The Winter's Dark Heart Frenzy Returned

The Lurking Darkness Returns

“Well this is a mess,” Krethae grumbled as she stared at the mismatched collection of eggs packed into the small cavern, trying to figure out exactly what Shadowspinner had been up to and how she’d gotten ahold of so many eggs.

“Tell me about it,” Flikk said in exasperation as he stepped up to her side and crossed his arms over his chest. “Best we’ve been able to tell, there’s a stasis spell over all of them—”

“Don’t complete that sentence,” Krethae growled, already knowing exactly what Flikk was going to tell her.

He shot her a deadpan look and said, “And it’s beginning to fail.”

She scowled at him. “Of course it is. Because why would anything go smoothly with this.” It wasn’t like the rest of their exploration of Koshi Keidai had gone without issue either, between the leftover traps, half-feral and half-starved experiments lingering around, and dangerous magical experiments, the whole endeavor had been… a mess. To put it kindly.

(She really wasn’t inclined to be kind, at this point.)

(Not after all the things she’d come across.)

Flikk hesitated a moment, tail twitching uncomfortably beneath his cape, then suggested, “We could always just cast another stasis spell on them. Or get rid of them some other way.” He shrugged when Krethae shot him an incredulous look and added, “There’s no guarantee any of these are viable, anyway. We have no idea how old they are, or where they even came from.”

“And if some of these are Myrsilk eggs?”

“The chances of that are slim and we both know it,” Flikk answered, tipping his muzzle towards the roof of the cavern, indicating the floors above them. “More likely, most of these were stolen from that frenzy years ago, during that brief lull in fighting. You and I both know that a lot fewer hatchlings came of that than expected, especially from some of the nests.”

Krethae grimaced at the reminder, wings rustling as she thought back to that time and the fury of some of the clutch-mothers when their eggs refused to hatch. If Shadowspinner had been the cause of that, well… honestly it was probably a good thing that the dragoness was long dead.

Still… what were they to do about this mess? An unknown number of eggs, from currently-unknown parents, all under a stasis spell that was failing.

(Sometimes she really missed Selverat’s no-nonsense approach to problems.)

(What would he do in this case…?)

“We could always put out a call for potential candidates and sponsors,” Flikk suggested after a moment of silence. “Now that the other Nexiian worlds are reachable again, we can always just… make whatever hatches their problem.”

Krethae laughed, somehow unsurprised by Flikk’s suggestion. “That… seems like a plan. Sure. Let’s go with that. I’ll put out a notice and then we can work on getting these eggs somewhere less crowded.”

(And hopefully nothing untoward happened during the hatching.)

(Hopefully…)

Rules and Information for All Candidates:

A link must be provided on the candidate's page, preferably in a visible area, and not linked with just "Here".
Names acceptable to link with are: Clan Akelara, The Realm, The Realm of the Myrsilk. The link is: http://www.silveredmagic.com/akelara/index.html
It is also acceptable to link to Koshi Keidai, following the rule as above. The link is: http://www.silveredmagic.com/koshi/index.html
No plagiarizing from other people, but expies are perfectly acceptable
Please make all pages readable
Dragon names will be following their parents' names, if there's a pattern that can be seen.
In the form, you can suggest which clutch you want your candidate to bond from, no guarantees, though. Especially from clutches like Veridiain's.
Injuries are likely to occur. You have been warned.
Groups stories are fine.
So long as you are the only person able to edit the document and I don't need to create an account to view the candidate, any form of submission is accepted -- forum, gdoc, website, whatever else.
Clutch themes are a bonus but not required this time around. Have fun with it.
Candidates will be housed in either Koshi Keidai or in Clan Akelara, depending on where they'd prefer to be and also how well they can play nice. The dragons of Clan Akelara will not tolerate unnecessary violence in the Clan and are likely to refuse to house any candidates who do not follow the rules.
There will be some 'unexpected' eggs mixed in with the original Winter's Dark Heart eggs, specifically for Baishu or "Crystal" Myrsilk, though the majority of eggs hatched will be from the original pairings. Crystal Myrsilk are capable of bonding at hatching but can also go without. Baishu will not bond at hatchling, but may link their minds to their caretaker as they grow up (any candidates who get a Baishu will not bond on hatching, but rather act as a caretaker until the Baishu matures, at which point I will assume the adult has chosen to forge a mental bond with the candidate)

Rules for the Main Clutch:

All candidates must be of the darker persuasion, or at least able to hold his or her own with one of the beasts likely to come from this clutch.
I don't mind what is written into the stories, be it violence, language, or more adult themes, just keep it tasteful and not for Shock Value.
But others do mind, so if your story involves something with a more adult theme or a lot of inappropriate language, put a warning at the beginning of your story.
Anything with such themes and no warnings on the pages will be rejected out of hand and an email sent to the author with the reason why.
All sponsorships must be accompanied by a caretaker for the hatchling. Storyblurb optional but very welcome.

Theme for the Main Clutch:

Winter is the time when the weak and unprepared die. Winter is the time when creatures become hungry and violent. Winter is the time of unrelenting darkness and blizzards that can freeze a creature solid in moments. Add this darker side into your story, in any way you desire.

Rules for the Side Clutch (Sunaka's Cluch):

Any candidates applying for Sunaka's eggs must be strong, but not evil.
As with the main clutch, I don't honestly care what's written into the story. Violence, language, or more adult themes.
But, as before, while I'm comfortable with such things, others are not.
As such, a warning must be posted at the beginning of the story with such warnings that the story warrants.
As there are only going to be a maximum of five available eggs for candidates, I am going to be very picky about who gets into this clutch.
As such, I would prefer that the candidates not be part of a massive group that's being scattered far and wide.

Theme for Sunaka's Clutch:

While winter must be a part of the story, passing reference or not, the main theme of this clutch is along the lines of Surviving Adversity.

Take that however you wish, there are a multitude of possibilties residing in those two words.

The Forms

The form for candidates. Send this to starfyre @ silveredmagic . com with the subject of "WDH Candidate"

Your name:
Working email address:
Candidate's name:
Candidate's URL:
Candidate's gender:
Candidate's species:
How much can your candidate be injured during the hatching? I won't go beyond this limit:
Which clutch is this candidate for, the main one or Sunaka's?:
Preferred parentage/color/what-not of the bond? (this isn't a guarantee, mind you):
Prefer an official WDH hatchling (from the old original pairings), a Crystal Myrsilk, or a Baishu?:
Comments:

The form for sponsorships for the main clutch. Send to starfyre @ silveredmagic . com with the subject of "WDH Sponsor"

Your name:
Working email address:
Sponsorer's name:
Sponsorer's Url:
Sponsorer's Gender:
Sponsorer's Species:
How much can your sponsorer be hurt during the hatching? I won't go beyond this limit:
Preferred parentage/color/what-not of the sponsored hatchling? (note: Veridiain's clutch is unlike to have any sponsors at all, as she's Azon royalty.):
Prefer an official WDH hatchling (from the old original pairings), a Crystal Myrsilk, or a Baishu?:
Comments: