' Sashike asked starting to run in the weyrbowl with no direction.

'In the hatching ground of course. Silly woman. Now come see.' She said excitedly. Sashike no long felt worried, instead she was thrilled and excited.

She ran as fast as she could to the hatching ground where her beautiful gold was shuffling around the soft shelled eggs she had just laid. They were all so beautiful and perfect, even if there was only a total of eight of them. The fact that Delanth didn't seem to care, meant she wasn't going to either. 'Oh Delanth, they are wonderful. You did such a good job.'

'I know. Morganath come see your babies.' The gold said, bugling happily.
________________________________________________________________________
Allow me to introduce to you all THE OCEAN'S DEPTHS CLUTCH.

1. Tube Worm Egg: This the smallest egg in the clutch and stays nice and cuddled next to Delanth. It has a creamy white base with lines of red running up and down it. Shy and quiet, this egg prefers to be left alone next to it's mother.

2. Dolphin Egg: Round, but elongated at the top is this middle sized egg. It is a bluish-gray color with no blemish or other mark on it. It sits in the middle of the clutch with the other eggs gathered round it as if trying to cage it in. Energy, excitement, and curiousness all pour from this egg.

3. Orca Egg: This is the largest egg in the clutch. A bit odd shaped for it appears to be more wide than it is tall. The coloring on it is split down the middle, one side being black and one side being white. There is a large white spot on the black side. Stoic, apathetic, and humble are feelings that come from this egg.

4. Seaweed Egg: A smaller perfectly oval egg. This egg is all shades of greens, ranging from light to dark in swirl of chaos. It sits off to itself as if it doesn't want to be around the others. This egg is very broody and aloof.

5. Halibut Egg: A mid tan colored egg with spots of darker brown covering it. It is very long and has problems staying right up. There are no emotions from this egg, just complete blankness.

6. Swordfish Egg: Wobbly would be a good way to describe this smaller sized egg. It is a light blue with white streaks running around it. A long, black, sword shaped splotch is on it's most flat of sides. Pretentious would be a good way describe this egg.

7. Coral Reef Egg: By far the most stunning of eggs in the clutch. It is a ray of different colors from red, to green, to yellow and orange. It's the second largest, rivaling the Orca Egg for the position. This egg knows it's beautiful and likes for others to recognize it, so it's sitting on the outside of the ring of eggs for all to see it's beauty.

8. Clown Fish Egg: An almost perfectly round egg only slightly bigger than the Tube Worm Egg. It is bright orange and white striped and looks more like a child's toy than a dragon's egg. This egg pours out love and happiness as if it was pouring water from a jar.

Morganath finished tearing a fine chunk of meat from the side of the third wherry he'd killed. M'urn was leaning against a nearby tree, munching on a redfruit. The pair had gone out hunting in the untouched wilderness of the Southern Continent. Just about satiated, Mine? the young man asked, pushing off from the sturdy tree trunk. Morganath was just about to reply when his dark bronze head jerked upwards, blood still glazing his muzzle. M'urn waited patiently, knowing Morganath was listening to another dragon. Lifting his riding straps from the ground, he untangled them and slung them over one arm in wait for Morganath's broad shoulders.

Mine, Delanth Clutches! She says to come see the eggs! M'urn grinned and laughed, holding out the straps for his bronze. "Very well, let's go see them, then." Morganath licked as much blood from his muzzle as he could while stepping into his straps. They were buckled and secure, with M'urn in the saddle, as fast as the pair had ever managed. They were in the air and between to the center of the Caldera in moments. Gliding down towards the Hatching Cavern, the pair glided inside. Morganath paused to allow M'urn to jump from his seat before he approached his golden queen.

Surveying the eggs, Morganath rumbled his approval for the Clutch. True, it was small for the standards of his own time and on the smaller size for this time, even, but they all looked bright and lively. Even the slightly oddly shaped ones. They are stunning, beautiful Delanth. He could tell by her tone in the summons that she was certainly not as gloomy as she had been due to her slow recovery.

M'urn sauntered over to Sashike, some of his bronze's pride leaking into his actions. "They're gorgeous, Sashike. You and Delanth must be so proud." He looked over to their two dragons, crooning to each other and smiled. Though Morganath was not the youngest bronze in their weyr in the future, he hadn't managed to sire too many Clutches; and those he did were all junior queens, though he had made a close finish in the Weyrwoman Second's Flight once. Still, to catch a queen here was an honor neither had truly expected or thought about.