Searching
"I thought you said that there were candidates around here somewhere."
There are! I can sense them.
Maira glanced around the dark, and rather abandoned looking, street. There were lights in quite a few of the shops, but the only people that she could see in them were the clerks or owners... and what she could see of them did not inspire any thought of any of them being candidate material, "Well, where are they then?"
"Where are who?" the smooth, cultured voice came from behind her, giving her a slight start, and causing her to twist about to see who had managed to sneak up behind her.
There were two people there behind her, standing somewhat near a lantern, which cast its golden light on them and revealed their fine clothing and features. Their poses looked completely unconscious, but somehow she had the feeling that their positions near the lantern were not completely happenstance. Fine silk clothing and embroidery, not to mention the belts and swords that rested at their waists, hinted at what they were, though it was the tilt of their heads and the proud look in their eyes that truly told of their aristocratic heritage.
These two! They're the ones that I sensed.
Dresynith slowly extended her neck to get a closer look at the two young adults that stood before her.
::Try not to scare them, Dresynith, I don't know if...::
Maira blinked, as the man carefully handed what looked to be a saddle pack to the woman, then ran a hand over Dresynith's muzzle, completely unafraid as he returned the scrutiny.
"Interesting creature... is she yours?" he cast a questioning glance at Maira, "I've never seen such as she before."
"She's Dresynith, my dragon, and I'm Maira, her rider."
"Dragon?" the woman tilted her head to one side, moving to stand next to her brother and look the obliging green over, "I've heard legends of them, and come across a bunch of ancient histories that mention the creatures, but I've never come across a real one before..."
"Well, she and I aren't from around here."
"No? Then where are you from?"
"We're from the world called Syl'Neriss, though right now we're out looking for potential candidates."
"Candidates for what?" the woman asked, as she lightly ran a gloved hand over Dresynith's muzzle, just as unafraid as the man standing next to her.
"To bond with dragons," Maira watched them, wondering how they were taking what she was saying about coming from another world... some people didn't take that knowledge very well, "Dresynith says that both of you would make good candidates for Lantessama's sands."
"Hmm... interesting." He glanced at the woman that Maira had finally decided was his sister, and it seemed to her that some sort of mental conversation was going on, akin to what a dragon and a rider did.
"We accept," the woman gave a faint smile, then bowed slightly, "My name is Lesarakel A'vredon re'l Encare'ar-ai, though many simply call me Lesara, or Les."
"And I am Tirvaltoraiel A'vredon se'l Encare'ar-ai. Call me Tirval, or Tirv if you wish." Tirval bowed as well, then straightened and stared off into the distance for a second, before finally nodding, "There, that takes care of everything here." He hefted two other packs that had suddenly appeared in his hand, "Starlance and Starsilver will take word back to our family."
"Well, if you're ready to go..." Maira glanced up at Dresynith, then swung herself up easily in one practiced motion, "Come on up, then. Dresynith will take us to where we need to go."
The two nodded, then both swung up behind her, amazingly graceful for never having ridden, or even seen, a dragon before.
"One thing that I should add," Lesara spoke lightly as she settled down, "both of us, though me especially, are rather light sensitive, so..."
Maira nodded, "Don't worry about it, I'll make sure that we come out of Elsewhere at night, and give both of you inner rooms. Though, no one really has any control over when the hatching occurs, except for the hatchlings themselves."
Tirval shrugged, "As long as there's shade around, and people don't mind us working a bit of magic and looking rather like ghosts, the hatching shouldn't be much of a problem. It's just that neither of us can keep that spell up for any true length of time."
"I see," Maira gave Dresynith a mental command, "Hang on, both of you."
The green leapt into the air, wings beating strongly as she rose higher, clearing the tops of the buildings swiftly, and then rising yet higher until, with a thought, she vanished into the Elsewhere.
Boredom and Exploring
Tirval lounged in the room that he had been given, pouring over the odd language of the book that he had bought from the scholar, working on translating it. His sister was in the room next door, reading through the book on the A'vredon family. Both of them were waiting for the hatching of Tairim's clutch to begin, and had spent the past few nights exploring the entire place.
He yawned and rubbed at blurry eyes with the back of an ungloved hand, rising from where he lay on the bed and leaving the book there. He needed a breath of fresh air, and something other than weird symbols on a yellowed page to stare at.
With that thought in mind, he teleported himself out to the beach and began to stroll along it, the entire beach illuminated brightly by the light of stars above, so much so that the dark energy that he normally relied upon was relegated to a few tiny patches of wispy power. But even so, it was a beautiful place, and one that he felt he might be able to get used to after a time.
The call of some strange animal caught his attention, and he paused, head tilted to one side as he listened for it. As the call repeated, he turned and slowly began walking in the direction that he thought it was coming from, occasionally changing his direction as the call came again and again.
Eventually, he knelt down beside a small dune, and peered over it at the strange creature that was making the noise. The thing almost resembled a dragon, yet at the same time, it was definitely in its own special sort of category.
::Les, c'mere... you have to see this thing.::
::What is it?::
He shrugged faintly, even though he knew that she couldn't see him, ::I don't know, just come on, will you?::
Lesara appeared next to him, in almost the same position that he had placed himself to spy upon the creature, ::It really is odd looking, isn't it... I think I read about these in one of those books that I borrowed from Lantessama's library. A... Ceadra I think they're called. Apparently they can bond with humans somewhat like a dragon, but they're not really telepathic. And they need to be kept near or in water during the first two stages of their life.::
::It looks like the creatures are hatching now...::
She nodded, ::Want to see if we can bond with one? I'm sure it would be easy enough with our magic to provide for them.::
::Can you imagine our family's reaction? Dragons as partners and odd little creatures as pets?:: He laughed softly, then froze as movement caught his eye, and a dark, snake like creature slithered up to him, bright green eyes meeting his, before the creature curled itself up next to him, practically vanishing completely in his shadow. Two identical ones slipped up beside them next, dark blue to the point of being almost a black color.
Lesara offered her hand to one of the two, and it quickly curled up on top of it, while the other one joined the one that had already claimed Tirval.
"Lesara," Tirv winced slightly at how loud his voice sounded in the relative stillness, but continued anyway, "Look to your right."
She blinked at the silvery Ceadra that had someone managed to sneak up on her, despite how impossible it should have been for something of that color.
"You know... lets get out of here before we find the entire clutch clamoring at our feet."
Tirval nodded his agreement, and rose, lifting the two up with him and holding them gently, "Indeed."
Together the two teleported themselves back, swiftly weaving their powers together to create somewhat large pools in both rooms, and fill them with water as well. Tirval set his two into the pool in his room, watching them as they swam together.
::What are you going to name your two?:: Lesara's mindvoice was amused.
He considered it for a second, ::Seneras and Zelkaen. You?::
::Kisren and Lunas.::
::I wonder how long its going to be until the hatching...::
She shrugged, watching her Ceadras playing, ::Whenever the hatchlings decide its time, brother, whenever they decide its time.::