Who We Are [Eceph's First Hatching]

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Everything was more or less quiet. A few people bustled by the nesting sands, but none actually entered. Why bother, after all, when Eceph was there for every hour of every day, guarding her eggs? And of those who might bother if she left, not a single one would dare to harm the unborn chicks. They were the future of the Eyrie. They were the future of Pohono itself.

Near her clutch, Eceph slept. Her form was huge, beautiful with the soft greys and browns of her feathers, and her massive ribcage rose and fell evenly with the rhythm of her breathing. Every so often, a wing or her tail would twitch in sleep. Mostly, though, she was still - a great stone sentinel, a guardian even in her sleep. Her rider, too, would still be asleep. Ro'za, as far as anyone knew, had the same sleep schedule as her grey.

This Ts'kal knew, because he had come quietly to the cavern to look, from the edge, at the eggs one more time before they hatched. The touching was still very recent in his mind, and watching the brightly coloured eggs, the candidatemaster smiled. Perhaps one day soon they would hatch, freeing the new lives within to choose freedom or a human bond. Hopefully they'll all bond, he thought idly. There was no particular rhyme or reason why he wanted them to bond. Perhaps, though, it was just the idea of not being picked, though the rider didn't actually know if that could happen. He, after all, was one of the first simourv riders ever to grace the Eyrie. The thought made him smile. In the soft light of the early morning filtering through the entrance to the sands, the expression came across as very tender - and why not? After all, he was thinking about his own Impression.

Impression? Wait a moment. Abruptly the candidatemaster took a few steps towards the clutch, though he kept far from the sleeping Eceph. Instantly his eyes widened as he realized the truth of the matter: Impression would occur soon, very soon. One of the eggs - the Scholarly Core, in fact - was rocking. Back and forth, back and forth it went, a slow lazy rhythm. But it was definitely moving. Within minutes it would crack. Ts'kal whirled and fled the sands, racing towards the candidate barracks. Aburoqaph! Wake the candidates up, NOW! The eggs are hatching! Giving that mental scream, the rainbowrider shot through the canyon, waiting for nothing, let alone the odd looks he was receiving. Within moments he had reached the barracks, and threw open the door. "Candidates, get up now!" he shouted. In his mind he could hear his simourv's cries, echoing his own: Candidates! Up, now! The eggs hatch!

Knowing full well that the candidates could hear his voice from out here, the candidatemaster drew in a deep breath, and bellowed with all the strength he had. "Come to the front hall! Eceph's eggs have begun to rock!" Over and over again, Aburo reinforced the cry, lending his mental strength to his rider's. Within a few minutes, Ts'kal left off yelling, but allowed his rainbow to send telepathic bursts of urgency into the candidates' minds. They had to move; they had to move now or risk missing the hatching!

On the sands, the egg kept rocking.

---

Mirao had been sleeping, quite peacefully in fact, before voices tore through her head and her hearing, too. Rolling over, she pushed her face into the softness of her pillow, trying to ignore the calls. If it were Ts'kal, nagging them to get up for another boring lesson...

But it wasn't. Oh, it was Ts'kal, his voice echoing down the halls of the barracks, but there was such a vibrant urgency in it that the girl reacted without thinking. Rolling out of bed, she ripped a brush through her copper hair, yanked on whatever clothes were nearest, and bolted for the door, forgetting all about Salena, her roommate. It was only then that the words of simourv and rider became clear: 'The eggs are hatching!'

With those words, the candidate's blood lit on fire. Drawing in a deep breath, she raced down the hall, uncaring in this moment for herself. All she cared about right now was getting to those eggs before they spat forth hatchlings. Mirao skidded to a halt only in front of Ts'kal. "You're sure?" she demanded impetuously, and he narrowed his eyes at her before confirming it. Yes, the eggs were hatching - stay here so that the candidates could arrive as a group. She fretted at the delay - how dare he stop her! How dare he delay her Impression, if it were to come that day! All the same, she listened, circling impatiently around as the other candidates arrived. As soon as there were enough, she slipped out the door, more or less unnoticed in the confusion.

Outside, of course, she encountered Aburoqaph. He fixed her with one huge golden eye, chirped imperiously, and smacked his tail against the ground. Into her mind flowed words; bright, excited words. Go back inside. Ts'kal will bring you to the sands. Lowering his huge head, the rainbow warbled, lazily extending a wing so that Mirao couldn't pass. Frowning, she looked up at him and narrowed her eyes, but then reluctantly conceded. "All right," she murmured, turning to go back into the barracks, "you win this time. But," she cast a glance back at him, "I'd better not miss the hatching because of you and your rider." Rushing back into the front hall, she heard only a self-satisfied trill behind her. Most annoyed, she went to join the others. But judging by Ts'kal's antsy behaviour, they were going to leave soon. And when they did, she was going to be chosen - or at least, she very much hoped so.

[Fox]

Lea had, by and large, learned generally how to ignore Aburoqaph's regular lesson day wake-up call. It no longer really registered with her sleep-fogged brain, and more often than not she would roll over and catch another five minutes of sleep before hauling herself out of bed. As such, it wasn't the rainbow simourv's voice that had Lea rolling out of bed sloppily, speed-dressing to the best of her ability and still not really awake yet, but rather the bellowing voice of Candidatemaster Ts'kal echoing through the hallways that had her up and moving before she even registered being awake. It was an old habit, born of having to rouse to her mother's voice whenever there was an emergency late at night. In this instance, Lea also found it to be a useful one, as she was one of the first girls out of the rooms, despite the fact that her hair was undone and falling into her face and she had basically pulled a pair of pants on over her nightshirt, and a pair of boots on over that. She was grateful for the small blessings, though, when she noticed that in her half-asleep dash from the room, she had managed to snag a hair-tie out of her clothes chest.

With Aburoqaph's urgency pressing down on her, as well as her own excitement, Lea headed for the front hall at full tilt, somehow managing to tie her hair in the process, though the effect emerged somewhat windblown and distracted. Barreling out of the door leading to the girl's hall, hardly looking where she was going, Lea almost ran smack into Ts'kal, only managing to avoid him at the last minute and stumbling to a stop. "It's time?" she asked, the words seeming to tumble over themselves in an effort to come out first. "What do we do?" Because now the urgency and excitement was turning into stomach-churning nervousness, and Lea felt vaguely like she would be ill. She probably would be, after the hatching, regardless of the outcome. That was how stress worked. Frantically, the midwife wrung her hands, twisting them into her shirt as the nastier doubts began to surface. What if I'm not chosen? What then?

Would she go back? Would she return to her father's house, face his pity, take charge again from the assistant she had chosen to succeed her as midwife? Or would she remain in Eyrie, a failed candidate for all to see, perhaps working with the healers in a smaller capacity? Thinking about the few choices that failure would leave her made Lea feel almost dizzy. Come on, come on, don't throw up here. You can deal with what comes when it comes. Smile. And Lea forced a trembling smile onto her face that was barely more than a tiny upward tilt of her lips. It was happening. It was finally happening, come what may. Dear Gods, she hoped she was ready.

[Kat]

Ripley woke up before the rosy fingers of dawn snuck in his room, when it was dark enough to still be the previous day, and he could not fall back asleep. He lay in bed for a few hours, his cheek moving in minute long intervals to search anxiously for a cold spot on his pillow, questing for the silky coolness of unused space, while turning his body accordingly to match the movement of his face. The bed always felt cramped, but in his sleeplessness, the way he had to fold his long legs made his body ache, and his knees felt compressed and tender, but he had to keep himself curled into a ball, because otherwise his feet dangled off the edge of the bed. Ripley straightened his legs, extending his joints until he felt relief from the tightness which plagued his whole body, but where his ankles dangled off of the edge of the bed dug into his skin which was equally as aggravating and painful as his fetal position earlier. No matter what tactic Ripley tried, he could not find reprieve from his restlessness, and he could not fall back asleep. After he flipped his pillow over three times, which meant two cycles of probing the pillow with his cheek, Ripley sighed, his body quivering with frustration, before he climbed out of bed. Even though it was dark, Ripley readied himself for the approaching day. He made sure to pull the sheets on his bed taught, ironing out the wrinkles with the side of his large hand, before he bent down to fish around in his chest for a pair of pants and a shirt. Because of the pristine organization in his room, Ripley could find anything he needed, even in the dark. His wardrobe consisted of mostly neutrals, so he assumed the two articles of clothing he picked would match. He placed the clothing on the bed, laying it out flat, while he reached under his bed for a pair of shoes.

Soon, Ripley had dressed himself, slipping into his clothing before tucking his shirt into his pants. Once he was dressed, Ripley perched himself onto his bed, sitting awkwardly and stooped for a few minutes, before he could not stand being in his room any longer. It was a dirty, unclean room, and Ripley could not stand to be in it any longer. He stalked out of the room, and moved so that he could sit in the hall, where he leaned against the wall, extending his legs so that were straight, and took up most of the hall, before he rested his head against the wall to think. It was still too dark outside to do something productive, like reading or writing, so instead Ripley just leaned back his head and thought about human anatomy and the benefits of different kinds of sutures. Time became a fluid, endless stream of thoughts, as Ripley sat out in the hall, and he lost her ability to judge it. And then he heard a voice blaring around him, surrounding him with noise and anxiety. The noise came both through his ears and his mind, two voices conjoining into one loud call. Ripley’s eyes snapped open, his head jolting back enough to bang it against the wall, which disoriented Ripley more than he was already disoriented. And then—Ripley realized what the noise meant, and he moved from being groggy, confused, and dreary to excited, awake, and surprisingly alert. Ripley snapped his body into motion, standing to his full height, as he took a few steps down the hall on the way to his new life.

The man began to increase his pace, as he almost launched himself into a fast trot, before he turned around and headed back towards his room. Ripley remembered the injuries K’huna had suffered at his bonding, and he realized that it might be best to prepare himself for those sort of injuries. He was not going to let anyone else sew any gashes up today, not if they left awful scarring like those scars. Ripley believed that if he was there, he needed to be ready to ensure that everyone healed as well as possible. It was his duty as a doctor. Ripley was still moving quickly into his room. He swung his body into the door, bracing himself against the doorframe so that he did not hit any more walls, before he stopped in front of his bed. He reached into the box on his trunk which held his surgical equipment, and he extracted a small pouch containing a spool of silk thread, which Ripley slipped around his neck. The pouch had his name sloppily embroidered on the front, stitched lovingly by his young sister when Ripley left his home to become an apprentice. Ripley grabbed a needle from the box as well, and he threaded it into the collar of his shirt. The man burst from his room, and raced down the hall towards the front hall. He noticed that only one other person, besides the candidate master, stood there, Leannan, which made sense since Ripley had not needed to dress when he received the call. Ripley stopped running when he reached the hall, and briskly walked to stand next to Leannan.

While Ripley usually looked very polished and clean, this morning, he was a mess. His shirt was wrinkled from where it had folded while he slept in the hall, an array of wrinkles striping across Ripley’s torso, and his hair was messy and unkempt. To increase his haggard appearance, the area beneath his eyes was swollen and dark, which demonstrated his lack of sleep. He looked as tired as he felt.
”I can’t believe this is finally happening”
Ripley announced, as he grabbed the pouch around his neck and slipped it under his shirt collar. He was nervous, and as he spoke, his voice shook with anxiety and excitement.

[maiwolf]

[/i] stay as a candidate, the last on the sands, watching imploringly as the simourv bonded to someone else.

Olivia’s young brain always had her playing out realities that might or might not happen. Sometimes those realities came in the form of imagination, and she’d spend hours just playing it out, or telling Teagan what had happened in an excited voice. Other times, and these were the times Olive hated, the realities came in her sleep, and those were the realities where she got hurt, maybe even got killed. Thankfully, though, she always woke up before she died. Unthankfully, she always woke up with a cold sweat, and she was pretty sure she had said things in her sleep most of those times.

As always, only the candles lit the hallway to the main entrance when Olivia quietly exited the room. She had mastered the art of exiting her room with Teagan, but, as always, her heart twinged as she realized that she might not be bedding with Teagan tomorrow, the next day, or even the next. Olivia was up before the sun this fine, chilly, eerie morning. She padded silently to the main room that the candidates shared, and wondered if anyone else was up. They weren’t, at least not of her knowledge, and she felt the loneliness sink into her, but realized that the loneliness might soon be taken away, stripped like she’d stripped the goat’s skin away all those lessons ago. It would be replaced with a mind, always constant, always there, and Olivia waited for that day—even if that day would happen after this hatching. If that day would happen after this hatching.

The girl hadn’t thought much about what would happen after the hatching. It seemed everyone’s minds were focused on the hatching itself, and she wouldn’t think much about after the hatching right now, either. In fact, Olivia reveled in the time she had alone, because it didn’t make her feel so rushed, so out of tune with who she really was. She sat, cross-legged, on the floor, and looked up at the ceiling. It was grand, being here, being a candidate. She had not realized how wonderful it would be until she had it, and until she was about to lose it.

The girl sat on the ground like that for quite a while before, suddenly, a very happy (but at the same very quick, fearful?) voice permeated her quiet reverie. She jumped, and found herself to be on her back, confused, as Aburo yelled at her (at all the candidates). What was really funny, and what really got her, was Ts’kal jumping through the door nearly a moment later, yelling at the top of his lungs. A delighted smile sprung to her face as she, quite literally, jumped to her feet from her laying position. At the same time, a knot full of doubt tied her stomach and insides together, but the girl tried to quiet that feeling as much as she could. Now was the hatching! Now would decide whether her imagination was true… or her nightmares were.

“Good morning, Ts’kal! It’s true, isn’t it? Oh, I’m so excited!” And here, Olivia clasped her hands together and jumped up and down. Her dress followed belatedly, and that really made her look like the young child she was.
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[Vanman]

Hokan laid there in his bed, dreaming a wonderful dream. This dream had been a reoccurring dream that he had been having since the fourth lesson. The dream involved him soaring through the clouds on top of a majestic simorv. He would ride as the simorv would do many fancy and acrobatic tricks thru the skies. The color of the simorv varied from night to night, but he particularly liked the black simorv, though all of them looked amazing. He knew that what color simorv he got was out of his control, but he hoped for a black one.

Hokan awoke with a scare as he heard Ts’kal’s voice bellowing through the barracks. He knew something important was going on because he usually sent Aburoqaph, which he heard after, to wake up for a lesson. He thought to himself, What could be going on? This isn’t the normal way he wakes us up for a lesson. Could it be a fire?, but then he realized what was going on. He quickly jumped out of bed and got on some suitable clothes.

He burst out into the hall, looking for Ts’kal. He followed the sound of his voice and soon found him. He asked, “Is it time? Are they hatching?” He was nervous, frightened and excited at the same time. He looked around for his brother Narphis, hoping he would show up soon. He wanted to be with his brother for this moment of his life, the moment that could change everything.

[jaker]

Kito's eyes shot open, "eggs? hatching? early in the morning?" he whispered, turning back over to sleep. It was a few moments untill his brain kicked in gear and he fell out of bed, "HATCHING," he blurted, clambering to his feet and dressing himself, making sure he hid most of his scars. He picked up his boots and vaulted out of the window, wasting no time for his life's goal to happen. He joined up with the other candidates, who seemed to be muttering and thinking to themselves, the thoughts could only be deep and philosophical, well that's what Kito could only guess. He looked over to the candidate master, "oi skipper, is it true? the eggs are hatching," he asked, every syllable shook with mixed feelings. He pinched himself to make sure it wasn't some misguided dream, "ow.." he whispered, almost pleased about the pain.

[winged]

Years spent toiling long before the sunrise had set in place some mechanism that woke the young woman in those bleary-eyed first hours of the morning. No matter what back-breaking work she'd performed the day prior, Ichidou's internal alarm buzzed incessantly at the same hour each and every day, tickling at her dream-wreathed consciousness until auto-pilot kicked in and she fumbled into clothes and out the door. Farm work waited for no one, and when one's survival depended on the health of one's plants and livestock, responsibility overrode even bone-deep aches and pains.

Her voluntary removal from under those circumstances hardly negated a decade's worth of scheduling. Laziness was not inherent in Ichidou's personality, no stranger to hard work she found a comforting similarity between the chores the eyrie's personnel assigned her and the tasks she would have set herself at home - thus paving the way for habit. There were times when she'd rouse from a stupor to marvel at how she'd managed to make her way to the dining hall when she could just barely scrape together a faint memory of waking half an hour beforehand, but those were infrequent and reserved only for mornings proceeding extensive, hard labor.

Another perk, of course, was avoiding the maelstrom of bright color and sound that stirred the rest of the Candidate body from their beds. Ts'kal's simourv was decidedly talented with wreaking mental havoc, and Ichidou still cringed from time to time as the creature came crashing through any and all anticipatory walls the Candidate may have constructed in hopes of evading the full, maddening brilliance of a verbal rainbow battering at the sancitity of her innermost thoughts.

That, among other little quirks, was what made the woman's stomach churn as the Rainbow sounded his summons that morning. Bonding to one of these creatures might very well void any real privacy Ichidou might enjoy now - and that made the Candidate uneasy. Lessons were all well and good, but they could only hypothesize for so long, before second-hand information grew stale and the great Uncertainty descended like heavy fog. That brief time spent roaming amongst Eceph's unhatched eggs had solved no unanswered questions - it had only spun more for Ichidou to turn over and over restlessly in her mind before falling asleep each night.

There was no time to waste dawdling, however. She had a duty to perform - to herself as much as to these so-called authority figures. Ichidou abandoned her hot mug of tea with haste, stretching her stroll into a brisk march as the woman left the cafeteria, headed directly for the meeting place. Her arrival's significance was dwarfed by a sudden rush of eager-faced youngsters, and she sullenly fell into rank behind them, an unintentional scowl plastered on her flushed face. Suffering the close-ranked company of so many others in so tense a situation put her on edge.

[`a r r o w«]

Kaylee laid on her bed, not quite asleep, yet not quite awake either. Her slim fingers where intertwined and rested across her stomach. She hadn't bothered to change out of the clothes she had worn during the day before collapsing on her bed. The only thing she had bothered to do was take her boots off and to untie the wrap that went over her leggings. That had been hours ago though. Since then, she had been unable to fall asleep. Her intertwined fingers started to tap against each other as she closed her green eyes, willing herself to fall sleep.

When that didn't work, she groaned then rolled over onto her stomach. Pushing her arms up, she curled them up under her pillow. Staring at the wall next to her face, she slowed her breathing to a slow and measured as possible. She closed her eyes and attempted to empty her mid of all thoughts other then sleep. Slow it worked. She felt herself getting tireder and tireder.

Kaylee was just about to fall asleep, when all the sudden she heard the yells from the rainbow and rainbow rider. Jumping, she almost fell off of her bed from the fright. Just moments before it had been silent and she had almost been asleep. Now she was back to being awake and the air rang with noise. Groaning, she picked her pillow up and put it over her head, trying to block out the noise. Screaming into the pillow, she threw it away from her face and onto her feet. Sitting up, she punched her mattress before pulling her feet off her bed and setting them on the ground. Resting her elbows on her knees, she leaned forward and placed her head on her fists. Swearing softly, she rubbed her eyes then stretched. She knew she had to go with the other candidates, but she certainly wasn't happy about it.

Once she had put her boots on and retied her wrap on, she stepped out of her room. Most of the candidates had already left their rooms and headed towards the front hall. Unlike most of them, she walked towards the hall. The whole time she walked, her hands massaged her temples, trying to rid herself of the headache her lack of sleep and the yelling had given her.

When Kaylee entered the hall, the first thing she did was look for Narhpis. When she didn't spot him, she walked over to Hokan who she had sadly spotted instead. Where's Nar? she asked sleepily. If anyone was to know where he was, if would be his little brother. How are you awake and this hyper at this unsightly hour? she finally snapped at the boy before scanning the crowd herself.

[Kilnarak]

This morning, Teagan's sleep had been fitful, the girl tossing and turning in her bunk, caught in the grip of some nightmare or other. She had been out on the water, not on a boat but rather perched upon one of the rocky outcroppings protruding from the sea. In the dream she felt awkward, half-paralyzed, and the wind screamed about her, trying to drag her away - it was all she could do to cling to the rock-face, and watch as monstrous dark-shadows circled the waters about her perch, waiting for the chance to lunge.

Teagan awoke to screaming - Ts'kal's voice loud in the halls, and his rainbow simourv's voice loud in her mind. She awoke tangled in bedding, sweat-soaked, and gasping for breath. It was some moments before the meaning of the words that had awakened her sank in, and then the girl was set upon by a different sort of nervous frenzy. She rolled out of her bunk, only half aware of what she was doing - the rest of her mind tying itself in knots. The hatching is today? Right now? What am I supposed to do? How should I dress? ... and where's Olivia? In the process of pulling on clothing, pale tan slacks and the blue tunic she had made, Teagan glanced to the top bunk and realized Olivia was already gone. She wondered briefly where the girl could be - but Olivia must have surely heard the call as well and likely already waited with Ts'kal.

Pulling on a pair of sandals, Teagan left the room she and Olivia shared - it was in a bit more disarray than she would have liked; her bed left unmade, and her chest of clothing left open, a few articles scattered upon the floor. She couldn't worry about that now, however, the voices of the candidatemaster and his bond had bid them to hurry, and hurry she did. Teagan arrived in the front hall, breathless, and looked about those already assembled. She couldn't find her voice just now to offer a greeting, and instead simply offered a short wave to Ts'kal, before moving a bit out of the way to catch her breath. She'd have time to do that, at least, she hoped - there were still candidates missing - before they were all ushered off to the sands.

[sakurayasha]

Serenity had been feeling particularly pleased with life ever since the egg touching. The awe that she felt then still hadn't faded, and she put this joy and awe into her cooking.

At the moment, she was putting icing on hot cinnamon rolls for breakfast, a whole tray of them were already done. Usually treats like this were taken by the early risers, so she had put special effort into making sure there was enough for everybody, and had fixed a pot of black tea to go with it. She liked making everyone else happy when she was happy, a trait she had picked up from her mother, who had to feed her horde of children and farm hands, but always tried to pay extra attention to every meal she made.

Serenity noticed movement out of the corner of her eyes. A dark skinned candidate has slipped into the kitchen and was making their way to the finished tray is if they were planning to steal something. Serenity could not remember the other candidates name, though the looks were striking enough that they should have drawn her attention before now. She opened her mouth to say "help yourself" when Candidates! Up, now! The eggs hatch!
filled her mind.

Serenity picked up the finished tray of cinnamon rolls and put them in the hands of the blond, dark skinned candidate "Take these down to the sands" she said and grabbed a pot of black tea and put it on a tray of cups. By the time she picked up her own tray the hungry unknown was gone. She made her own way down to the sands alone, regretting slightly that she had ended up carrying the heavier tray.

[Lan]

The Commander of the Eyrie, too, was asleep in his own quarters. The eyling he and his partner shared was quiet in the early hours with just a trace of cool morning blue starting to file in through the entrance that opened up to the rest of the canyon. However, something was stirring elsewhere this particular morning. Alianph could feel it rousing him from his slumber... the excitement of a small rainbow simourv as something was beginning to happen. A great amber eye opened to look in the direction of the nesting sands. It was today. Today was the day.

'G'len... wake up. The eggs are hatching.' Alianph rose to his feet, tail swishing anxiously behind him as he readied himself to be gone as soon as possible. Inside, G'len stirred as well. At first he stared at the ceiling groggily, and then the powerful wave of what was happening hit him. The eggs were hatching! He hopped out of his cot and rummaged around for clean clothes. It took him longer than he liked, but he had to be decent for this auspicious event. Only when he was sure he was fully prepared did he finally sprint out and vault onto his black-feathered partner's back, moving in unison as Alianph took off simultaneously to wing his way to the cavern that housed his waking children.

The two landed in their usual place along the edge of the hatching sands, and immediately G'len leaped from the King's back to land on the ground, ignoring the stinging in his feet as they absorbed the impact from the fall. Ro'za was nowhere to be seen, and the grey Eceph seemed to still be asleep next to her now rocking clutch. The scientist took a moment to absorb the situation. They needed candidates now! Aburoqaph was certainly taking care of that. But the rest of the Eyrie needed to be here as well. And the Phoenix needed to be woken. Obviously, that particular task would fall to him.

'Alianph... call the others. All of them. They need to be here.' G'len ordered, heading in the direction of the place Ro'za had taken to sleeping since posting herself to guard the eggs. 'And wake Eceph. I'll get Ro'za.' At that the two split ways, each with their own job to do. The dark-haired man went to go wake his partner in leading the Eyrie --the most apt description for their relationship at the moment-- and found her sleeping just as he thought he would. Meanwhile, Alianph approached Eceph and leaned his mind against hers.

'Awake, my Lady... the eggs are hatching!' The black entered his mate's mind at first with great caution, and then with great rejoicing. He nudged her sleeping form softly with his beak, and then retreated backward to give her space as he called the others. All in the Eyrie, simourv and human, would hear his voice as he gave his announcement. 'The eggs are hatching! All should come to the nesting sands!'

G'len too took a careful road in waking up Ro'za (her and Eceph were the only two the black hadn't targeted with his broadcast). The last time he had woken her up, it hadn't necessarily been pretty. 'Ro'za...' He called first before approaching her, his voice loud enough to wake her up but not too loud as to be considered annoying hopefully. Then he came closer, first making sure she wasn't holding her sword close to her so he wouldn't be accidentally impaled. 'Ro'za, the eggs are hatching.' At this he placed a hand on her shoulder and gently nudged. Then, like Alianph, he backed off to give her some space and waited to see if she would wake up.

Meanwhile, Elan had awoken to the sound of a cheery simourv in her head. By now she hadn't gotten somewhat used to it, but it wasn't any less grating to her. This time, however, it came with tidings that didn't cause her grief. The eggs were hatching. It was time! The young woman bolted from her bed, pulling on a clean tunic and trousers and neglecting making her bed for once. While she knew that maulings could happen during a hatching, she made no attempt to arm herself accordingly. It would be disrespectful, she thought, and it would show weakness. Weakness in particular was not something an ex-guard from Chydyn wanted to show. So she dressed in light clothing befitting the hot summer days and threw on some shoes before bolting out the door, yelling behind her to her roommate, 'Hurry! Ye don't wanna be late!'

She made it to the front hall as one of the middle people of the group, nodding to Ts'kal but otherwise not speaking. Her muscles twinged in excitement as, standing there waiting, she was eager to be on the sands and witness the even that only a few before her had been so privileged to. Right now her prior disdain for simourv riders was done away with and all she felt was excitement for the event ahead. Elan even had momentarily dropped her antipathy for the rainbowrider and his inappropriately cheery demeanor. She would, she hoped, be rid of him soon enough. Today was the day she would be judged, and hopefully be found worthy to be a simourv rider. Confidence suddenly welling up within her, she was sure she would succeed.

'It had to happen sometime, didn't it?' Elan stood next to a young man whose name she thought she remembered to be something starting with an R.... Ripley? She thought that was it. A grin played across her face as she laughed half in excitement and half in nervousness, not that you could tell those were her driving forces. Although she barely knew him, she clapped him on the back with friendly camaraderie as she laughed. 'I just hope none of us die... I mean, if you figure a koxi can tear a man to pieces, and simourv 're much more deadly than those... But I'm sure it'll be fine.' She shrugged, a wide grin on her countenance now as she shifted away from the young man she was talking to so that she might integrate herself somewhere else in the group. Part of her kind of was excited about the prospect of someone getting mauled, but to say that she wished it might be a bit much.

[cyrus]

Cyrus sat up in bed. He always woke early, because it gave him time to think. He had always kept very still in the darkness, listening and not listening to the sounds of everyone else as they slept, calculating quietly and considering the life that he had left. His gray eyes settle on a spot in the ceiling as he considers checking on the eggs that had been laid again, as he had done every day in hopes that something may have changed.

A tiny tingle of excitement stabbed at his breast for the first time in a very long time, as he thought of what might come after all of this. He smiles, if only slightly, as he feels a dim glimmer of what comes after this. He picks himself up quietly, and slips on his indoor shoes to move silently towards the door and towards the room where he first touched the eggs, the tiny fire of hope burning in his thin chest. He moves quietly, noticing another moving in the same direction, and his eyes widen a bit, but he keeps his thoughts to himself, before he notices the somewhat large crowd of people gathering here alongside him. He wonders if this is the day, or if they are all misled, and watches silently.

[Kilnarak]

Niraan woke up early, restless, and had taken to stalking about the Eyrie grounds. Lately, he found this a common occurrence, waking in the small hours before dawn and padding about the grounds, moving silent as a ghost - he still peered into rooms, occasionally testing his luck against the sleeping inhabitants (as of yet, none had awakened), although now more often he turned his roving upon the grounds themselves. He moved amidst the cavernous halls, walked amidst the empty stalls of merchants, and on rare occasion peeked into the eylings - he did not enter, however. This night, his wanderings had led him to the kitchens - his stomach rumbling as he smelled something sweet wafting from within.

He padded quietly into the kitchen, glancing briefly about until he found the source of the delicious scent - a tray of cinnamon rolls. He made for the tray, meaning to snatch a few of the sweets - both for himself, and to bring back to his brother - when the rainbow simourv's voice rebounded through his head, snapping his attention away from the food. Niraan made a startled noise at the assault, feeling as though he had been caught red-handed, and before he knew it the cook - a slight girl, perhaps younger than himself - was standing before him and shoving the tray into his hands, ordering him to take the treats to the sands.

"Yeh... yeh, wha'ever," he muttered, snorting lightly as the girl turned away to see to whatever else she intended to bring with her. He snatched one of the rolls off the tray, holding it in his mouth as he looked about for a better means of carrying the rolls - they wouldn't *all* fit in his pockets, and the tray itself was awkward. After a few moments he found a basket and dumped the sticky treats inside before darting off, absently chewing on the one he had snatched. Niraan did not head toward the sands as he was bade to, but rather back toward the barracks - drawn in part by the rainbow voice pulling him that way, and in part by his need to make sure Kenii was awake and moving. He wasn't sure, either, if he would share the pastries that had been 'gifted' him - there were certainly a lot of them. At the very least, he would make sure he and his brother had the first pick, then offer up the rest to whoever would have them - he doubted the things would keep well.

As he darted back toward the barracks, Niraan did not think much of the hatching eggs. They were a distraction, but still a part of his mind doubted any among them would choose him or his brother. More likely, the little monsters would set upon the lot of their would-be candidates and make a meal of them - they would certainly be hungry, after spending so long a time trapped within their jewel-colored prisons. Niraan did not quite make it to his rooms, however, being stopped by the small crowd candidates grouped up about Ts'kal. He hissed, annoyed, casting a brief glare to the rainbow-rider before looking about for his brother. Perhaps Kenii was already out here amidst the others? If he found him, he intended to shove the basket of sweets into his brother's arms.

[Kat]

Ripley watched the rest of the candidates assemble. They were all coming in rather quickly, and it was interesting to see how each person arrived. Everyone had been in the middle of something, be it sleep, breakfast, or some other morning activity, and each person brought a piece of their morning with him or her. Niraan even entered carrying a tray of cinnamon rolls, which Ripley eyed. He doubted the blond man had made them--they had probably been stolen from the kitchens. The rolls looked good, although he would not be devastated if he did not get one. They were not the healthiest of foods, and if the other candidates wanted one first and there were none left, Ripley would just remind himself of that fact. Ripley spotted a few candidates he knew, which was both comforting and stressful. They were all coming as quickly as they could; all equally stressed and excited, and all ready for the hatching, which might amount to the most life changing few hours of their lives. No one, Ripley reminded himself, had witnessed a hatching but the current riders, so even if he did not manage to bond to a simourv, he would at least have the chance to watch a hatching and the bondings of the other riders. But Ripley would be so disappointed if he did not bond. He would find himself having to return, defeated, to his master, and admit his humiliating defeat. He imagined that all of the candidates felt equally apprehensive, but he wondered if all of them wondered why they had been searched in the first place. Ripley’s set of skills were so different from any of the riders and most of the candidates. He hoped that the hatched simourvs would not expect hunting or fighting skills in the candidates they chose—but that idea was stupid, as the simourvs would have no way of knowing, newly hatched, who could do what, despite their amazing minds and empathy.

Even though Ripley had commented, he had never expected anyone to reply to him, so Elan’s statement came as a surprise. He turned to look at her, and his face erupted into a large and rare smile, his dimples piercing the sides of his cheeks.
”I suppose so.”
His voice was excited and thrilled, and it sounded more lively and positive than he usually sounded. He could not help his jovial tone; it bounced from his lips because of the thrill of the situation and tension amongst the candidates. The man was even more surprised when Elan clapped him on the back, but he assumed that her forwardness was a demonstration of own nerves. Ripley had thought about mauling, and he hoped that no one would be killed. Everyone in the first group lived, after all, with some injuries. He was ready to deal with injuries, just not death. He always felt so crushingly guilty when people died; it was always like he failed if he watched anyone die, as he always wanted to be able to help, but sometimes, in some situations, helping was impossible. It did not lift any pain from the man, who hated watching people suffer.
”I brought some suturing material, just in case.”
Ripley explained with a small, bouncy shrug.
”But if anyone is torn apart, I’m afraid no amount of suture can help.”
Ripley added. He found his comment rather funny, so his smile widened, and he chuckled lightly. He knew that he should not find something so bleak so amusing, but he did. He hoped that the other candidates would not find his comment inappropriate. He did not want them to think poorly of him before they embarked on this awesome journey. Ripley shrugged as the girl walked away, his gaze returning to watching the other people around him indiscriminately.

[zeis]

The early morning found K'huna perched on the side of his bed, bent over a sword which he was meticulously sharpening with rasping sounds of stone on metal. K'huna had always found some strange tedious pleasure in the upkeep of his weapons, and harness. It was relaxing and routine enough that he did not think of much else, but engaging enough that he lost himself in the task. He ceased his routine strokes of the whetstone, and lifted his blade to eye it dubiously. Perfection may not have been necessary he knew, but when it was achievable and proper to have he saw no reason not to spend the extra time.

Canph, having just fed, lay comfortably drowsy in the morning air out on his ledge. Far too content to consider his usual mischief. He blinked his eyes slowly, and stretched his claws luxuriously in front of him. The red was considering dozing off when a flicker of excitement sparked somewhere in the canyon below them. Interested, his ears pricked forward, and his breathing stilled as though the sound of it might obscure whatever there was to listen to. Very distantly he could hear the bellowing shout of a human voice, but it was too far away and distorted off the canyon walls to determine who it was. Whatever it was had Aburoqaph in a tizzy though, as he saw the rainbow fly pell mell toward the candidate barracks. He slowly rose to sit up as realization dawned on him.

Before the red could share his suspicions with his rider the powerful voice of Alianph broadcast across the canyon into the minds of all. The eggs were hatching. They were to come to the nesting caves now. K'huna's head snapped up at the command, and after the announcement was finished made brief but meaningful contact with his bonded. There was no need to speak, as the mental command that he gave the red left no room for argument. This was it. This was crunch time. They needed to make sure the candidates were there, every single one. Without hesitating further, he slid the longsword back into its scabbard and tossed it on the bed beside him unceremoniously. He pushed himself off the bed, and grabbed his riding jacket on the way to the already rising Canph, pausing only to slide it on before climbing up his simourvs side. He latched himself onto the harness with a quick movement of his hands, and leaned forward to place a hand that may or may not have been comforting on Canph's neck. Don't dwell on it too much.

Canph had reached the end of the ledge, and had crouched and spread his wings for the jump that would bring him sailing into flight. His riders words made him pause, frozen there temporarily in his stance. He had not done a particularly good job of hiding his jealousy for Alianph. The black not only had the mate that he wanted, but the children that could have been his own. This feeling had been intense after his loss, but as the weeks passed he felt his envy lessen. K'huna had made it a habit to remind him that that they were going to be their students, and after much rationalization he supposed that came in a close second. In response he spoke to the minds of the candidates as he launched himself off their eyling toward the barracks. Hurry up! You all preen more than I do! He jeered, mostly in regard to the candidates who lagged behind to choose their outfit, and do their hair.

The red landed with a graceful and perhaps over dramatic fan of his impressive red wings, and cocked his head to gaze critically at the few candidates pressing forward out of the barracks, as if they might try to get a head start. He did his best to cut a commanding figure, and though he was no where near as large as Eceph, he in no means failed. K'huna climbed quickly down from his simourv's back and made his way into the barracks to join the rainbowrider. "Ts'kal." He offered by way of greeting with a boyish grin, despite the ever present scowl. The rider crossed his arms and survey the bunch of candidates milling around them, some excited, others frightened, most still groggy from waking. "You keep a watch on this bunch, I'll drag the late ones out here kicking and screaming." He shot one last smirk at the candidatemaster, before slipping his way through the crowd, headed to the doors of those who were not yet on their toes and ready. He'd pound on their doors and demand they get their rears in gear, and if that didn't work then well... He kept his promises.

~~~~~~~~~~

Kenii was one such unlucky candidate. He awoke to the rousing and pulsing cries of Aburoqaph, and the more easily ignorable ones of Ts'kal with a groan. The boy had gotten used to the wake up calls, or so he had thought. Weren't they normally quieter? Less urgent? He blinked blearily at nothing in particular, and prepared himself for the usual grumpy good morning ritual Niraan had taken to preforming. But his brother didn't lean over his bed to shout at him, and no pillows came hurtling at his face. There wasn't even any cursing. His brow furrowed, and he sat up before pushing himself to a half crouching stand on the lower bunk. He grabbed the railing of his brothers bed, and leaned out to twist around and get a look at him. Maybe he was sick?

Or maybe he was just not there at all. He frowned and dropped down from his perch to the floor with a small hmphing noise. His brother had gone off somewhere without telling him, or bringing him along for that matter. He couldn't say he missed the rude awakening Niraan was so fond of, but he couldn't help feel a slight tinge of hurt, and maybe even some well disguised worry. Aburoqaph and some other voices he didn't recognize were saying that the eggs were hatching, and that they had to get ready. But where was his brother? Somewhere where he could 'hear' the birds? Would he miss out because of this? Kenii frowned at these thoughts as he got dressed, lingering on the task longer than he would have normally in hopes that his sibling would show.

What he got instead was loud banging on the door over the noise of the other candidates outside. Kenii let the person back on it as he smoothed out the fold in his breeches, partly stalling for Niraan and partly because he suspected the person 'knocking' wasn't him. That was when the door opened, and a man he immediately recognized stepped inside. He froze with surprise and simply stared at the man, not expecting to see him.. K'huna had been their searchrider, and with Canph had managed to scare the living hell out of the two brothers.

"Get out." K'huna instructed with a demanding voice, and a stern expectant stare. When the boy fidgeted, and then refused to move he added decisively. "Or I'll drag you out." It seemed that this none too subtle threat was all the red-haired candidate needed, as he gingerly slipped past the observing form of the red-rider into the hallway with the other candidates. K'huna couldn't help but snort, and chuckle under his breath as he moved to the next tardy candidate's room.

~~~~~~

While the chaos of preparations ensued, another egg in the hatching cavern shook to life. The crazily sky blue whirled form of the Wind Dwarf twitched once in a counter-rhythm to the Scholarly Core, and soon began to shake in a steady beat only the chick within understood.