Ista Weyr Log: Omfaleth and Chezroth's Clutching - June 2004

Omfaleth and Chezroth's Clutching - June 2004

Jara looks to the Weyrwoman,"What can I do to help?"

The wind isn't as strong here, the grit not so apt to spray into unprotected faces. Still it wants to tear folk from their footing, and often a person has to grip the wall just to stay upright. Reye is soaked head to foot, a rainslicker hastily thrown over her shoulders; and she points toward the hatching sands and the glimmer of gold visible out there through the darkness. "Omfaleth hasn't yet started, but it'll be any moment now. There are puddles of water all over; the sand nearest the far end is still dry -- under the overhang -- but I'm afraid we'll get more water in and it'll encroach. That, or the new eggs will wind up in puddles- we need sandbags, buckets." She gives a nod of her head then, gesturing for folk to follow her.

You step off of solid rock onto hot sands, feeling a slight amount of discomfort.

Hatching Sands(#1296RJqs$)

The black sand of the Istan hatching grounds is quite famous, and it also sends a bit of darker air to the entire cavern, since it doesn't reflect light as well as the unusual sands of, say, Igen. Of course, the sand is not only warm, it's baking almost as if it's been in the sun all day, even when the Weyr is under a hurricane warning! The huge cavern arcs overhead, a volcanic bubble in black matte rock, while the tiers of the galleries provide seating for the spectators.

Besides the span of the galleries to the south, one can head over towards the entrance to the hatching grounds, or into one of the Queen's tunnels to the southeast and southwest.

Dragons scattered across the dark sand include Omfaleth.

Sandy Mound is lying around loose on the dark sand.

Obvious exits:

Dragon Ledges Main Entrance

(edited out misc folk coming and going)

Agitated over the less-than-ideal weather, Omfaleth lets out an angry, upward bugle -- as though that alone would calm it -- and curves her normally-slender frame close to the rock wall where half-furled wings protect her prize. So all is hidden, then, and when she moves aside the first egg lays nestled amongst black sand and blowing wind.

Jara bows to the Queen dragon,"I am not here to harm your eggs, I only wish to do what you want: to keep them safe."

Nadia follows Reye onto the saands with a nod and a worried look on her face. She ohs as the first egg is laid already and pouts some, "Well let's get to work." the greenrider says amnd aand looks around the sands for the buckets to start making places for the eggs to be.

Torrez bows his head down, turning away from the wind as much as he can, "Oh, this isn't going to be good." He shivers at the fierce cry from Omfaleth, bobbing his respect and then fastens his jacket around him, "Ok...so--sandbags?" He moves for the backets as well, bendng so scoop up water-heavy sands.

Xianbar follows the others, unsure what to do, but mimicing their movements in an effort to help.

Jara surveys the scene,"We probably need to build a dam to infront of the Queen to keep the water from getting to the eggs, as well as work on getting it away from the eggs."

Danica had just arrived dressed in her best via dragonback from Igen weyr when she spotted the crowd gathered at the Hatching Ground Entrance. Since any crowd at any Hatching Ground entrance means something is going on Danica gathers her dress to her side and hurries over in time to hear Reye's orders. Hair is pulled loose of her braids as she looks around confused to figure out what she might need to do. Gazing around she hurries back out of the Hatching Grounds and returning some minutes later with a shovel from the blackrock bunker.

Lorany stumbles more than walks in after the majority of the good Samaritan Istans, boots seemingly determined to seek and splatter every possible puddle all over the seamstress's tunic and pants. "Urgh! Ugh, oh, great. Eegh!" a stream of squeakity exclamations follow the girl sands-wards, "This is *so* different than I thought it'd be... never seen the sands like this, never once." Splash, splish, "Whoops!" She's here, like it or not.

There are already a few sacks set to one side, brought by helpful hands; and a drudge starts readying them to be filled with the already-wet sand in the center of the grounds. Omfaleth looks up as she turns 'round her newest egg, a huff of steam emitting from her nostrils as she casts a stern look upon those encroachers. "Omfaleth, we -need- them here," Reye tells her agitated lifemate sternly. "Don't say it's not normal. -That- isn't normal either." A finger toward the rain and hail sleeting in through the entrance; and she raises one arm across her face as she moves toward the line of buckets.

Frelliss eyes the Queen dragon somewhat nervously, but nevertheless offers, "Well, let's get to work." He looks at Danica, "Where did you get that shovel?"

Jara grabs a bucket and starts filling it with the damp sand. After she gets it about half full, she drags it with all her strength. By the time she got it to the drudge, she was huffing and puffing,"Shouldn't fill them so full.."

Nadia heads ovetr to Torrez and holds open a still empty bag out to hiim, "Well switch off love kiay6?" She then adds, "You fill then I wqill."

Xianbar walks over to Jara, seeing a chance to help, "Jara, if you can fill them, I'll carry them. Might help if we split the work..."

Xaine struggles to get into the area with the wind blowing. She has a bucket in hand and strangely enough, several woven sacks in hand. She yelps in surprise when she's nearly yanked off her feet. "Oh s..shards! "

Griere follows a small group of eager helpers ontp the sands; she's already so soaked her curls hang limply and stick to her cheeks. Her skirt has been tied up in a knot on one side to keep it out of the way, though it's already covered with wet sand. In her hands are a few more buckets which she quickly passes off to empty hands.

It's almost impossible to see anything what with the darkness of the storm, the sting of sand hitting bare skin, the rain that soaks everything in sight save where rocky overhangs offer little protection. There's a queen dragon here somewhere, right? Another agitated bellow confirms that; and a swish of long, sinuous tail that almost takes out one of her helpers. A voice sounds through the darkness: "Omfaleth, be careful!" But the dragon has other things on her mind.

Ellery continues to be swept along by the uncommonly large crowd that's been rallied to help keep the area safe. However, to judge by her bemused expression, which could almost be the beginnings of a scowl, this was /not/ how she expected to be spending her afternoon. She stands in the beginnings of a puddle, the hem of her long skirt beginning to absorb sandy, muddy water, for several moments. The thing that really gets her moving is Omfaleth's stern glance. In taking several steps away from the queen, she stubs her toe on a sandbag. "Oh, dear." She absently takes a bucket from Griere and falls into line.

Jara nods,"I'm not big enough to carry them." She glances at the Queen,"Poor thing, I bet she's terrified for her eggs, either that or very, very mad." She grabs the now empty bucket and starts filling it up. "Just tell me when it's full enough."

Danica covers her head with one arm as she looks over at Frelliss, squinting her eyes against the rain. Pointing towards the entrance she hollars "Blackrock bunker" Nervously she glances at Omfaleth, remembering how the LAST queen she approached liked her and she bows nervously before heading to the far end of the grounds to start making a drainage ditch and to pile up sand to use in the sacks. The flooding of Baynet over a turn before had made Danica quite the little expert at trying to stem the tide of water.

Splish, swish, "Whoops! Er, thanks Weyrwoman," is Lorany's splutter through the oncoming downpour as she's the recipiant of not only a faceful of showering spray but a bucket from Griere's collection as well. "Here goes," can be heard from somewhere behind the container, accompanied by much sliding and skidding of uncoordinated feet in black sand, "here's to me not dropping this thingie..." or, Faranth forbid, squishing an egg.

Another angry ripple of Omfaleth's midsection seems to echo the howl of wind against rock, and the flame-bright queen turns in place, trying to find a sheltered spot for her next egg. Long, sinuous tail lashes the air once, almost presenting a danger itself for those nearby, but she's not paying attention; all her focus is on the newest addition to the clutch. Urgent huffs escape her nostrils as she noses it out of the weather and into a tiny crevice offered by the shelter of the walls.

Xianbar watches Jara fill the bucket, the sticky, wet work obviously difficult given the weight of the rain soaked sand. Seeing it about three quarters full, she moves to take it from Jara, "That should do it," she says, hoping that Jara can hear her over the wind.

Phy shuffles onto the sands reluctantly, squinting against the rain. "Sharding water!" she curses fervently, snatching one of the buckets offered by Griere. She doesn't even look at the woman's face, not that she can see it, but plows on by, almost bumping into someone else. A gruff, "Get out of my way!" is yelled out before the girl begins scooping sand into the bucket hastily. Her aunt /must/ have put her up to this.

Jara when Xianbar moved foreward to take the bucket, Jara stoped. It was good to pay attention to other people.

Torrez nods to Nadia, "Ok!" HE shouts back to her, or in her direction. "OH ....no..." He bows low, filling the bucket with sand and handing it off to the greenrider so she can fill the sack. "I can't sharding -see- anything." He hisses, wiping the back of his arm across his face between fills.

Lorany suddenly has a Phy shouting in her ear, "Ack!" The recently-received bucket hits the sand, bottom side down thank goodness, as Lor's arms pinwheel and splut, down she goes rear first into, you guessed it, a puddle. "Urgh! Erm... whoever that was, heyla?" Squelches and squishes later, the unbalanced resident is on her feet, and beginning to fill the ill-fated bucket with sticky black sand--and getting it liberally splatted to her clothing in the process.

Lyss pushes clumps of wet hair out of face so that they no longer obscure her vision. She grabs a bucket as well and stoops to start piling sand into it, and already thoroughly wet she tries to keep the now heavy material of her skirt and shirt from arresting her movement as she starts trying to scoop sand into the bucket as quickly as she can, darting glances around her to see if anyone has come up with any more successful means of doing this.

Over the wind and rain, a jagged flicker of lightning briefly illuminates the hatching cavern, showing a shadowed face here and there, and perhaps even an egg or two, although all is rapidly plunged back into darkness as the light dissipates.

Several of the nearest bucket wielders shuffle out of the way at the sound of that yell and Ellery finds herself, much to her obvious chagrin, next to Phy. Arms still automatically continue in their attempts to get sand and water to cooperate, while she projects over the sounds of the weather, "Careful there!"

Jara frowns for a moment and spits out a mouthful of sand. She shudders when the lightning illuminates errie looking shadows.

Nadia juts her hand out gentle to trey and eel around for Tolrrez so he can find where she is, "It's be okay." She says loudly so basicly eeryone can here as the winds whip around the sands and open up that pesky jacket 's again .

Frelliss runs over to get a shovel, and runs over to Ellery, yelling, "Need help over here?" Before using his sleeves to wipe his face. He never really cared about his clothes, anyway.

A gusty wind rolls through the hatching grounds, bringing with it more moisture. Hail begins to pelt the ground in ever-larger painful chunks, and wait -- is that someone's /hat/ flying by, too?

Xianbar grabs the bucket from Jara and fills her bag as quickly as possible, digging her hands in to try and scrape the last of the sand stuck to the bottom of the bucket. In a rush, she runs the bucket back to Jara and then finishes up with the bag, waiting for the next run.

Claia surveys the chaotic scene, even her deep, resonant voice is struggling to be heard as she directs staff to help hold back the tide of water entering the grounds. Her own hands are working at a frantic pace filling bags of sand to be placed in key areas. Occasionally she glances up at her watching lifemate, as Typsyth croons to help calm her agitated queen.

Rest, a time? Perhaps later; not now, for those eggs seem determined to make their way into the world. The sun-kissed queen seems the only bright spot to the weather-bedarkened hatching cavern, small puddles of water dotting the sands here and there; and with a hiss of pain another egg makes its presence known.

Dispite her general distraction at the moment, a look of recognition flickers over Griere's face as one of the many hands relieving her of buckets is one Phy's. Was that a smirk on the young weyrwoman's face? It's hard to tell through all the wind and rain.

While Phy recognizes Ellery's voice, that doesn't necessarily mean that she'll deign to greet her, now, will it? "Disgusting, wet, clammy, yucky, /shardit/!" Something smacks her full in the face, and the girl peels off a drenched, wet hat with disgust. Now that rivulets of water are properly running down her face, the girl audibly groans, and then hefts up the loaded bucket with a low grunt. "Alright! Where do these things /go/?" she demands of the nearest person -- Ellery, perhaps?

Xaine pauses at the entrance and attempts to watch what people are doing then moves to the side. She narrows her eyes from the brief lightening then quickly moves to start filling the bags she has in hand with the sand at the edge of the grounds. She yelps again at the gust of wind hits her in the back full force and goes spralling in the sand and getting soaked even more and definitely now sandy as well. She struggles to get up and get that bag filled with sand.

Lorany doesn't see the unfortunate headgear go sailing past, not until it's flown its collision course with her rain-soaked face. "Oi!" Clang! Thankfully the bucket is half full and doesn't overturn, but the hat flies off after much cursing and squeaking, careening on to commit more blinding mischief. Lor is, as a result, now thoroughly coated in sand. At least that bucket's getting filled. "Anyone need this? Quick before I drop it, if I drop it... maybe I... wait, too sharding heavy." Thud. Anyone wants that bucketful will have to pick it up.

Jascela walks onto the sands from the entrance to the Hatching Grounds.

Jascela has arrived.

Ellery's holding out well enough, so when Frell offers his services she only points one hand, momentarily illuminated by lightning, towards Lorany. "I think she needs help more than I do," the fisher calls out. Though wind whips her words away almost immediately, some semblance of that statement probably reaches Frelliss. Then it's turned back to answer Phy, to whom she demonstrates. "Like this!" hefting her bucket over to an area that's well on its way to becoming a pond.

Torrez's bucket nearly gets yanked from his hand as the wind stirs around him. He bares his teeth--which isn't a good idea in this sandy-wind, because he gets a mouth full of it. Spitting and cursing he fights against the wind to fill the bucket. "Do they need more help getting the sandbags in place?" He can't see them--and maybe no one can hear him.

Danica thinks belatedly of her silk slippers that she had dyed to match the light yellow of her dress. Sighing mightily she tries to ignore the constricted feeling of her soaked dress clinging to her upper legs, the itchy feeling of sand on her lower legs and the disgusting sensation of steaming heat rising from the wet sands. Looking about she moves towards where everyone else is and thrusts the shovel into the sand and begins to fill a bucket that was blowing happily by. The flash of light overhead illuminates a familiar face...Claia. "What are we supposed to be doing?" she yells to the other woman as she lifts the full bucket.

Xaine glance around then calls into the wind. "Ellery! " Was that a full out bellow and without any sound of a stutter!

Nadia shakles her head but then says loudly, "I don't know Torrez. I can't see a bloody thing in this weather." She gyerrs and grabs his bucket cause she is close enough to see that.

Back and forth, Frell runs, or tries to run, over to Lorany. Handing her his shovel, he picks up the dropped busket. "C'mon!" He yells, "Bring that over here!" He says, battling his way over to the rest of the helpers.

Reye has a bucket in hand, and fortunately for her she's not wearing a skirt like some of those unlucky souls here today. The slender Weyrwoman's hair is soaked within its braid, tendrils sticking to cheeks and brow as she scoops water away from the eggs. One splash goes suspiciously toward someone- was that Griere? "Mitts on a fish! Sorry." - "Not that it makes a difference, really- Omfaleth, calm yourself!" That, to an angry rush of wings and low, seething hiss. "You knock over one of these people and it'll be one less to keep your eggs dry."

Lela walks onto the sands from the entrance to the Hatching Grounds. Lela has arrived.

Jara pauses a moment to roll up the soaked legs of her pants,"Good thing I hate skirts." Then she went back to filling the bucket.

Phy swipes an arm out in front of her in a violent attempt to wave the rain away from her face. Naturally, it doesn't work. "Shells, /what/?" she yells back to Ellery, then as another flash of lightning briefly illuminates the area, she stumbles toward the fisher, dragging the sand-laden bucket with her. "/Where/ do we put the sharding things?" she yells out again, and then abruptly drops the bucket with a low crunch. She heard Omfaleth's rush of wings and hiss. "What was that?"

Lorany always needs more help than most people, Ellery has it right. Lucky for Phy Lor didn't see that hat peeled from the laundress's face before it careened into her... she was too busy realizing buckets don't move on their own and hefting the ungainly thing as best she could... then Frellis has it. "Where'd you go? I can't see a thing... yeeeek!" Splat! Or half a splat, a narrow miss avoided by a fated flinging out of scrawny arms. "Er, thanks... whoever you are." This as she nears Frellis and the bucket brigade. Not that she knows him.

Xianbar looks up for a moment to see where the bag she is filling needs to be taken. She looks to Jara to see if the bucke tis ready, teh bag only half full. As a flash of light hits her face, there is an obvious smile of contentment as she works in the rain, a sharp contrast to most of the other faces present.

Omfaleth stands stock-still, her steady frame set before the few eggs she's already clutched as though daring the storm to come in and do its worst. But then another ripple crosses her belly, and her work is cut out for her: and soon a rather lopsided egg joins the others.

"You there!" Claia calls sternly to a group of drudges, "go get baskets of glows so we can see what the shards we're doing...be quick about it." She pauses a moment to rip off her completely ruined sandals, spying Danica as a flash of light fills the cavern. "Fill buckets, bags of sand! Try and create areas of dry sand for the eggs. We *have* to keep the eggs dry!" Her hands go back to work filling the bags in front of her, determination etched in her face.

The rain momentarily lets up, as though to give everyone a sense of false security. Even as heads begin to cautiously look upward, another ominous rumble of thunder heralds the opening of the skies once again, unleashing another merciless torrent of water upon the already-drenched cavern.

Lela comes blindly in from the storm, finding Ellery, holding onto her, "The filly had some of her mats let go in the storm between her and dock, I helped put more up." She half yells in the noise of the storm.

Lyss starts lugging a filled bucket in the same direction as a few blurry shadows of people are moving, trying, and not entirely successfully, not to trip over herself or the bucket as she moves. And too late is the effort to watch where she's going as she makes her way right into Lorany and mutters a curse under her breath as she goes sprawling into the sand, quickly hefting herself back up again, that much more material dragging her down now.

Jara yells over the thunder, wind and rain,"Bucket's full!" Dispite the terible weather, Jara didn't complain. She was helping the Weyr' furutre dragons here!

Frelliss sees an egg near him in the brief light. "Over here!" He beckons Lorany. Dumping the sand from the bucket onto it. "How is wet sand going to keep them dry?" He mutters to himself, his words lost in the raucous noise.

In spite of a bucket full of sand by her side, Ellery struggles, leaning full into the wind, towards Xaine. And ends up with one foot stuck in a pit of sopping, sticking black sand. She reaches out blindly in an attempt to garner help. "I'm stuck!" Whether or not she can be heard, of course, is debatable. Bucket lays now forgotten at her side.

Ker-splat! Oyes, fear my weather. Lyss has crashed into Lorany and Lorany has... hit the deck, for lack of better terms. Crunch, squish, "Eeeee-yeeeeew! Oh, shards, Lyss was that *you*? Was it you because I sure couldn't *cough* tell in *hack* this sharding *gag* sand!" Lorrie now resembles a darkly-coated feline, for the speckled and freckled face mask she's wearing. Nonetheless she's hauling herself to her feet, and it's sandbag filling time with Ista Weyr.

Xaine finishes filling her bag and struggles to the edge of the sands to put it there. She stands, instantly pausing at the brief let up, then picks up her bucket and starts to actually /dig/ into the sand and pushing what she can toward Omfaleth's mound and leaving what looks like a moat near the entrance. She hefts a bit of the water in the bucket and tosses it toward the entrance, if anything to get to the sand under it and continues to push for the moat. She briefly sloshes through the water build up to go grab another bag and fills it of sand. What /is/ she doing? Then it might be noticed - giving the queen higher ground rather than fighting the rain is like trying to hold back to sea with your arms.

Torrez tips his head back to look up at the sky, his face pelted with cold rain that streaks back his dark hair. Just a quick rest for breath, a moment to regather strength and then he's bowed forward again, again filling another empty bucket before the wind can tear it away.

Phy curses audibly again as the skies unleash more water upon the wet cavern, still dragging the heavy bucket. She pauses briefly at Ellery's vociferation, and stares blindly in the fisher's direction. "Can't you push yourself out?" she calls back, scathingly, then stops dead in her tracks as another flicker of lightning illuminates one of Omfaleth's eggs. "What in Faranth's name ... that thing is /huge/!" Espying others dumping sand around the eggs, she quickly squats and deposits the contents of her full bucket about one of the ovoids.

Jara coughs, and sneezes."I bet I'm covered with sand.." No doubt a bath would be well deserved. She filled the bucket up once more.

Xianbar nods to herself more than Jara, given that she can't see her anyway. She grabs the bucket and finishes filling the bag, starting on another. She hands the now empty buckets bag and heaves the bag on her shoulders, going to where she thought she heard Claia giving orders. Approaching to woman, she yells into the wind, "Where do you want this?"

Danica was born and raised in an arid, desert area. This tropical storm is the first she has ever been through. "Lets come to Ista he says" she mutters under her breath as she fills a bag with the sand from her bucket, tying it off swiftly. "Lets go have drinks and sit on the beach!" She gets her first look at the eggs and suddenly she is full of energy as she adds her bag of sand to the growing pile. Ellery's cry of 'I'm stuck' is carried on the wind towards her and she looks towards the other girl. Squelching through the hot mud she approaches the other girl carefully, offering out her hand "I'll pull you out!" she tries to yell over the wind and rain.

Lela grabs her sister by the arms and bodily pulls as hard as she can, pulling Ellery out of the muck managing to land her on top of Lela, with an oof, but, Lela repeats the message of the Filly, and then adds, after see whats about her, "Packtails!, tell me what to do!"

There is no notice, no indication that it is about to happen, just a sibilant hiss as the sand that has been growing ever wetter gives way. One egg slumps as the sand beneath it suddenly disappears in a rivulet running towards Frelliss, Lorany and Claia. The egg, still oh so soft, still manages to slide a bit as it is carried by sliding sand. Reye must have eyes in the back of her head; or she's using Omfaleth's own as well. "Someone help me with this egg!" - "And careful, it's soft!" Omfaleth would, one can be sure- but she's rather focused on the next egg to arrive.

Nadia starts to fill the empty bag with sand and sighs but it's lost in the wind, "It's freezing." the woman says and attempts to keep her coat shut again.

Jara drops the bucket and runs to help the Weyrwoman. She pauses to stare at the egg, unsure on how to help.

Griere sputters under the extra onslaught Reye tosses her way. With a scowl she wipes the water from her face. "Well, the rain wasn't falling up my nose," she grumbles, lookin like she might sneeze. Omfaleth's protests garner a worried look and she steps forward to help with the endangered egg.

Xaine turns quickly at the sound of Reye's yell then quickly rushes, rather heedless of the angry queen, to help her with the egg. She stumbles up the sand a bit, but is careful and calls. "Weyrwoman, call again! "

Phy isn't too far away from Reye, and hears the Weyrwoman's call. Green-gray gaze narrows, trying desperately to peer through the rain. "What do you /do/ with the egg?" she yells back, in Reye's direction, stumbling toward the slipping egg with more colorful interjections flying from her mouth. It never for a second dawns on her that it's a /dragon/ egg. It's one of those things she despises.

Lorany is probably going to be the lucky owner of sand in unmentionable places after this. At present however she's trying to avoid being swamped in a river of running sand-water... crud. "Ack!" Squeeeeak!

If Claia's nearby, Lor might just crash into the AWLM in her hasty retreat to the side. Look out!"I want you to spread yourselves around the cavern, and be *careful* where you step." Claia authoratatively commands the drudges who have brought back the asked for baskets of glows. "If an egg is seen or found, stand by it with the glows to make sure we can..." she cuts off her orders quickly as she spots an egg rolling in her direction. The greenrider grabs a basket of glows and moves to the egg. "Over here, sand...I need sand!"

Frelliss just wants to scream into the darkness his frustration. The sand is blowing off his egg! He turns as he barely hears Reye, abandoning his egg for hers. He takes his bucket, throws it down. "What can I do?" He yells.

Lyss tries to right her bucket and keep herself from being blown over, scooping a bit more sand back into it, and perhaps some off of herself too. "Er, yes, that was me," she calls, raising her voice so that Lorany can hear her above the wind and noise. Her head swivels at the sound of Reye's voice. "Oh, the egg!" as it starts being transported in her direction. At Claia's command she starts lugging the bucket over there.

Ellery's able, between a hand grasping Danica's and an arm on Lela, to pull her leg out. Because yes, she somehow managed to submerge herself up to her thigh in sand. Well, it's more like mud at this point. "Thanks!" She calls to the two, then starts towards the sound of Claia's voice, gesturing towards the greenrider. "She know's what she's doing, let's go that way." Hopefully she's close enough that her words aren't drowned out.

"Over here," Reye calls, shoulder set against the egg that'd slipped its way into the hail. Omfaleth, busy with clutching the next, still peers worriedly toward her. "Careful, please. No fingers- flats of your hand, the egg is still soft and fragile." - "Just a few people- watch your step, -don't- trip, alright? If we roll it gently-"

Torrez squints towards the sudden cries that rise up around the endangered egg. He's about to lumber forward but stops, "Too many people--don't every crowd in! We still have sand bags to fill!"

Xianbar drops the bag and runs towards Reye to offer her help, looking for instruction on how to help with the fragile egg.

Jara nods and gently pushes on the egg with the flat of her hands. She wasn't that strong, so she didn't know if she would do much good.

Nadia just continues filling her bag as Torrez and Reye both say not to many people.

A turn, a turn again; Omfaleth seems agitated now, more so than before; and her wide, gossamer wings open wide and furl again, only to repeat itself with another turn in place. Finally she gives forth a creel of pain, comforted by her lifemate's quick hand upon her muzzle as a brightly-toned egg slips to the hot sand.

Danica nods briskly as she helps lift the now unstuck Ellery to safty. Seeing the girl is on her feet she calls a hasty "You're welcome" and runs back through the mud towards teh eggs at Reye's call. Shovel in hand she steps close to where Omfaleth is hissing, giving the queen an apprehensive look as she digs a good sized depression for the egg to be moved to if it can be. Or maybe for a new egg to be rolled into. Either way the drier sand is easier to handle if she isn't trampled by the egg heavy dragon.

Xaine tilts her head at the call, then slowly heads in Reye's direction and holds out her hands. She oafs softly when her hands touch the egg then gasps. "It's so soft! " she calls. Strangely, there's no a single sound of her stutter again. With directions, she helps gently roll the egg.

Frelliss wipes his face once more before he attempts to roll it. "Should we dig it out as well? It's not moving!" He angerly yells.

Well, Lorany missed going ker-blam into Claia at least, fortunately for Claia more than Lor as the one is highly clumsy and the other seems to know what in shards she's about. Still, Lor's sticking to filling bags with sloppy, sticking Istan sand... less chance of squishing something that way.

Lela runs about to each person in the semi darkness til she actually lays hands on the weyrwoman herself, she yells in the wind,"M'am would nets or small sails keep the eggs in place?"Xianbar hears Reye's orders and realizes that her hands are probably not needed. Finding the bag that she dropped, she heaves it closer to where Claia ordered, then moves back to where Jara has filled two more buckets. She returns to filling bags with sand, returning the buckets to where she believes Jara is.

Phy is pushed back, somewhat, as more people crowd in to help, and the laundress propels herself away from the egg on the slippery bank of sand, moving instead toward another puddle of water. An empty bucket is snatched from somewhere nearby, and more sand is hastily shoved into the bucket, delicate fingers clawing through the brittle grains. "Shard the rain!" the girl spits out again, cursing as more water falls into her eyes. The semi-full bucket is dragged toward something large nearby -- hopefully it's an egg, and not, say, Omfaleth's foot or some other such non-egg thing.

"I think if we pile sand around them once they're in a safe place," Reye answers back in Lela's direction, her voice an easily audible shout long borne of captaining sailing vessels and leading dragon's wings into Threadfall. "Sails might just gather the water, you know? Here- let's try to get them under this overhang." She nods in Frell's direction: digging it out would help.

Chezroth emerges from the tunnel leading to the Weyrwoman's Weyr. Chezroth has arrived.

S'dar emerges from the tunnel leading to the Weyrwoman's Weyr. S'dar has arrived.

Jara pulls away from the egg and walks back to where Xianbar is,"Sorry, I was helping move an egg." She starts filling the bucket faster than a dragon could spit flame.

Frelliss stops trying to roll the egg, and, grabbing his bucket again, he goes to the other side of it and begins to dig.

"That rain can't last forever!" Torrez calls into the din and dumps another buckload of sand into the sack. And then another before passing the sack in to the next person in line to tie it shut better than he ever could. Pausing he squints into the darkness, following the wild bobbing of glow baskets around the edge of dry sand and wet muck

Reye has her shoulder to a soft egg; and as those around it begin to roll it gently up the sands the form inside actually -moves- -- and eerie feeling indeed. "Careful," Reye cautions, breath catching; and she pauses a moment before rolling the egg toward that dry corner. Behind her, Omfaleth hovers, nosing the newest egg toward the rest, wings half-spread to offer some protection against the wind; but oh, will her shoulders be sore tomorrow. Not really a concern at this point.

Claia holds her glow basket higher, illuminating the area around the egg as other folks work to help it. "You," she calls out to a nearby drudge, "take this basket and stay here so Frelliss can see what he's doing." Once the switch is made, the greenrider moves off to fill more bags of sand.

Omfaleth takes a shuddering breath, and another; and garnering her strength, she heaves herself up again to find a semi-sheltered piece of hot sand. Yes, this will do- right here. And almost easily compared to some others, an irridescent egg makes its home on black Istan sands.

Danica has a good sense of self preservation and is already under the overhang digging depressions for eggs to be depsosited. Though she isn't one for manual labor and tries to get out of it as much as possible she is digging with determination. A wary eye is kept on the nearby gold since the last time Danica was close to Tasieth the dragon had taken exception to her presense. Finishing one depression she figures is big enough for an egg she moves a few feet away and begins to repeat the process "Shards!" she cries out in pain and shakes a finger. "I broke a nail!"

Chezroth lurks by his first priority, Omfaleth - though he does what he can to help the others with buckets of water and nudging sludgy sand that is sluicing toward the eggs out of the way.

Xianbar nods to Jara, "No worries, gave me time to catch up," she yells, taking the next bucket from Jara. She grabs another of the sand bags, dragging it over to where others seem to be piling them near Reye so that they can be positioned around the egg. After adding her three bags to the pile, she returns to take yet another bucket from Jara.

Jara rolls her eyes at the woman who broke a nail,"You idiot! Breaking a nail is better than breaking your skull!" She bellowed.

There is an ominous boom and the sand beneath the feet of those not in the stands vibrates. The boom becomes a cracking rumble that shakes loose a grouping of craggy rocks on one side of the cavern. A crack, a rumble, and they go ricocheting down the wall and tumbling dangerously into the crowd. A voice cries through the darkness, "Look out!"

Frelliss looks up in thanks to the drudge Claia has supplied, before moving to the side a bit so the others can roll the egg. Continuing his digging of a path for the egg, he pauses only to wipe the sand and water off his face.

Ellery's dogged attempts to get her skirt to cooperate, now that it's carrying more black sand and water than could be thought physically possible, fail miserably. She mumbles, "Oh, shells. Just this once," though it's probably lost and unheard amidst the rest of the turmoil. And then, in a move that would shock almost any that know her, should she happen to be seen in the darkness, she carefully knots that skirt up above knee level. Thankfully, it's probably also too dark to see her reddening face. That done, she makes her way towards the Xianbar-Jara pair. "I lost my bucket! Anything I can do to help?" Luckily she's as far from the tumbling rocks as one can get.

Uh-oh! Eek! Cue Lorany ducking out of the way of the attentive Chezroth, sand bag precariously balanced as she avoids--or tries to--becoming just another sand-sluiced statistic. Splat? No splats this time, thankfully as the sandbag in question makes it to the pile surprisingly in one piece. And so does Lor. Unfortunately for her she's now gotten sufficiently turned around to get herself lost. "Argh! Lyss," she shouts, as loudly as the weyr's resident squeakbox can, "say something! I'm sharding confused in here!"

Lela doesnt bother acknowledgeing, she starts looking for the closest egg, which is near impossible, then finally nearly runs into one literaly, only Ginger who barks and nips at her stops her. Her hand goes out to feel what it is. "Oh Shells, Little one, lets get you up and covered." She takes her bare hands and starts throwing sand into a pile to get the egg rolled onto. "Dig Ginger, dig!" the pup starts and then her two flits begin making a pile, only the loud boom of rock sends Ginger under her feet but she keeps working.

Jara looks up,"You can help me fill the bucket." She motions to the quarter full bucket. Her work was interuppted with the rocks. She bite her lip, hopinh no one was hurt.

S'dar sinks into a particularly wet patch of mungy sand as he practically wades to a spot where some empty buckets are floating on a muddy puddle of water. He grabs some moist sandbags and heaves them toward the skirt being formed around the eggs, nodding toward his mount that he should help, what with the added strength he has over his rider and his friend. Chezroth dutifully starts to pick up sandbags and drop them plopping around the burgeoning cluster of colorful eggs.

"I broke a nail!" Phy cries, in an excellent mimcry of Danica. Her sneering tone, however, implies that she may be making fun of the girl, regardless of the fact that it's something she herself would have said. Irritably, the heavy bucket is at last hefted, and then the contents, the wet, clammy sand, is dumped down with a grunt onto the large, shadowy object in front of her. "Another horrible egg kept safe, " she says derisively, then throws the bucket back down onto the sands with a thump. Break time!

Lyss dumps the bucket of sand in what is hopefully a helpful position, though with all the chaos around it's a bit difficult to tell. She jumps a bit at the particularly loud boom, and as rocks come tumbling down onto the sand she veers to the side skittishly, now empty bucket clanging against her legs. "Shards," she murmurs, trying to discern whether anyone was hurt. "Over here, Lorany!" Lyss calls, from what is probably not too far away, if Lorany can sense the direction of her voice. "Careful!"

Reye looks up to find Chezroth standing a breath away from her where he hovers near Omfaleth -- that one casting the former alternating grateful and derisive looks -- and the Weyrwoman feels her way around the great bronze with murmured apologies. "S'dar? Are you here too?" One foot comes up against a sandbag, and she hefts it to her shoulder, setting it down carefully beside an egg.

Xianbar smiles over to Ellery, "At least we're on land when this is happening," she yells, handing over a bucket. She takes yet another full bucket from Jara and continues her pattern of filling bags and carrying them over to the pile. It would almost appear that she is enjoying the weather, but then she turns a worried look in Reye's direction and continues on.

Jara she kept working, ignoreing the ache in her arms, sholders and back. The one way she'd stop is if she was told to, or if she droped over from exhaustion.

Good thing Frell's arms are strong from his days of hauling in big nets of fish. He motions to the drudge to move the glowbasket over slightly. If only he could see the dry spot, but in this storm, he can only see what's directly inthe light of the glows.

Torrez jerks his head towards the sound of the rocks falling. The heavy thumps of rock against the soggy splash of mud make him recoil from the spot, pulling Nadia with him. Best to stay out of the range of danger. He lugs two sandbags with him, trudging through the mud and closer to Xianbar--is that Xianbar?

Griere steps back from the eggs as others are eager to help. Instead, she turns her focus to the sands as a whole, eyeing the growing puddles and the paths of the little rivers. "I wonder if some greens wouldn't be able to dig faster..." she murmurs to herself. She sheild's a skyward glance from the rain and her eyes go wide at the sight of the falling rocks and she narrowly avoids being hit.

Lorany can indeed, somehow, sense the direction of Lyss's voice. "Whew! Thank the--oh shards! That was no clutch!" So squealed as rocks hit the sands, "Oh no... that's just not good, that's less than good that's... that's *icky*! Eek! Well at least I found--oof!" Literally found, "you. Where'd I put the rest of my sand--Phy? What are you doing?" all innocence is this seamstress. Break time? What's *that*? You paged Phy with 'Permission for Om to growl closely at Phy?'.

Omfaleth shakes a foot: That was no egg Phy dumped sand on! And the agitated, egg-heavy queen lets out a loud, low growl in Phy's direction, muzzle coming within a handsbreadth of her face. But- lucky for Phy, another distraction takes her: clutching.

Jara gets the bucket full and bellows,"Full bucket!"

Almost studiously Omfaleth studies the placement of those eggs -- which are acceptable, which are -not- -- and she directs negative huffs and dismissive snorts at the latter. Need translation? Just look at Chezroth. But then a low groan comes in place of a huff, and a ripple across her midsection distracts her; and when this egg is laid, Omfaleth turns to study it for a long moment.

S'dar calls over to Reye through the noise of the storm, "I'm over he...!" but the rest of his call is drowned out after he trips over a lilting bucket and falls with a *SPLUT!* into a muddy patch of sand. The rest of his exclamation sounds more like a bubbling "blurble, blurble, blurble."

Xaine comments even as she helps push the egg gently away from the edge of the mound then shakes her head. "Oh.. shards. " she murmurs to herself then, once the egg is in place, she goes back to help the others start getting some sandbags filled as well as attempt to push more sand up onto the mound with Omfaleth. She works nearly tiredlessly as she digs into the sand, making the moat of sorts.

Danica jumps at the sharp boom and turns towards the sound of rumbling and rushes from the relative safety of the overhang to help move the eggs. The mocking tones of Phy and Jara have her glaring around and the looks she bestows on the girls promises retribution when she has time. Putting her shovel to use and ignoring the twinging of her shoulder muscles she tries to dig a path to roll the eggs towards the overhang.

Xianbar stands for a moment as she waits for the next bucket, placing her hnads on the small of her back and stretching. Next to her she sees Torrez appear in the dim light, "Want to help me with the bags?" she yells at him into the wind.

Jara the only break she takes is to catch her breath,"I wonder how big her clutch will be.."

Ellery's chuckle for Xianbar's comment is short-lived, for she's back to bucketing sand for the sandbags in a moment, and that takes one's full energy and attention. Free seconds, when the sand is pouring into a bag, are spent eyeing the encroaching rivulets warily. "I feel like we're losing to the storm..." Her worry is voiced in Xianbar's direction.

Lela atlast gets a good place to roll the egg up on, she pushes the small egg like Reye said to, and gets it on the island she made. She pushes more sand over the egg once its on its island she gives the egg a small pat, and a small whisper, probably not heard by any, "Stay strong little one." She grabs Ginger, letting her guide her to the next egg or person.

A bellow from the Senior Queen sets all eyes toward her for a moment, and Omfaleth lets out a following snort that embodies the simple -dismay- at having to clutch in such conditions. Scandelous! The sun-streaked Queen lashes her tail once more, setting about the business of why she's here; with even a sidelong look to Chezroth. Weren't you supposed to make sure the Grounds were optimal? Snort.

Fanciful Families Egg

A complete contrast of colour and design this egg seem like it is split in half down the centre but with a melding of colours in the middle that spill over to each other's side. The larger half of the egg is primary a soft pastel yellow but gold and peridot green mix into the lot but still somehow remain looking like a nice mix of soft curves and complex patterns. On the other side, a deep forest green mixes with the pastel yellow and then mixes with a not as pretty mixture of bright orange and black thrown in. Unlike the other delicate designs this side is sharp and choppy like it is only half done. However the two halves make a wholly interesting egg.

Torrez grunts the answer to Xianbar but the forcing of one of the bags into her hand is an obvious answer. He lifts the other onto his shoulder and heads to put it down where it can benifit the eggs.

"I'm taking a break!" Phy calls back in Lorany's direction. "I'm tired, I've done my share of -- /ahhhhhhhhhhhhh/!" The girl leaps backward as something large looms dangerously near her face. "What the /shar/ --- /eeeeek/!" Omfaleth's muzzle coming near, and then the loud, agitated growl startle the brat so much that she continues stumbling backward, and abruptly loses her balance. It's with a loud *ploop* that the girl falls, back first, into a large puddle, thoroughly drenching her to the bone, if she weren't so already.

Xianbar grabs another bucket from Ellery, continuing to fill bags, althought the stack around her is growing high as she loses her chance to carry the bags away. Ellery and Jara are moving very quickly now and empty buckets are critical for the line to keep going, "We'll win it because we have to, Ellery," she shouts back, adding awink that is probably lost in the darkness of the storm.

Nadia follows after Torrez a little los like a baby canine, "What was that?" She asks and wips her head aroiund shivering some.

S'dar pushes his way out of the sandpatch, totally drenched, but he doesn't let his stumble get in the way of his helping out - he immediately sets to work moving sloshing buckets out of the way of the circle of sandbags. Chezroth, on the other hand, gives Omfaleth a pained and guilty look, as though he wished he could have somehow prevented this storm from getting in the way of her beautiful Clutch. He goes to nose her lovingly, then thinks better of it and lets her have her space instead, turning toward the lumpy sandbags to start building another segment of wall against the rivulets of water sneaking their way toward his Queen's Clutch.

Lyss reaches out a hand to touch Lorany's arm, maybe to steady her, maybe to see if that's actually here standing there. "Probably you lost it among the rest of the sand here. But help me fill this bucket. Look!" She points to the little islands of sand being made around the eggs. "For those, if we could just--oof..." Lyss staggers under slightly, tripping over the hem of her heavy skirt and nearly falling flat onto the sands again. "-Not- helpful," she mutters under her breath, slicking water away from her face with sandy hands and heapign sand in as quickly as possible.

Danica laughs meanly as she catches sight of the girl who was making fun of her falling into a large puddle. Deciding that what they all need is more sandbags she sloshes through the mud (kicking up more then enough as she passes Phy) and begins hauling sandbags to pile around the safe eggs to keep them dry.

A worried chuff at one of the eggs, a rolling of another beside the first, and Omfaleth busies herself with sheltering, arranging, and re-arranging eggs that have already been moved. Can one really blame her? She hesitates then, pausing as though listening for something; but no, it's time. Another.

Lorany is the nearer to Phy as a result of all the confusion, and is resultantly sprayed in sandy water. "Aiee! Shards, so much for breaks, neh?" Lor actually has a sense of humor? In a rare act of defiance, she leaves Phy to struggle up out of the sandy sludge on her own because lo, and wow! She has a sense of direction again and sloshes over to her rediscovered sandbags, hefting the second and squooshing out a return path. Then the blurble, blurble, blurbling of someone male and authoritative sounds and Lor blinks. "Was that... Weyrleader S'dar?" Incredulous, this kidlet.

Jara simply continues to fill the bucket until she has to stop because the pain in her shoulders is getting to much,"I gotta stop for a moment."

Reye thought she heard the Weyrleader; but maybe not. Reye pauses, head canted as though attuned to that familiar voice- but when it stopped as soon as it started she seemingly got distracted by other things- like the hail hitting her on the cheek. "Ow! Storm's blessing!" Sand is picked up by windfunnels and cast about, eliciting another angry bellow from the huge queen dragon dominating the sands.Lela feels her way, getting stuck a few times in the sand, then finding a lost bucket she grabs it and keeps it with her, She finally yells, "Hey I have a bucket,anyone need help?"

Once again the thunder sounds as though the clouds are right above the heads of those gathered. An echoing, earthshaking racket that nearly deafens even as it knocks loose a few more rocks. Luckily these are all closer to the size of pebbles. There is little time to feel relief though, as several feel the hair on their neck stand on end. Not even time to draw breath, and there is a brilliant flash as lightning arcs of the eastern wall and strikes!

Torrez finds that Xianbar didn't pick up the sack that he'd offered and cures softly. Dragging it with him he puts both down and then retreats back the way he'd come, pushed and prodded by other people working to get the sandbags into place. Hands fly up before his face to block the bite of sand prickling him.

Xianbar looks worried in Jara's direction, thinking for a minute, "Do you mind if you stop for a few minutes while I catch up? she shouts to Jara, starting to move the sandbags that she has filled over to teh pile near the eggs.

"Oh, for all twelve weyrs and--shardit!" Lightning strikes, storms break, and Lor slips in her return path and hits her rump again, splat, bum first in the sand. "L-l-lightning just... hit in here. In *here*?" As if it couldn't strike wherever it felt like. Good thing she was on the ground.

S'dar looks up at Chezroth's nudge, and then looks over to one wall of sandbags with alarm. He points to a few of those helping out - "we're going to need to move that wall in a bit - we'll build a second wall behind it before we take that one down. There's a veritable lake building up right there! Hurry - ack!" he says as he gets pelted on the nogging with a hailstorm. "Come, let's do it - " and he starts to move sandbags to form an inner wall with some of those working diligently nearby.

Ellery's by now almost automatic filling of buckets is momentarily interrupted when someone further up the line slips, perhaps due to the proximity of the nearest lightning bolt, giving her a faceful of sand. "Ugh!" Unfortunately for whoever's behind her, it causes something of a chain reaction. The bucket, which was almost full and in mid swing, slips, sending a full heaping of sand over her shoulder. She cringes upon realizing what happened. "Um, sorry?" Hopefully that's loud enough to be heard.

Nadia eeps amd jummps at the sound of the lighting or thunder to be more specific. She still shivvers as she drags a bag over to the rest that are full and grabs an empty one to start again.

Lela screams and dives , Ginger under her.

Xianbar switches directions, taking her next three bags over to S'dar as Ellery stacks buckets up. Returning to her task, she begins emptying buckets into bags again, starting the process all over.

A glance upward, a suddenly frightened bugle from Omfaleth, and the flame-bright queen extends wings and neck over the growing clutch as though to protect them from the falling pebbles and storm.

A seeming pause in the storm just allows one to take a breath; and Omfaleth does just that, just in time to have the wind toss a spattering of sand in her face. Oh, the indignity. The long-limbed queen coughs once, shaking her head free of the grit before turning away with a long pause; and as her tail sweeps in the other direction it seems another egg has joined its siblings.

Xianbar reaches for a bucket just in time to get a full face of sand. Sputtering, she drops back against a sandbag for a moment with a bearly audible oof! She stands agian, scraping the sand off her nose with a laugh and starts the work again, "Want to hit the bucket next time, Ellery?" she asks.

Jara stares in the direction of the Queen. Dispite the fact that the Queen hated everyone for being on the sands, she wa simpathetic.

Lela comes up from the sand doing the only thing a scard kid can do, "Ellie!!!!!!"

Xaine screams briefly at the sudden lightning strike nearby. She tosses her hands up briefly before looking up then quickly moves, even faster than before, to push the sand closer to Omfaleth and her eggs.

Phy shrieks, upon finding herself in a puddle, and the girl struggles to propel herself back onto her feet, glaring in Lorany's general direction at the seamstress's words. "You just keep your /sharding/ mouth shut!" she yells, cursing as pieces of hail abruptly begin their vicious attack on her skin. The lightning that strikes very close by silences the laundress, and it's with a scared little whimper -- yes, a /whimper/ -- that she stumbles out of the puddle, back onto the wet, clinging sand -- and abruptly gets hit in the face by the onslaught of sticky, ebony sand. "Shardit!" But her expletives are now lost to the wind as she struggles to reach another empty bucket, and begins to fill it, vindictively, with sand.

Jara bends down and starts filling the bucket up. "Frankly, I'm starting to hope were almost done.."

Danica cowers and covers her ears and head as the lightening strikes nearby. Since she is standing right near S'dar she hears his orders and nods, surprised to see the weyrleader but then wondering at her surprise since it is Omfaleth that is clutching. Biting her lip against cries of pain as a few small hailstones bounce off her head she begins working on the sandbag wall with others. Feeling a trickle of warmth sliding down her cheek instead of the cooler rain Danica raises a hand to her cheek then looks at her fingers. The ruddy color of the water tells her that one of those hailstones might have hit a little harder then she thought. The sight of more water coming towards the wall has her working feverishly stacking sandbags, cursing herself whenever one slips ore isn't placed perfectly the first time.

It is a long while before the next; and even in the breadth of the storm Omfaleth sits to rest a moment or five, body situated in a half-moon about her eggs, wings half unfurled and battered by the harsh winds. Her tail just touches the tip of one egg, eyes half-lidded for a time; but then she stands again, belly rippling as a hiss escapes her throat.

Lorany has no intention of keepingher sharding mouth shut, thankyouverymuch. *clunk* *thud* "Look out Phy!" One's reaching for a bucket, the other's lugging a sandbag, Lor might skirt the laundress but then again that'd be nothing short of a miracle. "Ouch! Eek, hey what the... that's no clutch either," is squeaked, oblivious is she to any curses flung her way as hail begins its onsalught. "Ack! Ow! OK, who canceled the cleaning service?"

Lyss starts lugging a filled bucket towards one of the eggs, dumping the sand and shoring it up against the egg. She gives a start and an involuntary shiver as the lightning cracks into the cavern, shrinking slightly and wincing as a few stray pebbles batter the area around her with surprising force, followed by a bit of hail. "Shard... it," she mutters with unusual strength of language, rubbing her forehead with one hand as she goes to drag in more sand. "There's got to be a quicker way."

Jara for once..She cursed,"Shards!" She snapped as she got clonked in the head by a piece of hail.She glared at the sky angrily while rubbing the side of her head.

Torrez has fallen to work silently, working as fast as he can to fill the sacks once more. He squints against the sand flung up by the wind, ignoring the rain of smaller rocks that come down. Water begins to build in the center of the cavern below the arial entrance, slowly but surely becoming a puddle. The edges grow, spread, turning the puddle of syrupy mud into one of murky water. Inch by stubborn inch it makes its way toward the newly clutched eggs, hungry tentacles reaching. The nearest egg shifts as the water overtakes the sand beneath it. Shifts, slides, tips and then... bobs as the water takes over the bottom half.

The next egg comes quickly after its larger counterpart; and Omfaleth barely has time to check on the first before she turns about once more, scooping dry sand from the edge of the grounds to create a soothing blanket for her young. Soon a smaller, dark egg slips into the world, barely distinguishable upon the dark sand.

Chezroth sees Omfaleth's strength flagging and goes to stand by her, perhaps encouraging her as much he can. There is great admiration in the bronze's eyes as he watches Omfaleth work even in such disastrous conditions. He continues to watch over the scene with gleaming eyes, very alert and ready for whatever might occur next so that he might quickly find ways to handle new and unexpected situations.

Lyss hurries back toward the entrance of the sands, looking for a shovel or more sacks or something along those lines to make the work quicker. And maybe shears to destroy her skirt so she can move more easily in all the wet, looking over her shoulder anxiously at the encroaching water.

Jara stands up,"What doya think we should do now?"

Xianbar recovers from her fall and brush with sand, grabbing another sandbag and taking it over to S'dar. She throws it down with a grunt, shoving it off her shoulders with more effort than the ones before. She cracks her neck a few times and returns to Jara and Ellery.

As Griere moves along the crowd of hurried workers she spots an older man wobbling slightly with his hand on his bald head. He's looking pretty dazed and when he sees Griere he offers her a limp wave, revealing a gash on his head where one of the loosened rocks must have caught him. She immediately takes him by the arm and begins steering him through the people and puddles. "Where are we going Sulli," the man asks, mistaking Griere for granddaughter. "You're going to the infirmary."

Wuh oh. Will the eggs be safe where they are? "Let's move them a little further back," Reye calls over the sound of the wind, setting her hands on the soft, still-wet shell of the closest egg. "Someone give me a hand?"

"Did something just start... floating?" The sandbag in Lorany's arms deposited, her glance was directed toward what *might* have been the growing clutch--though who can tell--so the encroaching swamp wasn't entirely missed. "I think one's gone floating!" Whether her warning's heard, believed or heeded is anyone's guess. Then again she could just be seeing things.

Better late than never. Ellery's head raises from her bucket filling as she hears filtering through the cavern the sound of her younger sister's voice. "Lela? Where are you? I'm here, it's alright." She hefts her bucket with her towards the younger girl, having produced her share of sandbags over the last several minutes. "Are you alright?"Danica screams and points to the egg that is overtaken by the water, rushing through the water she lunges after the egg, placing her hands on the soft shell "Someone help!" she cries as she begins to try to push the egg back up onto drier ground.

"What the -- how about /you/ look out!" Phy bellows back to Lorany, pushing sand into the bucket faster, now, ducking her head slightly as chunks of hail continue to shoot from the sky. There's still a plethora of black grains clinging to rain-streaked face, but apparently the girl either hasn't noticed yet, or doesn't care since she's busy lugging the half-full bucket toward another egg to the side; coincidentally, the egg that has begun to slip. Bucket flying from firm fingers, the teen reluctantly struggles toward Reye, then, after a dubious look at the egg, rests her palms flat on the soft, flaccid shell. An audible, "Yuck!" is expressed with fervor.

Lela focuses on her sister's voices and soon a wet and scared Lela along with two scared flits and one wet scared pup and all over Ellery, hugging her like she is a lifesaver.

Lorany squishes, she splishes, but somehow she's in Phy's wake. "I can't look out, you look out!" this is as caustic as the mild-mannered seamstress gets, but it'll have to do as she too joins the crusade to save the bobbling egg. flats of hands only and here goes. And no yuck comes from her. No way.

Jara fills a bucket and drags it over to the people near the clutch. She catches her foot in a puddle and falls down. She blinks and lays there a moment before slowly getting back up.

"Don't 'yuck', just push!" Reye tells Phy with an audible grunt, carefully moving the warm, softened egg as as carefully as though it were one of her own young. "Keep it out of the water- we don't want these eggs cooling." Hardly a problem, seemingly- the sands are -still- hot despite all the rain.

A long pause is marked only by the cries of helpers and the whistle of wind and crash of the storm above. And through it Omfaleth has been tending her eggs, finding new spots for others, and cultivating a warm patch of sand near the more sheltered end of the Grounds. Now a light creel sounds from her throat, eyes whirling more quickly; and the turn of her body obscures the next egg, only to be somewhat confused with the flutter of her wings and the flash of her tail.

S'dar nods appreciatively to Xianbar as she deposits some sandbags at the wall, but she's already headed back toward where she is working with Ellery and Jara. Now he heads over to Reye and the others to start nudging eggs away from the storm toward what shelter they can find. He bits his lip as he touches the eggs, clearly not used to doing so this early in the Cycle, but what must be done must be done.Even

Chezroth gets in on moving the eggs, though he shoots Omfaleth wary glances every time his nose carefully nears the moist shells of the endangered treasures.

Phy curses again, but does as the Weyrwoman instructs, pushing against the egg with all of her might, and given how soft her muscles are, her might is enough to help gently roll the egg. "Why not?" the girl pants, curiously, despite her obvious disgust at having to lay hands on the flaccid shell. "Ewwww! Oh, /gross/! Something under it /moved/!" The teen visibly shudders, and momentarily lifts a hand from the tender egg.

Ellery gently pats the top of her younger sister's head, one arm wrapped around her in a hug, as she murmurs, "Don't worry, Lela. It's alright. You're doing wonderfully." In an attempt to get Lela's mind off the storm, she gestures to a nearby egg that's in danger from a nearby stream. "Here, you can move this one to higher ground - it isn't too big for you, is it?"

Xianbar looks towards Jara as she moves away. Shrugging, she grab a shovel herself and starts filling a bag, leaving out the bucket step. She looks towards the eggs and the crowd gathering around them, chosing to keep her distance and keep filling sandbags.

Jara looked around uncertain on what to do. She stared at the eggs for a moment. Hoping that none others would slip. That's when she spyed one slipping. She scrambled over to it and gently pushed on it, grinning when she felt the dragonet inside move. "Wow! It moved! That's so /cool/!!" Unlike others, she wasn't easily gorssed out.

Chezroth's eyeridges perk up as the glistening golden egg is placed onto the sand, and his nose wends its way toward that egg, his head bobbing this way and that to make sure that Omfaleth has placed it on high ground. He is giving the golden dragon many admiring glances now, and his own eyes seem to whirl with pride as he takes in the light that reflects from the egg dazzlingly even in these stormy conditions.

"Sure something under it moved," is Lorany's answer, probably in Phy's ear as she and all her limited strength had a hand or two, literally, in gently rolling that egg. "It's a *dragon* egg." Then, stunned expression half obscured by the encrusted bits of black sand particles, "It's a dragon egg with something... moving in it. Wow. Just... wowie. Oh my, oh my goodness I don't believe this."

Danica finds herself pushing the egg and shoulder to shoulder with Phy. Rolling her eyes at the other girls 'Yuck' she pants and puts her shoulder against the flaccid shell, pushing as hard as she dared. Feeling movement under her hands and shoulder the young womans eyes open wider and glow with wonder. "It's not gross, it's wonderful" she murmurs as she renews the pushing, more determined then ever that this egg doesn't stop its movement.

"I don't know," Reye begins as she straightens from that egg, pushing sand around the base of it, "- of anyone else who has been able to touch eggs freshly clutched. Usually she doesn't even let -me- touch them. So- count yourself blessed." Her disdain for Phy's attitude is clearly visible; or perhaps it's the strain of working while simultaneously calming her obviously agitated lifemate. "Maybe there are some sandbags over there you can fill."

Jara glares at the girl who 'yucked'. "If you don't like touching the eggs, maybe you shouldn't be here." She gave a slightly slipping egg a gently push to get it back on firmer gorund.

Another break? Yes, sounds lovely. And since Omfaleth is the one dictating the schedule, she sits beside her clutch, seemingly at peace with herself amongst weather and chaos. But no- illusion? It isn't long before she's up again, pacing back and forth, and with a turn pauses just at the edge of those eggs already making their home at the edge of the sands.

Lela turns looking at the egg, "I dont think so." She goes to the egg, and takes her hands carefully starts pushing the egg up onto a sandbar closer to the queen. Suddenly as her hand presses into the shell, something presses back. She stops a moment, and finds another place to push, starting to roll the egg, at last getting it to the top of the sandbar, then again before she lets up her hand she feels something press against her hand. She stands a moment in awe, the lightning and the weather about her totally forgotten in the dim light as she give the egg one last touch, and heads back to her sister, finding her bucket.

Jara move back to fill up buckets. She knew she was pushing herself, but she didn't care..

"It is too, gross!" Phy retorts acidly toward Danica, removing her other hand from the shell with a haughty sniff. "If you think it's so great, then /you/ move it!" Determinedly, the girl wrenches herself away from the egg, brow furrowing at Reye, even through the darkness. "I /don't/ count myself /blessed/, " she utters, spitting the words out as if they were a curse. "There's no /sharding/ reason to feel blessed, touching a disgusting /dragon's/ egg!" Another flare of anger provides the girl enough momentum to hurl herself toward an empty bucket, and she squats near it, moving sand into the hollow confines, keeping the digits of her hand curved. If anyone bothers to glance toward her, he or she might notice that the laundress has suddenly /stopped/ putting sand in the bucket.

People everywhere are touching the eggs, helping them get to higher ground. Even the Weyrwoman mentioned what an honor it was. But Ellery hesitates. For a few seconds she glances back and forth between the just-laid eggs and the forgotten buckets and empty sandbags. With a sigh and a few slogging steps, she's back to her old position. Fill the bucket, fill the bag. Fill the bucket, fill the bag. It's monotonous, but it needs to be done.

Xianbar continues filling sadnbags, looking over at Ellery, "Everything alright?" she yells over, seeing the woman pausing to help a younger sibling. Heaving a couple of sandbags onto her shoulders, she goes to move them over to S'dar's pile, only to find that the wet sand will keep her from carrying that much weight. Dropping one in disgust, she makes a couple of trips before returning to take a bucket from Jara.

Jara was slowing done. It felt like her arms were made of stone, but did she care? No. She kept filling the bucket. Bound and detirmened to make sure the eggs stayed unharmed.

"I don't know how this'll affect their development," Reye says to S'dar worriedly as she passes him, eyes peering through the gloom. "Omfaleth, your knee's all buried in the- oh." But the queen is moving around, shoving sand up against the lastest egg. "-Oh-." Phy's words are easily audible through the gloom; and Omfaleth swings her head around with the speed of the lightening that struck minutes before; and senior queen bellows deafeningly at the young girl. No translation needed, that time.

"Phy, grow up," carries from Lorany's general direction even as the egg she's helping roll shifts to higher ground. Did the little never a word out of line seamstress just tell Phy to grow up? *Really*? "There's a dragon in here, and it's... moving!" Someone can't seem to get over that fact. But over indeed is the momentary task as the shell in question is safely out of the worst of the puddle-sludge and Lor scoots to relative safety, out of queen squishing range for now and back to filling sandbags. "Oi, now what're you up to? I mean we've got to fill these things after all, if we want to keep the eggs from going... squishle." Squishle?

Jara grins at the bellowing Queen. "You tell her! SHe shouldn't complain about your beutiful eggs! She just doesn't appreciate them!" She yelled towards the Queen.

The eggs are coming more slowly now; and Omfaleth is seeming a little more tired. It is almost end of the Pass, so there can't be -that- much many more; but by Reye's expression it's anyone's guess. A light murmur from her and Omfaleth pauses in her frenetic pacing, long enough to give her rider the softest of croons. And then back to it again; though she does stop, more graceful now, more poised, strength gathered from somewhere... to reveal another egg joining the clutch.

Xianbar notices that Jara is not moving as quickly as she was. Thinking that the girl is tiring, she yells to her, "Why don't you take a berak, lass, and help them with the eggs. You too, Ellery, I can handle this for a few minutes and I really don't feel comfortable touching the eggs myself- they need help," she states in a low, projected voice.

Lela was just about to demonstate what Omfaleth just said so well to Phy, she instead goes past what she is sure is Phy, and pushes the egg gently up to safer sand, giving it a gentle touch once its up there.

S'dar doesn't seem to notice the dissent amidst the working, but he does hear Reye's comment. His response is a simple shrug - "it might, I suppose... but I agree that their chances are better in safe ground - what we're doing's got to be done." He walks beside the Weyrwoman and the others to push a single egg - not because it is particularly heavy, but because the more people that nudge it, the less chance that force will be applied unevenly to any spot upon the shell that might burst through or in some other way damage it. He sighs somewhat tiredly as the egg is moved, wiping his brow - which of course is drenched once more immediately after by a torrent that sweeps into the area.

Danica is sweaty, cold, sticky, sandly and soaking wet. Her feet are packed into slippers stuffed with sand that is wet and hot. These conditions paired with Danica's already charming attitude make for a irritible girl despite the comradie she was feeling towards everyone else in this join venture to save the eggs. "I AM pushing the egg" Danica snaps towards Phy as the egg makes it to higher ground and has sand packed around it. She doesn't miss Omfaleth's bellow over the coarse words about her egg and the young woman smirks. Packing sand about the egg she tries to push ragged blonde hair that has escaped it's braid as she works. It feels good not to be one the wrong side of a queens ire this time.

Jara nods and then stands,"You sure you'll be able to do it by yourself?"

Ellery replies to Xianbar over the continuing dull roar of the storm, "Yup! Lela's doing great!" She tosses a proud look over her shoulder at the younger girl, before returning to her task. "Glad we got the Filly out of here before this struck. Can you imagine?" No, this is no time for idle chatter, but talk doesn't interfere with the sandbag filling. She replies to the older woman's next injunction while straightening up. "Oh, I'm fine. Really." As though to prove it, she picks up the pace.

Torrez hisses softly at the exhcnage between Phy and the angry gold."I don't think anyone here was required to stay and help." He snaps--though it's certainly no needed and--with the howl of the wind. Likely not heard either. He fills another sand bag, looking towards the dry sand where people are working to get the eggs to safety.

Xianbar nods to Jara, tilting her head toward the nearest egg, "We've got this, go help with the eggs," she answers Jara.

Xaine winces as Phy gets yelled at by Omfaleth and sighs softly. She shakes her head, looking up at the sky before she walks over to Phy and sloshes through some muddy water just to get there. "Here, Phy. I'll help you. C'mon. We n..need to get this sand up there. "

Jara nods and walks over to the eggs. She looked up at the rather angery Queen,"I think that it's a fine clutch." She walked over to an egg and once more, started the task of pushing them to safety.there's another egg, there's encroaching puddle crud, and for what it's worth there's a Lorany in her limited ability trying to roll the new-laid treasure to less squelchy safety. Thankfully she's not the only one working on this, or it would be one slowly progressing task indeed. And if Phy's been yelled at by Omfaleth, it goes unnoticed. For now.

Phy's scathing tongue, has, for the moment, been quelled by Omfaleth's deafening bellow, for even as she pauses in filling another bucket, she stands, and kicks the bucket, sending it rolling off into the yawning expanse of dark sand. The brat trembles, shivering in the dark cavern, and merely stands there, fists clenched at her sides, storm-gray eyes pinned upon Omfaleth in an odd combination of fury and fear. The expression looks quite unnatural on the girl's face, and instead of beginning to help scoop sand into more bags and buckets, she merely stands there, a quivering pout twitching at her countenance.

Xaine's approach elicits a blink, and then a snort. "/You/ can get the sand up there if you want, Xaine, " she replies bitterly. "I don't want to help or be a party to this." Hrmph. A little persuasion - of the right sort - might get her to change her mind, however.

Well, maybe Lorany *noticed* the bellow, but she's not showing it.

Xianbar laughs at ellery's refence to the boat, "Can't even imagine what condition the Filly would be in or what kind of a mood your first mate would be sporting," she too picks up the pace, the conversation taking her mind off the bickering going on around them. "Good lass, that one," she states, shoving a thumb towards Ellery's sister before grabbing a sandbag to take over to join the others. She quickly returns for another.

Danica finishes pushing sand about the newly saved egg and once she has accomplished that to satisfaction she moves inward shoring up whatever eggs look like they need extra base support. Crawling on her hands and knees she finds herself at the base of a large egg almost the same shade of Omfaleth. Having never before gotten a chance to touch eggs she extends one finger in an act of great daring towards the shell of the gold egg. Glancing over her shoulder to make sure nobody is watching she runs her finger along the shell and smiles with delight.

Xaine tilts her head as she seems to think and purses her lips. She glances up to Phy, then smiles hesitantly. "Well, h..how about this. You will earn her, " and she thumbs back to Omfaleth. " gratitude.

" She pauses again and leans forward. "Rememeber w..when I mentioned a..about being friends? " she asks softly. "T..this is part of it. F..friends help f..friends. Give it a chance, Phy. "

Lela is tired and is working hard and reaches her point with Phy, she gets in front of Phy, "Phy, thats fine, go back in, in fact, go home, in this weyr we need workers, good workers, from the weyrwoman on down to the drudges. If you want to be waited on, you're in the wrong place. So go get your aunt to send you home right now."

Omfaleth has been rumoured to be the hottest-tempered queen ever to be hatched on Istan sands, and so it would be difficult to match the imposing queen for looks of fury. Though she still tends her clutch, she keeps a close eye on Phy; and another bellow makes Reye's next words completely unneccessary. "Phy, if you aren't helping, you will leave. You will not insult my lifemate's clutch any further, or insult the rest of those working here with your presence." A pause, then, "If you wish to stay, you may apologise to Omfaleth." Not much choice there, huh.

Xaine turns and instantly glares over at Lela. "Lela!" she snaps in such a way that hardly /anyone/ would hear such tone from her.

Perhaps it's the stress of the storm that's made the last few eggs so long in coming; or perhaps that is simply the way of dragonkind. Omfaleth heaves herself to her feet again, nosing through the sand for just the right place -- or, well, as close to it as one can come under these conditions. She turns, muzzle arched over her back to ensure herself all is well amid flared wings and tensed muscles; and when those bright wings furl to her back again a brownish egg graces the sands.

Then Lela turns and gets her bucket and fills it with sand and starts putting it around the eggs

Jara smiles at the freshly laid egg and gives a tilting and a gentle push til it's safely upright.

Xaine nods to Phy, trying to help her, urge her that apologizing to Omfaleth is a good thing but it is obvious she will stand by the girl and be a beacon of strength.

"Lela's, oof! Right," slip, skid, scuffle but nonetheless Lorany gets the words out, the next egg safely on higher, dry ground. Apparently the younger girl's telling off of Phy carried. Lela, telling off Phy? This *must* be a banner day. "Sorry Xaine, but it's the truth. I mean it doesn't help getting Omfaleth mad and everything, true?" Flimsy logic, but at least she's there in Lela's defense.

Ellery follows Xianbar's progression, her own sandbag in tow, so that she arrives back at the filling site only moments after. Wisps of Lela's Phy-chastisement reach her, and Xaine's subsequent reprisal. "Good lass, yes. Bit forward, though." She's got a grin for her sister, however. The conversation is cut short when the next bag she's trying to lug rips in two. "Oh, shells! All that work."

S'dar is still working, and nods as Reye takes care of the dissent within the helpers. He goes to move a bucket of water until he notices that it's doing a darned fine job of stopping a sluice of water from channeling into the protected area - he leaves it where it stands.

Jara puases to look at the Queen egg. She didn't touch it, since it didn't need any help yet. She didn't want to anger the Queen any more than she already was. Jara simply kept an eye out on the eggs.

Torrez heaves one last sandbag into place and remains there, breathing heavily. "Shards--a scribe shouldn't be worked this hard." He chuckles, squeezing his eyes closed from the blowing grit.

The rain begins to let off to a slow drizzle; and the many helpers littering the sands have stacked sandbags around the entire clutch, keeping the eggs high and under the relative shelter of the far end of the cavern. It seems, rather, like once moved those eggs will stay put. Still, any new eggs will have to be rolled up with the rest; Omfaleth doesn't have much room to move about up there. The normally slender queen doesn't noticed Danica's motions around the gold egg, so focused is she on Phy -- lucky for Danica.

Nadia stands as the wall of sandbags that are blocking the waters way panting some as she works at it constently getting the wall highe3r and higher as bags are filled.

Almost with a surprising lack of fanfare or a denouement, Omfaleth shifts in place, wings furling and unfurling with the tension that lines her spine as she produces the last egg to round out this clutch. A rush of breath and an exhausted droop to her neck betrays the journey of this afternoon; but no rest quite yet. The slender queen noses at the last egg, checking it for any flaws.

Lela keeps getting sand out onto the eggs as best she can ignoring the two girls for the moment, she's too tired to deal with them besides, /this/ is important. She slowly works towards the gold egg, noticing the gold's mood, she stops, and addresses her, "M'am , may I place some sand about your lovely gold egg? I dont wish anything to happen to it."

Jara smiles at the last egg,"beautiful from start to finish."

Phy claps her hands to her ears at Omfaleth's next bellow, and sends another searing glare in the direction of that shadowy bulk. There's no need to ask how Reye knows her name, and the girl trembles again. It's the cold, really. "If I leave, " she says slowly, each word bitten off short, like a staccato tap, "my aunt will be severely displeased, and force me to stay here at Ista longer. She'll make me do /more/ than apologize." Resentment colors the brat's tone. "If I /stay/ - I never wanted to be here in the first place! - then I'll have to /apologize/?!" The last is exclaimed with disgust. "I don't apologize to /anyone/!" Although, she may have to re-think that statement. Hrm. Xaine is regarded warily for a long moment, and then the girl abruptly turns, so that she is facing Omfaleth. "Although, you're not just anyone, " she ammends, hastily. "Fine. I'll /say/ I'm sorry." An obstinate lift of her chin accompanies the fake apology. She's obviously not sorry in the least. "Will that do, then?" Glare.

Danica feels movement within the shell of the egg and pulls her hand back swiftly with a look for Omfaleth, taken aback at her own daring when the gold is already upset. Looking down she busily finishes packing sand about the egg and stands up to return to stacking bags of sand on the low wall already forming. Danica grins at Torrez as she lifts a bag "I'm an infirmary aid, I couldn't agree with you more!" is said with a sigh of great suffering. Danica has a gash on her forehead from either a hailstone or a real stone. With all the little things flying about her injury could have come from any number of things. Either way she is oblivious to the injury and concentrating on the here and now of stemming the flooding into the hatching caverns.

Xianbar laughs as the bag breaks, "What is a day like today without a few tragedies?" she asks, holding open a new sandbag and helping Ellery put the contents of the ripped bag into the new one.

Xaine sighs as she shakes her head sadly, looking definitely disappointed. She turns away for now and walks back to her work.

Omfaleth considers Lela for a long time, and for a moment the young girl may wish she hadn't asked that question. But after a moment the queen huffs, and begins nosing sand around the egg herself almost in assent. They'll both pile sand around the egg, to make sure it's safe.

Jara walks away from the eggs, seeing that none were really tipping. She rtubbed the side of her head and looked up at the Queen with a grin,"Their beautiful."

Torrez chuckles over at Danica and points a finger towards her wounding as he lays there, rather crumpled up in the mud for the moment before struggling up to his feet. "THink they'll need us to keep up with things?"

Lela bows to the queen, "Yes m'am, we will do it together." As she gathered from what she is doing. And off she goes and gets more sand.

S'dar takes a deep breath as the torrents turn to drizzles, and smiles at the cluster of eggs spread before him, well protected, in the sand. "They sparkle even brighter in the gloom of the storm," he says. "An incredible Clutch - such color and character." He gives Omfaleth look of great pride.

Jara sighs,"I think I'm going to have a bruise there.." She gently rubs the side of her head where a knot is forming.

Ellery smiles up at Xianbar gratefully for her gentle humor. "You have a point." As she, too, helps fill the new one, she continues that stream of her usual chatter that was at first stemmed by the immediacy of the storm. "I hope all the eggs are safe. Do you know?" This is said as she cranes her neck around to peer up towards the huddle of eggs on higher ground.

Omfaleth doesn't get angry much. She gets irritated, annoyed, and constantly demands high standards of those about her- but usually she doesn't get angry. Now red clouds into the normally placid blue-greens of her vision, and she slowly, carefully stalks that one pace that brings her enormous frame toward Phy; and her wedge-shaped head lowers, bringing that furious eye at level with the impudent girl. What. Do. You. Think. Quietly, Reye says in a level monotone that somehow makes itself audible through the wind, "You are testing her patience." And then, "I have never seen her this angry."

Squish, splish. A turn and a blink into the drizzle... drizzle? "Hey, it's letting up!" State the obvious Lorany, go right ahead. "Whew! And wow, look at all those... they all up here? I mean, we haven't missed any have we? I'd hate to think we had, but wait--Omfaleth or chezroth or someone would've seen it wouldn't they? They're the clutchparents and all, they'd sort of have to." Phy's forgotten again as more pressing matters, at least to Lor, take precedence. No drippy eggs!

Kirkenys walks onto the sands looking like a drowned...well, something or other drowned, murmuring, "Wasn't raining like this th' last time..." He sighs then and sucks it up, turning his head toward the eggs to watch. "Always seems like a miracle," he notes to himself.

Jara finds a realativly dry spot on the sands to sit down. She stares at the angry Queen and Phy,"You shouldn't have insulted her..."

Danica looks around at the water, the mud, the eggs all piled in a small area and nods grimly "They will need more hands then ours to clean up this mess. I'll tell you one thing, I'm not going back to Igen in THIS weather." Grunting as she lifts another bag onto the pile. Raising a muddy hand she touches the spot on her forehead and winces "I'll visit the infirmary after I get cleaned up. I would be surprised if nobody came out of this with nothing to show." Turning blue eyes back towards the eggs her expression softens "I've never been this close before!"

Lela gets some sand back to the gold egg, and starts gently placing it about the egg. "Sorry M'am, she isnt the nicest person, she is really spoiled." She says quietly to the queen when the queen comes to check on how Lela is doing.

Xianbar looks over to Ellery, smiling widely, "Looks like they are just fine," she states, a certian amount of pride in her voice, "Glad to be able to pitch in around here- I was starting to feel like a free loader," she laughs, a spring in her step as she carries the next sandbag over.

Torrez gets awkwardly to his feet, trying to jerk his leg up from where it's wegdged into a deep sludge of water and sand--or is it caught in the sandbags. He turns to nadia with a chucle, "I'm stuck." He reaches out to her with flapping hands, wobbling awkwardly.

Phy freezes, any bravado that she had previously possessed gone as Omfaleth stalks toward her. Green-gray eyes widen with intrepid fear as the queen's eye is slowly lowered to be on level with her own. "Okay!" she squeaks. "I'm really, really, sorry! I won't just /say/ I'm sorry!" A frightened glance goes to Reye, and then returns to the immense head before her. "Just please ... don't hurt me!" Tremble.

Nadia giggles and heads over to where Torrez is, "You okay love?" She reaches out to try and help whim out of his pardicament.

Lela grabs more sand, bone tired now, dragging the bucket back and putting more sand about the base.

Lorany does notice Phy being stared at, and the trembling and whimpering help keep her focus *right* where it landed. "Uh-oh," is her mutter, over and over again. Just, "uh-oh, oh dear. Uh-oh..."

Ellery finishes one more sandbag, then rises and brushes off her hands. Turning slightly pink as she realizes that in the growing light, her tied-up skirt is becoming visible, she quickly unknots it and allows it to fall back to its proper place at her ankles. "Yes, I think they are, Xianbar." Glancing around, she apparently notices a need for something, for she calls to the other, "I'm headed to the stores to get some extra supplies. This'll take some cleaning." She steps across the sands and out.

Omfaleth does indeed look like she's a hair away from hurting Phy; and though Phy looks sincere, Omfaleth doesn't appear convinced. "Let's give her some time with her babies, shall we?" Reye says to Phy -- but really, it's not meant as a question; it's more of a command. "Omfaleth needs some time to calm down." The storm still rages, though at a lower level and at such an angle that it's not arcing directly into the cavern anymore. Hopefully, it'll dry out at some point. "Thank you everone, for helping keep the eggs safe. I have to say- I've never heard of this being done before, so early in a clutch. Omfaleth and I appreciate your help."

Danica brushes hair from her face as it looks like everything is under control. Reye's words confirm this and with a final pat on the sandbag stacked wall she heads towards the entrance to the Hatching Grounds with half a mind to go to the Living Caverns to look for a hot cup of klah to warm her up.

Torrez turns his head away from Nadia as the wind gusts from her direction, "Blazing shells!" His wet fingers slip and he falls backwards as the wind and his poor blance work against him. He barks out a cry of pain as his leg is twisted and for a hidious moment he lays there, unable to yank the foot free still and unable to roll to untwist his leg and hip.

"Glad to do it Weyrwoman," is Lorany's answer, almost immediately babbling her affirmative, "even though I fell in the sand like twenty zillion times I'm still... well--" a second's sand-spluttering pause and then she blurts it all out. "Well I didn't want to see any of them get squished or drenched or something. That'd just be... bad." So eloquent, this one. She, unlike her laundress fellow, is sincere to the core.

Xianbar straightens up, realizing how sore she is suddenly. As the crowd begins to disperse, she limps off to a day full of other work that will not wait. A quick mug of klah sounds great and she heads off.

Nadia eeps loudly and rushes more over towards where Torrez's leg is stuck to try and dig around it and more the object.

Lela goes for one more bucketful, spreading it around, then nods to the weyrwoman as she passes, "Its our duty m'am. Besides the Filly's out at sea now safe."

Xianbar stops cold as she hears Torrez cries out. Suddenly her own tired muscles don't seem to bother her as much as she rushes over to Nadia and Torrez, "Are you alright? What can I do?" she asks in a concerned, but unpanicked voice.

Jara stands and wearily starts heading back to the Resident dorms so she can take a bath.

Phy still appears overwhelmed, and bobs her head a bit toward Reye in submission. "Yes, I um, think that would be best." And the girl slowly backs away from Omfaleth, waiting until she's a suitable distance away before running for the entrance as fast as her legs will carry her.

Lorany doesn't see Torrez, as there's a sandbag or four in her immediate view when he takes his fall. By the time she hears him, if she hears him, she's halfway down the cavern entrance. "Oh great, I look like a drowned feline," she can be heard to mutter, rambling even in her sopping wet and sand-covered state, "watch, I walk out of here and straight into... someone." Someone? Lor is black and fire scarlet at the same time, so brilliant is her blush as she leaves. Someone, indeed.

Jara walks out of the hatching caverns

Torrez grumbles and curses as he manges to flop over onto his side. Looking pale and shaken he lays there until he finds Nadia digging to get his leg free. "I'm....so clumbsy. Sorry." He realizes that peoplea re leaving the sands, "Just...get me out of here please?"

Kirkenys just watches quietly close to the entrance to the sands, not wanting to get in the way.

Xianbar nods, "Ok, can you walk?" she asks, bending to help carry him out if nessisary, "Nadia and I can probably carry you if we need to."

Nadia moves things and shakes her head saying, "Not your fault love." She pushes a sand bag off for over where his leg is stuck and says, "Can you get out now?" She then looks at Xianbar, "Thanks...Xianbar right?"

Torrez's leg comes free with a slurp of mud and the sandbags give a little sag but thinkfully stay in place. The Scribe claws and fights back from his spot and gets to his feet with a scowl. "I can walk!" He grumbles, flushed now as he struggles to his feet. "I'm ok."

Nadia swtands up herself covered in sand and water, "Oh the annopying joy." She sighs and then smiles again offering Torrez her shoulder, "You need to get that checked out Torrez."

Xianbar looks a little dubious, but backs away with a sigh, "If you're sure, Torrez, I'll be off myself- last chance- anything I can carry for you?"

Torrez gives Xianbar a thankful look, "I didn't mean to snap. I'm just--embarassed." He offers a pained grin, "I think I could use a little help getting out of here, before I slip and kill myself.

Nadia smiles at Torrez and says, "It's fine...I'll take care of you." She winks at him.

Xianbar crosses to the other side of Torrez, leaving Nadia on his right, and offers her arm, "No need to be embarassed- there were more than a few spills today and I for one will be covered with bruises tomorrow."

Reye has been spending a bit of time with Omfaleth, speaking soothing words, hands running repeatedly over muzzle and neck and ridges. Now, as the slender queen curls up on the patch of dry sand about the eggs to sleep, Reye moves toward the few still left here. "Are you alright, Torrez?"

Lela grabs her now sleeping pup and tries to find the least deadly way out to the bowl

The small gold on Kenny's shoulder warbles up at Omfaleth, her namesake.

Torrez winces as he puts weight on the leg that got the twist. "I'd rather have gotten a manly bruise or a scar to make me look tough. Oh no, I had to fall like a sissy in the mud." He bobs his head to Reye and though he looks a little white-lipped answers, "I'm sure it's just a twist. I hope the eggs are alright."

Xianbar turns to Reye, "At least she picked a good time to get us all together," she says, smiling back at the dragon, "real bonding experience for the Istans.

Xaine takes a hesitant step back, then pauses and takes a deep breath. She finally steps forward and glances over at Torrez in concern. For the brief moment, it looked like she was wanting to speak with the Weyrwoman, then stopped when she noticed Torrez was in pain. She walks over to him instead to help him and strangely, moves to put an arm around him for support.

Nadia giggles at Torrez and says, "Come on you lean on my shoulder." She smiles at Xaine comes up to help, "Thanks."

Xaine blushes even as she glances over at Nadia from the other side of Torrez and gives a hesitant smile back.

Torrez nods an embarassed thanks to Xaine as well, surprised at her aid. "Ok.....and..." He hobbles forward with the help, making the best to show that he can actually walk on that leg. Nadia gets a good amount of his weight.

Omfaleth doesn't appear in even the briefest of moods for the presence of firelizards. She turns her great, wedge-shaped head as she settles herself down, hissing in the firelizard's general direction. "Okay," Reye says suddenly, "I think it'd be best if we all got off the sands. Now. Omfaleth needs some normalcy."

Kirkenys heads out towards the entrance. Kirkenys has left.

Xianbar steps out of Xaine's way as she approaches, gladly stepping aside for the extra help. Gathering herself up, she takes to the sands, picking her way to the side, "Looks like you have all the help you need, Torrez," she states, as she edges away.

Torrez thanks Xianbar with his eyes and then clears his throat and does his best to slog off the sands.

"We don't want to get eatten." ANd from the display earlier, they're pretty close to it.