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An egg has been laid. It is not a good egg. It is a bad egg. It is shameful; it will bring disaster and regret. So it was given to a mysterious man who said that he would break it, so that good people wouldn't have to get their hands dirty.
The mysterious man has not broken the egg. Instead, he has placed it gently under a bush in a public park. It is warm and safe.
It hatches, and bad and shameful things happen.
The inhabitant of the egg, a bad and shameful creature, gnaws on a stick, unaware of her nature or her crimes. Her wings, bright red and still damp from her hatching, drag behind her over the ground like a bloody flag.
power-in-motion
A silver-haired woman in a state of some distress finds her.
A few ticks later, her discoverer scoops her up and teleports her to the bottom of the world, where she hands the baby to her husband and teleports away again.
A few ticks later, her discoverer scoops her up and teleports her to the bottom of the world, where she hands the baby to her husband and teleports away again.
Now he has two little scaly babies to hold, one silver, one...
"Garnet, aren't you?" he murmurs to the hatchling.
"Garnet, aren't you?" he murmurs to the hatchling.
The hatchling focuses mainly on protecting her stick, but takes a moment to see if the other scaly baby can be nibbled.
Nibbling the other scaly baby is a successful venture. It produces a meep.
(Karindal watches, ready to separate them if this turns into a non-playful altercation.)
(Karindal watches, ready to separate them if this turns into a non-playful altercation.)
This one will keep things playful as long as the other one does; if he decides to escalate, she will retaliate accordingly. She is familiar with the works of Sun Tzu, thank you very much. (No she is not.)
Meeping is not a form of escalation, so she retaliates with meeping of her own. This is fun, these mouth-noises she can make now. They are good mouth-noises.
Meeping is not a form of escalation, so she retaliates with meeping of her own. This is fun, these mouth-noises she can make now. They are good mouth-noises.
The silver baby makes more mouth-noises at her. Meep meep burble.
The silver baby's father smiles.
The silver baby's father smiles.
...Meeping is fun, but it loses its nonviolent shine fairly quickly. She whacks her new friend with one of those weird useless appendages she has.
This produces an affronted meep. (The silver baby excels at affrontedness. It is one of her specialties.)
Affront is irrelevant! Meeping is insufficiently interesting! The hatchling strikes again, nipping with somewhat increased force.
The silver baby climbs her father in search of escape from this strange rude creature.
The red baby takes a considering look at the large creature before her, and concludes that she should not antagonize it, because it could probably punt her across the room.
She nips at it anyway. Bad and shameful she may be, but let it never be said that this small violent creature is cowardly.
She nips at it anyway. Bad and shameful she may be, but let it never be said that this small violent creature is cowardly.
The large creature does not appear antagonized. He allows the red baby to nibble him and the silver baby to perch on his head.
Meanwhile:
Alesricandelrevinal and Solsaharelvizanemlikalrat sit quietly at home. They are not quite in mourning, but they are rather disheartened. They have not yet tried for another egg; they may, in a few more months, but at the moment they're mostly just sitting about.
"Did you see the scores from the scoot race the other day?" ventures Solsa.
"Yes," replies Ales. "It's nice to see that halfling girl making her way up the rankings, isn't it?"
"Oh, she seems like a lovely girl. I'm sure her parents must be-" She breaks off. "Well, she's a lovely girl."
Ales sighs and pats her gently on the arm. "We'll get it right, some day. We've got hundreds of years to try."
Alesrican gets a call from her line rep.
It seems the dragon council wants to know if anyone has misplaced a garnet striped egg recently.
"Someone left a striped garnet egg lying in a public park. A baby parunia was infected. The council will want to know everything you can remember about this... individual."
There is the quiet sound of a woman fainting dead away.
Alesrican, in a very small voice, says "I can tell you whatever you need to know."
Alesrican, in a very small voice, says "I can tell you whatever you need to know."
Her rep extracts all available information, which isn't much, and passes it on to the council. The council requests a few clarifications and elaborations, then leaves them alone.
power-in-motion
Althra finally makes it back down to the bottom of the world.
"We're going to need somewhere to live," says Karindal.
"I..." Althra looks at the babies, and looks at her husband, and sighs. "Yes. Of course. I'm sorry."
"And... what did you find out, about the garnet's parents...?"
"They were going to smash the egg, but instead gave it to a stranger. I can hardly think of a more contemptible—" She breaks off and shakes her head. "Out of my hands, I suppose."
"And into mine," Karindal says wryly, with a half-shrug that serves to highlight the presence of a pair of scaly babies in his arms.
Althra... pauses.
"I wouldn't give up our daughter, of course, that doesn't begin to be a question," says Karindal. "There... is a question about what will become of this poor lost creature. If she had relatives who wanted her, of course I'd give her to them. But since she doesn't..."
"I can only imagine what Father will think," says Althra, shaking her head slowly.
Karindal half-smiles. "Is that implicit agreement I hear?"
"Dear Magister," Althra sighs. "You really want to adopt this... weaponized shren?"
"Yes."
"...She can stay with us for the time being, and when I have time to think about this properly, I'll, well, I'll think about it."
"Thank you," says Karindal.
"And if you wouldn't mind staying here while I see about living arrangements...?"
"Not at all."
Althra gives her husband a distracted peck on the cheek and teleports away, already mentally organizing lists of possibilities.
"We're going to need somewhere to live," says Karindal.
"I..." Althra looks at the babies, and looks at her husband, and sighs. "Yes. Of course. I'm sorry."
"And... what did you find out, about the garnet's parents...?"
"They were going to smash the egg, but instead gave it to a stranger. I can hardly think of a more contemptible—" She breaks off and shakes her head. "Out of my hands, I suppose."
"And into mine," Karindal says wryly, with a half-shrug that serves to highlight the presence of a pair of scaly babies in his arms.
Althra... pauses.
"I wouldn't give up our daughter, of course, that doesn't begin to be a question," says Karindal. "There... is a question about what will become of this poor lost creature. If she had relatives who wanted her, of course I'd give her to them. But since she doesn't..."
"I can only imagine what Father will think," says Althra, shaking her head slowly.
Karindal half-smiles. "Is that implicit agreement I hear?"
"Dear Magister," Althra sighs. "You really want to adopt this... weaponized shren?"
"Yes."
"...She can stay with us for the time being, and when I have time to think about this properly, I'll, well, I'll think about it."
"Thank you," says Karindal.
"And if you wouldn't mind staying here while I see about living arrangements...?"
"Not at all."
Althra gives her husband a distracted peck on the cheek and teleports away, already mentally organizing lists of possibilities.
And the bad and shameful creature curls up around his leg and snuffles her way to sleep.
power-in-motion
It turns out that moving on short notice to a place that fits a narrow set of specifications is a little difficult.
Althra has some possibilities picked out pretty quickly, but what she doesn't have is the money to convince a seller to part with their property right now, not quite.
She considers whether her father might help. She decides it's worth the time to find out. Goodness knows he can afford to; it's only his willingness that's in question.
Althra has some possibilities picked out pretty quickly, but what she doesn't have is the money to convince a seller to part with their property right now, not quite.
She considers whether her father might help. She decides it's worth the time to find out. Goodness knows he can afford to; it's only his willingness that's in question.
adapt-again
Pirodeynan is not in a helpful mood, it turns out.
"I won't hear of it. Dispose of them however you want, but I'm not funding a miniature shren house to please that elf's sensibilities."
"I won't hear of it. Dispose of them however you want, but I'm not funding a miniature shren house to please that elf's sensibilities."
power-in-motion
"If people were less eager to dispose of their children, maybe your granddaughter would still be a dragon," she snaps.
power-in-motion
"Gladly."
So, Piro isn't going to help.
She relaxes her standards a little, double-checks some things, confirms with her husband, and buys them a house in the least populated region of Esmaar. Then she calls Piro again and brusquely informs him that she is registering her new address as a shren hazard location.
So, Piro isn't going to help.
She relaxes her standards a little, double-checks some things, confirms with her husband, and buys them a house in the least populated region of Esmaar. Then she calls Piro again and brusquely informs him that she is registering her new address as a shren hazard location.