The trip to Enzan Shi was uneventful, if a bit strange for the young pair. Sonith got the strangest feeling while they were traveling through space and time - her antennae vibrated and picked up what almost felt like the presence of people - but that couldn't happen, not in this black timeless void, could it?
They were at the place less than a week before the huge bugling announcement came thundering through the halls. It wasn't even morning yet, and Sonith was awake long before most of the others - her sensitive antennae tingling with the sound.
"Wow," she muttered, standing and putting on a warmer robe. She met up with Jet outside her dorm, since the boys and girls were separated here as back home. "I guess it's time, huh?"
"Yeah," Jet said, blearily rubbing his eyes and putting his baseball cap on.
"Take that thing off," Sonith grumbled, "that's so tacky..."
"It's not so tacky that a dragon wouldn't like it," Jet grinned. They arrived into the hall where the eggs all sat, and was promptly pushed into a line with the others, by a rather nervous wreck of a dragon.
"We're going, we're going!" Sonith giggled, hovering above the sand to keep her feet from burning.
As they stood, and were glowered at by one of the queen dragons, the eggs began to wobble and then break open. One by one, the many many orbs on the sands shattered or slid open. Practically half the dragons in the place helped them get into their own organized line, and to the candidates everything was just a mess of color and sound.
Sonith's senses were nearly overwhelmed, as the dragons kept coming out. They'd find a bond, or - not. Some of them just sniffed at the candidates and wandered away, while others openly ran right for them.
Two in particular, the offspring of a pair of beautiful sunset dragons, came bolting right toward Sonith and Jet.
The sunset-colored red female, just shy of the size of her sibling, approached Sonith and looked her boldly in the eye.
I think Silverfish is a good name for you. It's tough. Tough is good. Tough like dragon-scales! She spoke directly into Sonith's mind, which brought the young woman nearly to tears.
Not from pain, but from the power that the dragoness had in her. From the depth of her bond. This little girl certainly knew her own opinion about things!
Silverfish smiled, sighing, "I guess you're right, it is a pretty cool name huh?"
Then she turned to see Jet with his own little version of the meaning of life.
Name: Cekionyth
Bonded to: Silverfish
Gender: Female, Electric red Cyilonith x Sunset Mikioth
Colour: Sunset-red
Breed: Cy-Old World
Length: 18 meters
Personality: Cekionyth is a trusting, honourable dragoness. She will stand up for Silverfish and fight back if she is offended for any reason. Cekionyth can be quite a physical force if she wants, though she often prefers to scream back at the person. She is extremely vocal and can be heard for miles around, if she wants to be.
Your sister should have invited you. I know Cekionyth would invite me. Maybe humans are different? Teach me about your kind! The electric-marked sunset male asked. He was perfectly happy waiting for the reply.
"Y... yeah, humans are a bit different... But I bet Glory will want to be in on everything I do, now that you're here..."
He hugged the dragon, aware that Sonith was watching him. He wasn't embarrassed by his tears of joy. Who could hold back this much pride?
Name: Mayionith
Bonded to: Jet
Gender: Male,
Electric red Cyilonith x Sunset Mikioth
Colour: Electric sunset
Breed: Cy-Old World
Length: 22 meters
Personality: Loyal and proud, Mayionith takes anything negative said to Jet or himself as a personal insult. He tries his best to understand, but sometimes falls short. He has no qualms about asking questions of Jet, but rarely asks questions of others. He knows that Jet doesn't have all the answers, but he has enough for Mayionith to be content with.
Because they were meant to be part of a 'program' at Paragon Special Studies, they headed back to the school almost immediately. However, they did spend about a month with their new hatchlings, learning directly from the folks at Enzan Shi. What to feed them, how to fix a wound. Their skin and scales were apt to dry out and shed, and the hunger pangs that the young dragonets had were, to quote Jet, 'righteous and hard to ignore'.
"We can't ignore them," Sonith reminded him, "they're going to starve if you don't get on it... I got them the dishes last time..."
Jet left and came back, flying through the halls, with the double bowls of fresh meat that had been cut up just the right size.
"I wonder if their mother and father would normally bite pieces off, and feed them, or what," Jet asked of no one in particular while they fed.
Upon returning to PSS, they found a new building under construction. It would still take a while to complete, but it would eventually hold effectively a fleet of dragons. The hangar was big enough - or at least it looked to Jet and Sonith - to hold a couple C-130s at least.
While the other students who had bonded at other locales came back, and all their dragons grew, the hangar bay became more and more complete. When the little hatchlings were no longer little and had to be moved from the students dorms (and they were quite the attraction there!) accomodations were set up for them to live in the built portion of the hangar.
Of course, all this was done while the students were busy with homework in addition to care and feeding, and training, with their dragons!
"This is bloody hard work," Jet said.
I like it, hard work is good for you! Do you know why those other people are unhappy? Is work too hard for them?
"It's not too hard, it's that they don't want to do it... They're not used to it."
Well they should get used to it! The esling dragon said reproachfully. He glared at the group of students who had not been chosen for dragon bonding, but were able to help work on the hangar none the less. They seemed less than pleased that their hard work was to be enjoyed only by these select few.
It is all right, my brother, they will eventually learn their labors are appreciated, Cekionyth told her brother. They are jealous. And they should be.
"No, they shouldn't," Silverfish said, "they'll get angry if they stay jealous."
Then let them be angry! I will protect you! The sunset red defiantly snarled at some of the passers by, who scuttled quickly out of her way.
"Ceki!" Sonith cried, "don't do that! They haven't done anything to you!"
They were thinking about it...
"No they were not," Sonith tried to soothe her dragon. These two were getting to be a handful!
