Dragons' Father (Book 2 in the Dragon Hunters Trilogy)

Chapter 1: The Hatchlings

The Hatchlings

I immediately dropped the deer and raced into the house, moving so quickly I almost broke through the sliding door before I could move it out of the way.  I burst into the bedroom just as a terrific Crack! echoed through the air.  My eyes fell onto the eggs and I knelt down to watch as the egg on the right split down the middle, a small blue muzzle with a white egg tooth poking through a hole in the egg’s side.  Now that a breathing hole had been established, the hatchling was taking its time to catch its breath as the other egg rocked forcefully from side to side.  Tapping and scratching sounded from the inside of the egg and all at once there was another Crack! as a bright green muzzle smashed through the egg’s shell.

I waited like a nervous mother hen as they gathered their strength, and after about ten minutes, they pulled back into the eggs and began to worry at the edges with their small teeth and claws.  Bit by bit the eggs grew weaker, until both eggs split apart into separate halves, causing their inhabitants to sprawl out onto the ground in a set of tangled limbs and wings.  One of the hatchlings was a deep blue in color with a lighter blue crest that ran down her spine just like her mother’s.  Her wings were dark blue where the bones supported the thin webbing in between, though apart from that both sides were a faint blue-silver in color.  Her eyes were closed, though she made no qualms about working her way to my side to nuzzle into my legs. 

Her brother followed her lead, and as he rubbed against my other leg I saw that he was a bright lime green in color, with darker stripes running down his legs.  Like his sister, his eyes were closed, though it didn’t slow him down at all as he pressed into my pants with a contented murmur.  His wings were an exact opposite to his sister’s, light green where the bones and muscles supported the webbing and deep forest green for the flesh between them.  In that moment my heart melted like a snow drift on a summer day, and I leaned down to rub their heads gently as they went to sleep.

I looked to the little female and remembered what Calmstrike had asked of me if the mission worked.  I leaned down and whispered into her tiny ears, “Your name is Valaria, daughter of Calmstrike and descendent of the Rindorminosa Noble House.”  She seemed to hear me in her sleep, and she curled up tighter against my side as I leaned over her brother, “Your name is Grimond, son of Athamoran and descendent of the Rindorminosa Noble House.” 

He seemed to hear me as well, and like his sister, pulled closer to me as he curled into a tight little ball with his wings pulled tightly to his back.  I smiled and reached down with my arms to pick both of them up, wrapping my arms around their middles as I lifted them gently and set them down on the bed.  I hoped that their claws wouldn’t put a hole in the rubber, but I decided to leave that for another time as I climbed in with them.  I arranged my body so that they were cupped in the hollow of my chest and stomach, and as I pulled them to me I heard Valaria murmur something in her sleep.  I could have sworn she had just said, ‘mamma’, but when she didn’t say anything more I pushed it out of my mind.  I knew the deer would go bad if I didn’t take care of it soon, but for now I would just sit with the hatchlings, comforting them as they slept before I got back to work.

It seemed to only take a few moments for the hatchlings to recover their strength.  I grunted as Valaria kicked out with her hind legs as she stretched, catching me across the cheek with her paws, though thankfully she didn’t cut me with her small white claws.  Her brother awoke soon after and almost immediately they began to whine for food.  I pushed myself off of the bed and walked into my storage area for some food.  I had just gathered some small scraps when I remembered the deer I had left outside.  I ran out the front door and sighed as I saw that it hadn’t gone bad in the summer heat.  I picked it up and carried it back into the house on my shoulders, the pitiful wailing of hungry hatchlings tearing at my heart strings as I walked into the room.