Blue Thunder hummed happily to himself as he leaned out of the 'window' dug out of the cave on the side of the cliff. He looked down at the cranking elevator rising up next to his cave abode and cheerfully called out at the figures inside. The elevator came to a halt just next to an opening in the cliff where one of servicemen inside the elevator unlatched the gate and gave way for the Princess's party.
Next, they wheeled a large cargo trolley filled with barrels of fish and locally grown potatoes. The potatoes included by the crew of the Vengeance quickly took over as the main staple for the Banished villagers living at the bottom of the cliffs. The sandy soil along the cliffs was easily turned into loam with compost from rotting vegetation and organic matter, allowing the round tubers to grow all year round.
In just half a year, with knowledge and skills imparted by the UN, the cliffs of the Waterfall Cove had changed drastically. Stairs and platforms were cut into the surface of the cliff walls, with lumbering elevators for goods and people spaced out equally. Windows and doorways dotted the cliffs as well and each abode was large enough to house a family of eight.
When Sherene was riding the elevator, the view before her was spectacular. The unique tri hull super carrier sat docked upon a bed of clear blue waters in the middle of the white sandy cove. All along, the cliff abodes, the locals had put up colourful awnings that decorated the windows and entrances.
As Sherene stepped out of the elevator, she entered a massive cavern that was lit up by a combination of glowlamps and lamps powered by electricity. The servicemen wheeled the supplies into a side tunnel that had a tarp covering its entrance before they departed from the elevator again. Sherene could feel a brush of cool air when the tarp was lifted and she assumed that side chamber must be cold storage of sorts.
"Welcome, welcome!" Blue Thunder's cheerful voice rumbled as he came over with Rastraz in tow. "Welcome to our holiday home!"
"What holiday home?" Rastraz poked Blue Thunder's back. "More like a work home!"
"But... It's so niceee!" Blue Thunder stuttered in shock as he gestured around the cavern. "It's so big and airy! And we even have a heater!"
Sherene unconsciously giggled as she listened to the two bickering dragons. She took the chance to glance around the dragons' abode and found it simple but cosy and homely. The interior was oval in shape and at the rear of the cave, were several carpets stacked up together, creating a spot for the two dragons to lay down.
A projector and a laptop on a table lay next to the carpets and a large crate filled with straw held two large leathery eggs. Sherene walked over to the eggs and she placed her son down next to the dragon eggs and said gently, "Little Coa, meet the dragon twins!"
"Hehehe," Blue Thunder quickly came over, ignoring Rastraz as he proudly hovered over the eggs. "Hello, little Coa!"
Rastraz pouted as she came over and she gently turned the eggs facing the heater. She carefully checked her eggs before turning her attention to the little boy that was reaching out with his hand, trying to touch the eggs. "Your little one looks so weak... He needs to eat more to grow up big and strong!"
Blue Thunder immediately rolled his eyes, "Have you ever seen a baby that huge and big?"
"Orge babies are huge," Rastraz argued. "It's just you soft ones that are small!"
Sherene laughed as she took an offered cushion from Blue Thunder and sat down on the floor. "Orges are twice our size..."
"See?" Blue Thunder replied. "How can you compare sizes of babies from different species?"
Sherene peacefully listened to the two dragons' squabbling while keeping an eye on her son who was stroking the leathery eggs in curiosity. Coa giggled as he poked the eggs and suddenly, there was a crack sound. The crack instantly stilled all conversations as everyone turned their eyes to the eggs in surprise, just in time to see the egg with bluish hue had a line across its leather surface.
"OH, MY GODS!" Blue Thunder's jaw dropped as he stared at the egg in both excitement and panic. "IT'S HATCHING!"
"Finally!" Rastraz let out a sigh of relief. She had been worrying about the eggs and had no idea how long they would take to properly hatch. Even the dragon breeders of the New World only gave an estimation of six to eight months, but both the eggs had long gone past that period. It was only with Dr. Sharon's strange magic equipment and feeling the life inside the eggs, that she was certain they were still growing inside and not stillborn.
"Oh no! What do we do?" Blue Thunder stared nervously at the crack on the egg. He wanted to run around but held back the urge as his brain went into meltdown. "Call Dr. Sharon!!"
"What can Dr. Sharon do?" Rastraz hissed as she slapped the clearly agitated dragon with her wing. "Calm down!"
"What can I do?" Sherene asked as she carried Coa into her arms. She looked on with interest as she have never seen a dragon hatch before.
"Erm..." Blue Thunder rubbed his head. "Hot water? Towels?"
"Grrr!" Rastraz growled as she felt the urge for murder. "That is for hoomans and elves!"
"Go call that... black... b-... Saphia!" Rastraz pushed Blue Thunder to the entrance of the cave which was covered in curtains. "And get your crew over!"
"Oh yes!" Blue Thunder grinned and he parted the entrance curtains and hopped out into the skies. With his wings spread out, he dived down and glided down to the decks of the docked Vengeance, bellowing as he went, calling for his ground team.
Both Rastraz and Sherene shook their heads at the antics of Blue Thunder and when their eyes met, they both burst out laughing. Sherene smiled as she watched Rastraz carefully pick the egg and place it in her bosom as she curled up around it. The egg wobbled slightly and a piece of shell tore open, exposing a dark stubby snout.
More cracks appeared as the hatchling tried to push itself out of its confines. It made weak cries of frustration and confusion as it continued to hammer away at the shell. Finally, the top portion of the egg broke apart and reviewed a small tubby dragonling. With its eyes still closed, it let out a small cry of victory and yawned before instinctively nibbling at the shell.
The entrance curtains suddenly parted and a visibly excited black dragon appeared. Her black glossy scale glittered beautifully under the sunshine and she waddled in like a duck on both her hind legs as her eyes were focused solely on the dragonling in Rastraz's arms. "Ohhhh!"
She landed on all fours and sniffed around the dark blue almost black dragonling with excitement, much to the annoyance of Rastraz who endured her probing of her child. Finally, seemingly satisfied, Saphia straightened up and declared, "He looks very healthy!"
"That's all?" Rastraz frowned. "After all that, it's just... he looks healthy?"
"Well..." Saphia sheepishly scratched her head. "I only know so much from what my Grandma said..."
"I am sure that is a good thing," Sherene quickly stepped in as she noticed Rastraz's temper was rising. "Healthy is good!"
"Oh, hello Princess! I am sorry, I did not see you there!" Saphia finally noticing Sherene quickly greeted her. "Eh... Let him eat the shells and after that, he will be sleeping a lot."
Rastraz looked down at her child and saw that the little thing had already finished half the shell surrounding it. The dragonling still has his eyes closed but in his tiny paw claws, he was holding onto a piece of broken shell and nibbling happily away at it. Coa seeing the baby dragon eating started to grumble as he too wanted to eat the shell.
A soft bell suddenly rang and the sounds of a cranking elevator were heard. Soon, a red faced Magister Thorn, Professor Hamlot, Dr. Sharon and a few other friends came rushing out of the elevator. All of them having heard Blue Thunder's yelling and came to visit and witness the hatching of a dragon.
Soon, Blue Thunder returned with his crew and surprisingly with Captain Blake as well. Blake looked a bit pale as he dropped down wobbly from the back of Blue Thunder and he took a deep breath to calm his churning stomach. Sherene came over with concern in her eyes as she saw how sick Blake looked, "Are you alright?"
"Just need a little air," Blake replied grimly. "Damn dragon flies worst than some VR roller coaster ride..."
"Take it easy," Sherene said as she make sure Coa doesn't disturb his father. "Play with daddy later!"
Feeling better, Blake entered the cave and joined the rest in congratulating the dragons. Despite her polite thanks and smile pasted on her face, Rastraz was getting uncomfortable with the attention given. She wanted to pull her baby away from the three academics who was staring hungrily at her baby.
"Ohh! Look!" Saphia suddenly cried out as she pointed to the other egg. A thin but visible crack could be seen on the surface and before everyone's eyes, the crack widened with a loud snap and broke. A tiny deep red dragonling poked her head out angrily and cried out loudly. Her cries seemed to affect her brother as the other baby dragon started brawling as well.
"Oh how cute!" Blue Thunder cooned as he gently carried the egg over and said to Rastraz. "Her temper is just like you!"
"Wait! How do you know their genders?" Dr. Sharon suddenly asked as she peeked at the cute chubby red dragonling that was munching away with ravish.
"Oh, we can smell them," Saphia helpfully answered for Blue Thunder as he was under attack from Rastraz. She leaned down and sniffed the tiny red dragon who growled at her approach despite her eyes were still closed. "My Grandma had mentioned before, newborns will open their eyes within a few days."
The three academics looked at each other and started a discussion amongst themself. Magister Thorn started saying, "I wonder how much mana does a newborn dragon has? How does it develop its magic?"
"I think we should instead find out about its intelligence," Professor Hamlot's eyes glowed wildly. "I read in ancient texts that dragons even baby dragons have a high degree of intelligence!"
"I need some of their blood!" Dr. Sharon rubbed her hands in excitement. "It will help me get more data on dragons!"
"HEHEHEHEHEHEE..." The three academics looked at each other in agreement before they turned their hungry eyes at the two dragonlings. The three dragons seemingly sensing something wrong, turned around and saw the look the three academics had on their faces and felt a cold chill down their spines. Instantly, both Blue Thunder and Rastraz each hugged their child away from the eyes of the three academics and glared warily at them.
Blake shook his head at the childish antics of his staff before he cleared his throat in embarrassment. "So, what will the names of the children be?"
Blue Thunder edged away from the hungry glances of the three academics before he looked at Rastraz and grinned, "We decided to name them, Kakhol for the boy and Edna for the girl!"
By this time, both dragonlings had finished off the egg shells and little Edna gave a burp of satisfaction before she snuggled deeper into Blue Thunder's embrace and fell asleep with a tiny snooze. As if unwilling to be outdone by his sister, Kakhol similar fell asleep in the bosom of Rastraz.
Blake seeing the happiness and joy among friends, suddenly declared, "This calls for a celebration! That's it, we are going to celebrate!"