Help Wanted: Eggs for Herbs!

[Ara]

Hssskkkk.

The demanding hiss came from across the man's yard. He owned a small hut with a fenced in backyard that was nestled in the thick of the woods. He was a little elevated so the rainfall wouldn't pool in his yard and make it wet, which allowed for a more sturdy foundation for his house. His yard was mostly garden beds with a gondola in the center, situated with a very large alchemy setup. Off to the back left corner was what looked like a makeshift doghouse. A large, bulky golden watch-wher was nestled inside, with a huge clutch of eggs barely able to be seen behind her dark golden body. The man himself was a tall, wiry human with dark blue eyes and unkempt black hair. He was dressed in mage's robes and looked like he hadn't slept in a couple of days. He was trying to craft a certain potion and he was so close, so close, he just needed to figure out what the right herbs were that would make the mixture more stable and-

HSSSSSKKKK!

"Damn it, Hebask!" the man snapped, glowering at the golden creature who was now standing, half out of her little house, head swaying menacingly from side to side. He knew what she wanted. She wanted her clutch gone, as it would be cold day in hell before she raised them herself. But he was so close and didn't have the time to try and find suitable homes. He had to find these herbs, he had to go out in the wetlands and find every type he could so he could finally figure this out... Suddenly, his eyes lit up. A little liveliness returned to his face. He had realized there was a very simple solution to his problem.

On a brisk spring day, at a reasonable time in the morning, suddenly wanted posters would start appearing everywhere. In bold black letters it would say, "HERBS WANTED. WILL TRADE FOR EGGS." What type of eggs were not specified, nor what type of herbs. A map to the mage's hut was included, underneath was written "Bring to Hebacious' hut". If you tried to ignore the posters, they became more persistent, showing up in your house, on your mugs, your plates, your shinies, yourself. Once you headed to Hebacious' hut the posters would lay off. Signs would bring you to the backyard where Hebacious was at his alchemy table. Good luck!


important info.

- you may bring your own herbs, you may look for herbs in the forest, whatever floats your boat. make up herbs, use skyrim herbs, use actual earth herbs, all's good.
- shinies are welcome, it's cool
- prefs would be nice but they aren't required!
- please remember if this is your character's first wher, they will adapt part of your character's name!


bonded.
Gold Gorwysk -- Kader
Iron Haesk -- Haelys Celtaris
Bronze Tusk -- Tuk-tuk
Obsidian Busk -- Bucky
Ruby Cypresk -- Cyprena Sevenius
Agate Halrask -- Halrae
Sulphur Zenisk -- Zenith
Emerald Ylisk -- Bucky
Sapphire Iskilisk -- Haelys Celtaris
Amethyst Kask -- Kader
Opal Pyfsk -- Cyprena Sevenius

[Ara]

attending.
Brisket, Bucky, Cyprena Sevenius, Haelys Celtaris, Halrae, Tuk-Tuk, Zenith

the eggs.

Sovengarde Awaits Egg - Hatched!
Skooma Bottle Egg - Hatched!
Arrow to the Knee Egg - Hatched!
Morrowind Ashes Egg - Hatched!
Talos Guide You Egg Hatched!
Alchemy Table Egg - Hatched!
Nordic Tombs Egg - Hatched!
Khajiit Has Wares Egg - Hatched!
Talos Guide You Egg - Hatched!
The Dragonborn Comes Egg - Hatched!
Stolen Sweetroll Egg - Hatched!
High Hrothgar Egg - Hatched!

the whers.

Imp Stool Gold
Hatched from: The Dragonborn Comes Egg
Bold c2c60e
Little Miss Imp here is very reclusive. She hates crowds and only really tolerates her bonded. Don't mistake her tendency for seclusion as a fear of interaction though. On the contrary she is very willing to be loud and vocal, and if you encroach upon her space she will be snapping and snarling at you within seconds. She is very territorial of wherever she claims as her den- you'll notice she tends to prefer small, dark places like caves- and will chase you out with tooth and claw if you ignore her warnings. To strangers, her presence certainly means injury or the inability to move for fear of being injured. Her bonded, however, will find that in time she will warm up to their presence and in fact get rather territorial over them as well. Which... might not be a good idea when you have company over. Might want to hole her up in her den if you want any friends.

For a gold wher, Imp Stool is short and bulky. She looks like she shouldn't be able to move fast but I wouldn't count on her size getting in her way, but for all that bulk she moves fast as lightning. Her hide is a very yellowed gold, with spots of a creamy gold color spotting the top half of her body. Her bottom half is a darker, more muted gold. If you manage to glimpse her belly, the gold darkens and gets an almost greensih tinge to it, like her hide has gathered mold from her nesting too much.


Slaughterfish Scales Iron
Hatched from: Sovengarde Awaits Egg
Italics 686737
This Iron is as strong willed and stubborn as they come. He's slippery as a fish when you try to wrangle him into doing what you want. Training him is going to be nigh impossible, especially since he resorts quickly to claws if you push too many of his buttons. His snaps usually happen very fast; a quick swipe of a paw and then he's gone. It doesn't help that he's pretty smart, so tricking him into doing things won't work either. You can usually convince him to do things for food, which his handler might find a little helpful. Slaughterfish will not come to your aid if you're in danger, so don't kid yourself into thinking he'll make a good guard wher. He'll probably be a good look out, however, as he instinctively hisses and swipes at any who approaches his home. He also seems to have a soft spot for water, and likes swimming- even though with his bulk, he does more wading than actual swimming- so there's that. Good luck.

Slaughterfish is a very usual Iron. He's big, bulky, and cumbersome. His hide is fairly uniform in color with few variations. Dark and dirty steel covers his feet and legs. Some spots look tarnished, and dirtier, like his tail and belly. At mid torso it starts to lighten, with the top of his head and his wings actually being a pretty bright iron color.

Creep Cluster Bronze
Bold b25d0a
Hatched from: Khajiit Has Wares Egg

For a wher of his size, you'd be hard pressed to hear this bronze. He is quiet and light on his feet. He's known to appear places that he shouldn't be able to get to, or where he wasn't just seconds before. His bonded will often leave to do errands or even go other bondings and suddenly find the Creep Cluster with him. He does listen pretty well, thankfully, so at least he won't be too much of a burden. The bronze certainly does better on a whole with others and prefers the pack mentality, which probably explains why he's a borderline Stage 5 Clinger. He's also pretty strong, and his bond will discover that if they want to put him to work, he's a great pack mule. If you figure out how to craft a pack that'll fit on a wher, he'll happily walk around with you and carry your things.

Creep Cluster probably looks the dirtiest out of his siblings. He's very orange tinged for a Bronze, splotches of a dark and dirty bronze interchanging between a slightly lighter, orange bronze. Notably, his right eye is engulfed with orange bronze while the rest of his face is dunk in the dirty, darker bronze. His tail has almost no orange-y splotches, while his back and torso are evenly distributed. His legs seem more bright than the rest of him, oddly enough. He's also well balanced for a wher, and well proportioned.

Emperor Parasal Moss Obsidian
Italics 6c776d
Hatched from: Morrowind Ashes Egg

If you were looking for a steadfast companion out of this clutch, look no further. This obsidian is a poster child for his rank and makes a perfect bodyguard. He is definitely a one-person wher and will protect his bonded at all costs. He can be trained to back down on command and defend on command, fairly easily. He can also be trained to relax around others, though he will be defensive and wary of strangers at first- probably for your well-being, truth be told. The Emperor Parasal seems to put his bonded before his own needs, and you'll find him missing meals as he's hyper focused on your safety. Be sure to give your faithful obsidian a break every now and then, because Tarzi knows he won't.

On the small side for an obsidian, the Emperor is a lean and mean looking wher. He's less bulky but short, and his wings have just enough wingspan to smack you with. His hide is very ashy. Smudges of dark charcoal can be seen on his paws, nose, belly and tail. Light ashy gray coats the majority of his body. Veins of white can be seen along his wings and spine, very thin and tendril like. His belly, chest and flanks have a very slight rainbow sheen to them, though it's very green heavy of a sheen.

Scathecraw Ruby
Bold 660953
Hatched from: High Hrothgar Egg

It appears that whomever was mixing together this ruby and deciding her traits accidentally went in too heavily with "motherly". Scathecraw mothers and dotes upon mostly her bonded to the point of smothering. She will watch you like a hawk, growling and nipping when she thinks you're doing something dangerous. She will shove food at you- unfortunately what she considers food, which may or may not appeal to her bonded- to make sure you eat and will all but drag you to water if she doesn't catch you drinking for too long. She might also accidentally push you in, to make SURE you're drinking. And if you ignore her warnings about what she deems dangerous, you might just get knocked off your feet by her tail. The heavens forbid if you ignore her for too long, because then she'll start guarding you from yourself, and you'll find yourself trapped in her care for a day or two until she's satisfied you've learned your lesson.

Scathecraw is a stunning looking ruby. She's average in size, nothing exciting there, and her hide is very dark in coloration with bursts of stunning, rich blood-red ruby. Her face, neck and shoulders are drenched in a dark and deep purple-red color. The bright blood-ruby color shows on her flanks, belly and legs. Her wings swirl between that blood-ruby color and thin tendrils of the slightest pink-red. Her hind quarters and tail deepen into a dark, maroon red.

Moon Sugar Agate
Italics f5b297
Hatched from: Skooma Bottle Egg

Unpredictable is this girl's middle name. Of the two wild child's in the clutch, this agate definitely takes the crown for most feral. She could be tolerant and almost friendly one minute, and snapping and snarling at you the next. Everything is on her terms and it's not her fault she never wrote a rule book for you, figure it out. Her handler will find those moments where she is affectionate almost intoxicating, as she'll curl up next to you quietly and you'll almost forget she's there. Then, you'll wake up from a nap to find her snarling at you, as if you had crawled into her bed and invaded her space. You'll yearn for those moments of peace and acceptance even though you know her wrath is certain to follow. Maybe eventually her handler will learn to recognize most of her triggers, but with Moon Sugar, it will always be a gamble. One thing to note is that she is adventurous at heart, and one way to goad her into an activity with you is exploration and hiking. She won't every be a worker wher, but an adventure buddy she'll be content with.

Moon Sugar is large for her rank, boasting the same height as her Scathecraw sister. Her hide is heavily saturated in reds and oranges. Thick bands of brick red and muted orange start at her nose and alternate until her shoulders. Once there, thin bands of white start blending in, with medium size bands of creamy yellow. The red and orange bands start to phase out and gives way to more frequent bands of peachy orange and yellow near her rear and tail.

Dragon's Tongue Sulfur
Bold d8c03a
Hatched from: Stolen Sweetroll Egg

Probably one of the most reliable whers out of the clutch, this sulphur is pretty trainable and will grow rather fond of his handler. There's a quiet capability about him that make him great as a guard wher. He's quick and alert and doesn't make much of a fuss. He's confident without being flashy or cocky and delivers on any threats made. Soft growls are really the only warning you'll get before a tail whips you too fast to stop. Dragon's Tongue is loyal to a fault and perhaps his only downside is that he can get a little too possessive of you.

Tending towards the less bulky side, this sulphur could almost be called lanky for a wher. It gives him the ability to move quickly on his feet, allowing for quick, hard hits with his claws and tail. Creamy yellow coats the front of his hide- the top of his head, his shoulders, chest, the fronts of all four of his legs. A more honeyed touch spreads out from there, coating his wings, flanks and back. His hind quarters and tail are suddenly dunked in dark ichor yellow without so much as a transition shade.


Nirnroot Emerald
Hatched from: Talos Guide You Egg
Italics 75d840
The first thing you will learn very quickly about this emerald is that she is VOCAL. She is loud, obnoxious, and very commanding of your attention. Once she sees you she will not leave you alone. She will be grumbling, growling, snapping and snarling until you give her your undivided attention. Don't try to get anything accomplished with Nirnroot around, because she will not allow it. Usually, you'll have to pet her and scratch her itchy spots until she's content. You can get her to take a nap, slip away and continue about your business. Funnily enough, as long as she can't hear you or see you, you can avoid her incessant begging for attention. She doesn't go searching you out, but waits for you to come to her. She also weirdly likes water, so if you can draw her a bath, she'll allow you to slip away while she soaks.

This emerald is long legged and slender for a wher. She's almost awkwardly leggy, honestly, and moves slowly because of it. Her torso and wings are a sharp, yellow-green color. Her shoulders, neck and face are a rich, fern green, the same on her hind quarters and tail. A richer, darker forest green coats her legs.

Gleamblossom Sapphire
Hatched from: Alchemy Table Egg
Italics 4cecf7
Quiet and often overlooked, Gleamblossom has a very unassuming presence upon first contacting him. Should one try to take the time to interact with the sapphire, you'll find him rarely vocal. He is always watching, learning, seeming to learn everything about you in his unblinking stare. Most will admit to be unsettled and a little frightened by him, although he has never shown any violent tendencies. His calm demeanor and uncanny attentiveness deters most people. He is purely just observing, however, and generally enjoys the company of others. His bonded especially will find him joining them in various activities. Even if it's just to be in the same room as them. You'll turn and find him laying in the corner, multi-faceted eyes calmly whirling and peering at you. It'll be weird at first, but eventually soothing as you get used to it. Well, hopefully, anyways.

This sapphire is of average size though seems a big leggy than most whers. His nose and face are a startling icy blue color, almost white at his nose tip and getting more saturated until his neck. There, the icy hue bleeds into deepest navy, a deep and rich color that spreads over his shoulders, wings, his front legs, and most of his torso. At the hind quarters the blue darkens and gets a very slight purplish color, which then deepens into almost black his tail tip.

Deathbell Amethyst
Italics 620580
Hatched from:

This amethyst seems to be a wild child at heart. Usually this rank is fairly tamable in whers, and can be excellent workers when given proper instruction. The Deathbell however seems to prefer her solidarity too much, making her stubbornness nigh impossible to break enough to train her. She is certainly the loner type, hissing and snapping at anyone who gets too close. She does tolerate her bonded, especially if it's in her benefit- in fact, she will even search them out if she needs something, sweetening up and acting all cute to get her to do what she needs. In fact, most others will realize quickly that she's the one training her bonded. She's very smart, and you'll find yourself suddenly doing whatever she wants- even if it poisons you while you do it.

Too bad this amethyst wasn't more social, because she's quite pretty- for a wher. She has a very average build, nothing too big or too small for her rank. Her hide is a stunning pattern of deep, rich purples and slightly blue-tinged indigos. The pattern starts at her nose, in rough triangle shapes, beginning with the deepest of violets that smoothly transition to blue-indigo. The tip of the triangles go to a more violet purple color, very bright. These triangles stagger all the way down her body, looking quite similar to scales- or a pinecone.

Nordic Barnacle Opal
9c903a
Hatched from: Nordic Tombs Egg

This little opal has a pretty gentle demeanor. They would not make a good guard wher, that's for certain. It is very watchful, and fairly quiet. One wouldn't consider it "friendly" as it does not go out of its way to say hello to everyone but it's definitely not going to attack it's handler's guests when they come to visit. It does thoroughly enjoy its bonded's company and will follow them from room to room. An odd quirk of this opal is that it is absolutely fascinated by water, and eventually might even enjoy swimming.

This wher is short and not very long, but packs on some bulk- once its full grown. The white of this opal is yellow-touched, with heavy splotches of dark gold and thin tendrils of soft baby blue. Specks of deeper orange can be seen along its tail and legs, and its wings. Mossy green clusters can be seen on its belly and sides.

[Deleted]

Zirah would never know, first hand, about how persistent the posters could become. He needed no extra prodding or anything like that. In fact, he was absolutely delighted upon noticing the flyer. Herbs for eggs? That was wonderful! Herbs he had a ton of, an entire little room that he hung herbs to dry and had little plants thriving on the windowsill. Later, he was even planning on his own little herb garden. Just. After, you know, he was done reading all the new books that had popped up into his new home.

He was fairly certain that the shop itself was what was keeping the herbs alive. Heaven knows Zirah didn't remember to water them.

But still. Herbs. Eggs! He could do so much with fresh eggs. Bake some lovely cookies, try his hand at a chocolate souffle, or, oooh. Maybe meringue candies! He already had his entire week planned out with all the baking and cooking he was going to do. Humming quite cheerfully, Zirah got a nice wicker basket that just happened to appear where he thought it should be, and began filling it. Rosemary and basil, both dried and two potted plants of each. Garlic and mint. And of course, if he was getting fresh eggs in return, he definitely included some from his own personal stock. Herbs that would help heal, or make good tea, or simply turn your hair bright green. He had a little bit of everything. Because eggs.

His good mood, thankfully, crushed his anxiety, as he cheerfully headed out and followed the map. It was brisk and lovely outside, and even the forest didn't make him hesitate. It took him little to no time to find the little cottage, and ooh. Another mage. Brewing something! He should have brought more herbs for the poor fellow.

"Hello!" He greeted cheerfully. Everything seemed a lot less overwhelming when there was just one other person, dressed in a way he mostly recognized. While he himself had given up the mages robes the moment he got here, opting for pale tan slacks and a hideous pink and blue sweater, he still knew what he was looking at. "I do hope I am not interrupting anything. I brought quite a bit of herbs here for you. But if there's something specific you were needing, I would be happy to nip back home to get it."

Zirah carefully set the basket on the corner of the table, beamed happily, and clasped his hands in front of him.

[Tuk-tuk]

Tuk-tuk dragged a wriggling burlap sack along behind him, the end tied off with a thick rope that was slung over his shoulder as he hauled the goods uphill both ways in the winters to get up to the hut. He had needed no extra posterly prodding; the second the first sign had been spotted he had tripped all over himself to run over and read it (which, frankly, we didn't know he could read). Now, huffing with the haul and puffing with pride, Tuk-tuk released his grip on the rope and nudged the sack forward with his foot towards the alchemist. By which we mean kick. You could tell it was a kick because the body inside yelped in pain.

"I found Herb!" shouted the crow-boy gleefully. "Where are my eggs!"

The burlap sack muffledly refuted that its name was Henry, because that was the problem and not the kidnapping.

[Cyprena Sevenius]

Let’s set the record straight for a second. Ren knew fuck all about herbs. She didn’t know heads or tails about what any herbs looked like, what any herbs were used for. A blade of grass could be an herb for all she knew, which she didn’t, so when the posters appeared all over the place, at first, she dismissed them. If this was some sort of wanted ad, she was absolutely not the target audience. But when one of the posters appeared on her sandwich, well that was that, wasn’t it?

Now she wasn’t a total jackass about this, mind you. She took one of the posters, tucked it in her pack, then actually went into the forest and looked for whole ass herbs. She wasn’t sitting at a library comparing pictures or anything, but she tried to pick and wide and varied amount of green things. Some had flowers. Some had branches. Some had thorns. She was pretty sure that one had little hairs. Hell if she knew. But maybe this guy was desperate enough. Maybe the herbs were a fake cry for help because these were eggs with dangerous parasitic creatures. She was speaking from experience here. Not all eggs were good eggs.

Ren also knew fuck all about alchemy, so when she approached Hebacious’ hut, she asked no questions. She did keep one of her smaller laser pistols within reach, a habit that she had sort of gotten out of, because parasitic alien eggs were fresh in her mind. But everything seemed pretty damned calm and peaceful where she was, so she relaxed, standing up straight. She was unfamiliar with any of these humans, taking particular interest in Tuk-tuk because what in hell. She herself had found a wooden bucket and was carrying it over one shoulder, full to the brim of mostly green things that, yeah sure, let’s call them herbs.

“Your herbs said something.” She commented wryly to Tuk-tuk, but she was going to stay out of it. One weird issue at a time.

[Haelys Celtaris]

Haelys and Marlene were already trekking through the Eastern Arbor, scoping out potential areas that might be suitable to hold a castle. It was rather pleasant that there were so many different trees to choose from. Each of them could really give the place a certain feel, depending on what she was going for. Now, before anyone jumps to conclusions, it should be noted that this was of course a temporary fortress until she could find a way to get back to her world. But she might as well spend her time here in luxury, style, and wealth. It was understatement to say that the Queen absolutely despised that she had to struggle to make money like one of the peasants she used to scoff at. Despite how unsuitable this lifestyle was to her, she refused to do anything that demeaned her. No matter the situation, her pride held strong. There were some tasks that were out of the question and others that she was willing to perform. So after five wanted posters assaulted her at once, she responded quite favorably to such a simple request.

"So this individual wants plants? That's it? For what, chicken eggs?"

Plants with...properties of some sort. The eggs in return, however, could be of many potential origins. The Garra had learned to navigate Haelys quite well. She knew how to be informational without being too instructive. She could practically see the many gears in the woman's head twirling.

"Might someone be willing to pay for a valuable type of egg? Whether that be for beauty or taste."

I am sure that's a possibility, especially with you as the saleswoman. Haelys gave Marlene a small smirk of satisfaction.

Without a bag to hold anything, the woman folded up four of the posters to create a makeshift pouch. The fifth was kept separate for the map. The Queen didn't know much about herbs, but was sure that many were useful in certain ways considering some of her people would use them, such as to pack a wound or soothe the ill. And yet, here she was dropping a handful of long green blades into the pouch. Grass. She was putting grass in the container. Marlene looked over with slightly concerned eyes.

I wonder how knowledgeable they are about herbs or if they will be picky about what is offered. The Garra's words were casual, as if she was voicing a random, passing thought. Haelys thought it best to reassure her.

"If they wanted specific herbs, they should have stated such. You cannot complain about something you did not receive when you fail to ask for it." Marlene stayed silent—while the woman's words were true, that didn't change the fact that generic grass was not an herb...

Luckily, the Queen was throwing a bit of this and that in there, so the grass was not more than a couple handfuls. Other plants that managed to be hastily grabbed included sorrel, moss, mugwort, clover, and catnip (it was only a coincidence that some of these were herbs). On a slightly more concerning note, some calea made it in as well. Earthlings would know this plant as the "Mexican Dream Herb". Hebacious could have quite the fun dream experience tonight if he wanted to make some tea out of it. There were also a couple unidentified additions which might only be recognized by a native Whazzitian. One was covered in intricate patterns of blue, green, and yellow. They were bright enough that some may have concern for toxicity if they were going off of color. The other was...fuzzy? Yes, it had hair. Little tiny brown hairs that swayed when the leaves were picked up. If you squeezed too tight, a very tiny scream could barely be heard.

Whether or not a single thing in Haelys' makeshift paper pouch was actually a viable herb made no difference to her. This woman had no issues making the intended trade with all the confidence of an herbalist. So when the pair arrived at the hut, the Queen marched right up to the backyard fence.

"I'm here to trade these herbs for eggs, as requested," she stated calmly. Her blue-gray eyes slid sideways to inspect the other three standing nearby. She had already inserted herself close to the fence, not quite inviting herself inside the backyard, but leaving a silent pressure to advance forward. She did, after all, want to try and make the trade before others took all the eggs. It would be even better if she could have first pick, just in case she was able to snatch the best ones despite her minimal knowledge about what made a good mystery egg. She did not give a reaction to the other traders, although internally she was mildly uncomfortable at the unexpected variation (a tiny bird-man and a tall insect-lady). Not to mention this hut was...quaint (this thought held quite some condescension). She could, however, easily put these two issues aside to focus on her top priority: gaining something valuable.

[Ara]

Hebacious was scowling, arms crossed at the alchemy table when Zirah strolled in. When he heard the greeting, his head snapped up. Purple eyes brightened when he saw the herbs, though. "Brilliant!" His tone was tired yet brusque. He approached the basket and surveyed what was brought to him. Many different options, yes. One of these might just work. "That's the trouble- I don't know exactly what I'm looking for. But yes, these are good, these are options. With luck, one of these will finish my po-" he cut off when a crow... man... approached with a large sack.

At first, the mage was curious. He brought herbs that moved? He didn't know that was a possibility here! But as quickly as the light shone in his eyes, it was snuffed out, by the muffled voice behind the burlap insisting his name was Henry. Hebacious had not prepared for this sort of miscommunication, and openly stared at Tuk-Tuk while his brain registered what just happened. "Are you daft?" he queried, gazing at the tengu up and down. "I asked for herbs, as in plants. Not a person." He rubbed his temples and sighed. Did he really care, right now? I mean, this nice intelligent fellow had brought him a whole basket full. And he really didn't want any left over eggs...

Cyprena's approach was regarded more warily, but the items in her bucket weren't moving, so the tenseness in his shoulders relaxed as he nodded. "Very good. Put them on the table." He gestured to an empty space besides the basket Zirah brought. "I'll put this out and give you your carrying...vessels..." He drifted off, staring at the moving sack again, then shook himself out of it. "... back."

They seemed to be coming in quick succession now- those posters really did work well, that was pleasing- and Haelys and Marlene were ushered closer with a few quick gestures with his right hand. The presence of the unicorn barely made him blink, although he did give the Garra slgiht nod of acknowledgement. He was a Whazzitian, after all, and he knew how rare unicorns were. "Yes, brilliant, bring them here. You can set them on the table. I'll go through these and give you your pouch back. Ah, yes! The eggs." Hebacious spun neatly on his heel, gesturing further into his backyward. If you followed his arm, it pointed to the "wher" house, where you could see two fast whirling eyes peering from inside. In front of the entrance was a clutch of large, wildly colored eggs. They were clearly not painted, rather just naturally colorful.

"Those are the eggs. You may take one each. You'll need Hebask's supervision on choosing, though. She's very peculiar." He turned back towards his table, starting to pull out herbs and categorize them neatly. At her name, the eyes slowed down in their whirling and a bulky golden wher stepped out of the shadows. She rumbled to four of them, head hanging low near the back of the clutch. One of the eggs shuddered. It had begun!

[ooc; Go and approach the egg you are interested in! They will hatch while you are at Hebacious', not to worry. Just be careful of Hebask. Also, joining is still open!]

[Deleted]

Zirah was delighted that his many options just might help the fellow potion maker. He definitely understood how difficult it was to complete something when you didn't quite know what was missing. Sometimes, it just took trial and error, and a bit of random luck. "If there is anything I can do to help, just let me know." He offered, happy and sincere.

And then the crow-man showed up and Zirah was left staring with concern at the sack. And then at Tuk-tuk. And then back to the sack. "..." Was he supposed to say something about that?

Other people were showing up, and the mage felt a trickle of anxiety creeping into his good mood. He stepped aside awkwardly, made sure he wasn't in the way for anyone to put there own baskets of plants down...though he clearly made sure he wasn't moving closer to Tuk-tuk. Because. Um. No.But still, he was here for eggs, just like everyone else, and everyone else seemed to be addressing Hebacious and ignoring him, and that was something he could easily deal with. No awkward hellos, no stepping on toes or insulting people because he got the hello wrong. He could just collect his eggs, soon hopefully, and get out of here.

And he didn't even have to bring up the eggs himself. Brilliant. Let someone else deal with the potential awkward question. Curious, he eyed the structure, and frowned at the eyes, and....well. There went his wonderfully good day.

Because oh.

Oh.

That wasn't a chicken, or even something he considered an eating beast. Frankly, it looked like something out of his nightmares. Or something some deranged scientist would make in a lab, to sic on innocent people and anyone that got in the ruling group's way.

Not that he'd had witnessed anything like that in his life or anything. Clearly not.

The rumbling made him inch a step back. They were to pick an egg in front of that creature and, ...what? He assumed they were fertile, he assumed they were going to hatch into mini-nightmares, and, okay. Assuming had gotten him here in the first place, but, you know. This was more logical conclusions, really.

"Thank you," Zirah stuttered out anxiously. "But I believe I'm good." He was just, you know. Happy to help with the herbs. He didn't need anything else. Especially not brightly colored eggs that would hatch into something that would doubtlessly murder him at some point. Or, even worse, destroy his books.

[Bucky]

Eggs? EGGS?

What did that mean? Was this code for some sort of Whazzity thing? Were they eating eggs? Hatching eggs? GOLDEN eggs? Candy eggs? Chicken eggs or quail eggs he could actually hatch would be amazing, but there was literally no information, so his imagination was absolutely running wild.

It was eating Bucky up and he had to know.

Now, when it came to herbs… he wasn’t exactly sure what constituted an herb. He knew it was used in cooking, so did that count as any sort of green plant used in cooking? What about things in ‘herbal’ remedies?

Heck, he figured he’d just run with it. One thing was for certain, wherever he camped out for the night, the local flora of where he lived seemed to grow. It was super weird, but very comforting. There was one thing at this time of ‘year’ that always seemed to grow en masse. Dandelions. Everywhere.

And dandelions were VERY good for you.

He didn’t just pick a few. He picked. BUSHEL. Jeez, they were literally everywhere. He completely filled up a basket of both flowers, leaves and even some cleaned roots. Feeling quite confident in his offering, he took the poster showing the route to the Hebacious’ hut, and went on his first adventure.

He was a touch late; several people had already appeared with their offerings of herbs. Hopefully that wasn’t a bad thing… Bucky sheepishly approached and put the large basket of dandelions onto the alchemy basket as he gave the instructions on just how one went about choosing an egg.

Wait. Choosing.. an egg?

Wide-eyed, Bucky followed the group to what seemed like some sort of hut or house, but it didn’t smell like ‘house’, it smelled like something that wasn’t human lived in there.

“Whaaaat??” Bucky put his hands to his head in disbelief, his words coming out in a strained whisper.

Zirah looked horrified, and that was probably the NORMAL reaction, because the huge hulking golden beast was absolutely -terrifying-. It was like a Bulldog-themed hellhound and a lizard made a baby, then that baby grew up, then made a baby with a dragon.

Bucky loved it. Could he hug it? It was probably definitely going to bite. Okay so he was going to leave THAT one alone.

“An egg? Really? WE get one? For real? And it’ll turn into one of THESE amazing creatures?” He gestured reverently to the likely HIGHLY dangerous queen wher before cupping his face in his hands.

“I’m so excited, Y’all, I can’t even.”

He side-stepped Zirah, taking a closer look at the eggs. Oh, Khajiit Has Wares Egg looked amazing.

“Would.. would it be okay if I got that one? Does nobody else mind?” He pointed to the egg in question, not quite trusting his luck that he was actually allowed to get one. Who was he asking? He wasn’t entirely sure. HIs gaze kept flitting between the huge potential golden murderbeast and the Hebacious guy.

When one of the eggs shuddered, he gasped. “Oh mah gawwwd! You guys I think it's haaaatching!”

Yes Bucky, thanks for letting everyone know. 

[Tuk-tuk]

"It's AN HERB," Tuk-Tuk corrected. He was right. Give him bounty. He blinked blankly at the inquiry into his daftness. He did not know what daft meant. At least Tuk-Tuk was silent as other sgathered around, simply waiting on teetering tiptoes to be given his prize.

EGGS.

As soon as he had the go ahead, he scrambled forward, only half-hearing warnings to let Hebask help him choose. He flapped his wingarms in an excited fluster. "I don't care," he told Bucky, eyes captivated by the more... garish options. Like the High Hrothgar's searing magenta, or the Skooma Bottle's practically-on-fire flamey colours.

Maybe he could take two. He was pretty fast. And small. And had two arms, one for each egg. Hmmm.

[Haelys Celtaris]

With the invitation from Hebacious to step closer, Haelys did not hesitate to enter the backyard and deposit her plant-filled pouch on the table. As a side note, this was quite a strange table. What exactly was happening here? Although the man's alchemical activities were both mysterious and intriguing to the woman, she quickly shifted her attention back to her original task. She felt pressure to hurry at his words, for she would rather take an egg and get out of here before Hebacious had time to sift through her pouch. There was a chance he would not be satisfied with her potentially unhelpful choices and she might be forced to argue over what she deserved as a reward. Luckily, there were a few others here and many herbs to go through, so she should have time.

Marlene remained at the fence line, waiting patiently for the exchange to be made. She offered Hebacious a nod of her head in return. Indigo-blue eyes then settled on the clutch of eggs, admiring their naturally brilliant shells. They are beautiful, she complimented.

Haelys would have agreed, but she was too busy staring back at the eyes that whirled from inside the giant mini-house. What was that?

As Hebask stepped forward, Haelys' heart dropped into her stomach. She instinctively took a huge step back, nearly running into the alchemy table. Fear—it was something that she did not often experience, for she was quite good at blocking her human instincts and covering them up with her armor-like confidence. This. This was different.

"A dragon?" Her voice sounded as if she was out of breath even though she was not moving. Her tone was almost accusatory, as if Hebacious had sent them into a trap that would surely kill them all.

Marlene was alarmed at the sound of her bonded's voice. She had never seen her like this before. The Unicorn took a step forward, kindness and patience emanating from her.

Though I do believe they are related, that is no dragon. She spoke as if it was comforting, but Haelys whipped around towards her with a certain wildness in her eyes.

"Does it matter what they call it here if you're dead either way?" Her biting tone was anger that stemmed from fear rather than her usual all-hail-me snappiness. The Garra fell silent. Everything in Haelys was telling her to turn around and leave immediately. Run. Where dragons were, destruction was not far behind. How was this creature allowed to live anywhere near civilization? Did these people want an apocalypse on their hands?

If only because two of the others did not show fear, she stood in place. She figured if the deformed Dragon (she had finally figured out that Unicorns were not simply mutilated horses, by the way) was to eat anyone first, it would likely be somebody in closer proximity to start. She did not want to show weakness to strangers. Besides, something that ran might be more enticing prey.

"Just hand me an egg. I don't care which." She spoke in a low tone, unsure if she was addressing Hebacious or someone else. Her usual confident tone was lost and her eyes avoided contact with the hulking beast that towered over them all. It was also extremely unlike Haelys to not make a choice, but her life took priority over which egg was most valuable at this point. She didn't even know how much she wanted the egg anymore. It would be safest for everyone if they destroyed them all.

[Ara]

It seemed like a couple of the gatherers were unsure, perhaps even apprehensive, of the clutch of eggs. That did not bother Hebask. That meant an easy handler to manipulate for some of her children, which was pleasing to her. The flashy colored gold rumbled. At the alchemy table, Hebacious recognized that noise as one of satisfaction, but he was too enraptured to look. Herbs were being sorted too fast to be normal, and the mage was already starting to add some of them into his concoction. As a crackling came from the now dark purple liquid, and sparks were sent shimmering up, an egg burst open.

From the Alchemy Table Egg, a dark body spilled out. Small wings immediately opened, flapping slightly to get the egg goo off. The Gleamblossom Sapphire slowly straightened his body out, crawled from the heart of the clutch, and settled by the side. He gazed at the small ragtag group of people quietly, not uttering a sound. His mother hissed softly, and he flicked his tail in acknowledgement. He wanted to watch, to learn, and he wasn't ready to move just yet.

But that was okay with Hebask, as another egg suddenly smashed into it's neighbor. Both of them crumbled away. The Talos Guide You Egg was first to give way to its occupant. She was quite the opposite from her brother, as she soon clucked and hissed the second air filled her lungs. The Nirnroot Emerald was not one to let the attention get away from her, and she certainly wasn't going to let her brother steal it! With a furious hiss at him, she swiped, but the young sapphire merely moved away further away from people and settled down again. Satisfied, the Emerald spun on the onlookers, gaze locking with Bucky. She crooned to him, stretching herself out and reaching up on her hind legs. Won't you give her attention?

Meanwhile, in the midst of that dramatic show, the Skooma Bottle Egg lay broken and empty. Where had the wher inside run off to? Should anyone take another look around, they'd find the sneaky hatchling near Hebacious' alchemy table. The potion he was brewing was still purple, but now with swirls of blue and silver oil. The Moon Sugar Agate was reaching up, claws grasping the edge of the cauldron while Hebacious was frowning at his newly gathered herbs. Before the mage could even realize what was happening, the Agate pulled, and the potion spilled everywhere. It coated the Agate thoroughly, and the hatchling screeched in fury. The potion itself didn't seem to do anything- perhaps it was only effective if ingested- but it did smell very nice. Like honey and sweet flowers. Which the Moon Sugar hated.

Somebody intervene? Maybe? Send help?

[Bucky]

The eggs began to crack, and the whole idea of picking an egg quickly became moot point. The little creatures, no bigger than cats as newly hatched critters, began doing whatever little things they wished to do. The sapphire looked keen to just watch, but the Nirnroot Emerald was not content to let anyone else be the focus of the show.

Even more surprising was that she was looking at HIM! There was a moment where he wasn’t sure whether her intent was to maul him, and he squared his stance just a little if he needed to make evasive maneuvers. What it turned into though, was a stout squat so that the emerald could reach him better.

“Awwwww! Ain’t that just the cutest dang little noise I ever did hear! Hey little sweetness, you want a little pet?”

Sure he’d had a preferred egg, but one did NOT just ignore when a little critter wanted attention. After all, what if it was the one? Would a person just ignore the puppy that loved you most in a litter when you went to pick one out? Maybe if they had absolutely no heart! (A little judgmental there, Bucky! There are valid reasons for being selective about pet personality!) But Bucky was very stoutly ignoring any meta comments that drifted through the fourth dimensional cheese grater.

As much as Bucky wanted to literally scoop up the emerald and never let her go, he was at least a little cautious and offered his hand first for her to sniff and get to know him. He’d NEVER be able to be mad at such a little cutie even if she totally mauled his face during the smooches he totally wanted to put on her suede-leather face, but it was always good to avoid those things until he knew his attentions would actually be welcome.

When the potion spilled everywhere, Bucky’s stomach actually lurched. Had the contents been hot? Was the little creature hurt? It seemed unharmed, just very pissed off. Anxious that he’d break the spell with the little emerald, he pulled out a handkerchief from his back pocket and offered it out to the other hatching-goers who might be interested in the Moon Sugar Agate. “Anyone need this for the little sweetness over there?”

In the same breath, he looked back to the Emerald. “Ain’t that right? Your little sibling got right messy! Ain’t that right? Aiiint that right?” He crooned in thickly southern-drawled baby talk.




TL:DR:

-- Bucky baby talks potentially bitey Nirnroot Emerald and offers her a hand to sniff.
--Offers Hanky to anyone who was intending to help Moon Sugar Agate.
-Deleted my dumb. 

[Tuk-tuk]

Despite his intrigue and apparently oblivity to danger, Tuk-Tuk instinctively skipped back a step when the first egg hatched, the Sapphire within startling him more than the lurking momma had. It was moving! Momma wasn't moving. Moving monsters were much more life-threatening than not-moving monsters. He understood that much, at least.

Briefly hypnotized by watching the ugly beast, he missed the Skooma Bottle's hatching, and it wasn't until the Sapphire was still again from its hatching fuss that he realized his pretty egg baby was gone. He chirped once and frowned, disappointed that it was busted and didn't have anything to show for it. So much for stealing that o--

Tuk-Tuk screeched to match the Agate's screeching, having no idea why it was happening but hearing it and immediately matching it. He whirled around, head twisting in almost comical angles looking for the victim-slash-perpetrator, and cawwed roughly at the Moon Sugar Agate open spotting it thrashing and scrawing itself.

"WHY," Tuk-Tuk yelled at it, flapping in frantic emotion. We do not know what he was asking why about, because it seems pretty straightforward to us why everything was happening, but the brains of bird boys is a strange landscape indeed.

[Haelys Celtaris]

As Marlene observed the happenings in front of her, it was as if a single domino managed to knock over five other rows… What chaos. And although Haelys was not typically a woman of chaos, in this particular scenario, the Garra recognized that her bonded would only make things worse. The Unicorn's mouth gaped open slightly as she considered whether or not to intervene.

At first, the human queen seemed to be frightened in place, not a movement or sound coming from her as the little creatures emerged from their shells. It was like watching a horror movie. Everybody thought these things were so harmless and cute. But it was only a matter of time before limbs were ripped off and the world burned. Didn't these other people know the tales about Dragons? How ignorant could they be?!

The Agate screeched. Tuk-tuk screeched. Haelys followed suit, shrieking as she spun around to face the alchemy table, backing up, tripping over uneven ground, and landing on her butt in the backyard. Some of the potion managed to splatter over her dress and face, a single drop running down her cheek and sneaking into the corner of her mouth.

Spinning over onto her hands and knees, she found herself in arm's reach of the remaining eggs. Greed overtook her. If she could grab one that didn't seem to be hatching yet, perhaps they could rush to the village and sell it before the deceivingly itty bitty creature of destruction emerged. She reached out a hand slowly, internally embarrassed that she could see it shaking in front of her. For whatever reason, something about the Sovengarde Awaits Egg called her attention to it. Untrusting grey-blue eyes slid to the side to gauge the reaction of the hulking golden death-monster nearby. It took all her bravery to even look in that direction, for the dread in her heart was very real. Should the Gold object in any way, Haelys would immediately abandon her mission and likely crawl to the safety of Marlene. But if no potentially-threatening actions were made, she would grab the egg and attempt to flee as best she could in the current disorder. That is, if her knees didn't buckle.

[Deleted]

Today was just going steadily downhill, and Zirah just wanted to give up on this day, go home, and maybe take a nap. It clearly wasn't worth it. He could worry about food-eggs and baking later. Maybe pretend this never happened.

A lot of things were happening very quickly, and it was starting to get very loud. Which did nothing for Zirah's mood or anxiety. Someone new showed up, and the mage just had to wince a little at how loud and...enthusiastic...Bucky was. He was happy to inch further out of his way so he could get closer to the nightmare and her eggs. But at least he didn't seem to be the only one so uncomfortable with things -- Haelys looked possibly even worse than him, though she didn't have the streak of cowardliness he had. She was at least willing to get an egg.

And then the eggs started hatching, and the noise volume increased, as did the chaos of the entire event.

"Oh, my." He muttered to himself, as everything went to Hell in a handbasket. The Agate knocked the potion and got covered with it, and screeched. The crow-thing flapped and screeched. Haelys screeched and fell and got potion on her and still was far braver then him, reaching for an egg in the aftermath of that all. Zirah kind of wanted to avoid all the other screaming idiots and go see if she was okay, because that seemed like the proper thing to do, but. Well. The nightmare was still there, more of them might hatch, and he was still too much a coward.

If he got through the next hour without a panic attack, it was going to be a miracle.

The only thing that kept him in the yard was the paralyzing fear he'd be laughed out of the village if he turned tail and ran now.

So he just stood there. Wringing his hands nervously. He tried to keep an eye on both the unhatched eggs, and where the mobile hatchlings were, but really. This was not something he was going to win. Maybe if he was honest with himself, he might admit that the Nordic Tombs Egg or even the High Hrothgar Egg were rather lovely looking. But, well. Zirah wasn't ready to be honest and also monsters would hatch out of it. So. 

It's going to be a long day. He had many regrets. 

[Cyprena Sevenius]

Ren did as she was instructed easily, picking up the bucket with her arms, and lugging it over to the table. She did take a peek at what some of the others had brought, and nope, she still had no clue what she was doing. But as Hebacious talked about the eggs, she turned her attention to them, and noticed the Gold Wher, assuming immediately that this was perhaps the mama.

She let out a hiss through her teeth, almost like a whistle but lacking the lips part to make the sound. This, this was going to become a whole thing now wasn’t it. She felt herself on both sides of this reaction spectrum. A part of herself was on edge because, well, that mama looked mean and ugly. No offense, really, Ren was sure that plenty of the other species around her thought that she looked ugly herself, but she felt what she had been taught from a young age in her bones and that was to not fuck with mama monsters. Again, no offense.

The other part of her was endlessly curious about why exactly she was supposed to choose an egg. She didn’t exactly leap at the opportunity, like new jolly dude Bucky or kindapper Tuk-Tuk, but she’d be damned if she didn’t wonder what it would be like to have one of those mama monsters on her side.

And then they began to hatch.

She watched the Sapphire first, but her attention was quickly drawn to each new hatchling that slithered or hissed or was covered in potions. And then things got loud. A strange chorus of sweet baby talk and crooning and shrieking. Ren grit her teeth together, but stalked over to Bucky, grabbing the handkerchief and bending down to the Agate to wipe some of the mess off of her. She didn’t know if the stuff would burn her like acid (didn’t seem to be hurting the little one), nor if she’d lose her hand anyway to the jaws of this thing (she wasn’t much for babies, honestly), but she muttered under her breath to it anyway.

“Hush now, or you’ll wake all of your siblings up.” She didn’t know if this one piece of fabric would do the trick, but she looked for the mage who owned this place, stealing glances at Hebask too. “Do you have...a shower for this thing?” She didn’t even know what she was going to say. She’d had her eyes on one of the eggs, The Dragonborn Comes, but she had a similar mind as Tuk-Tuk for the moment. Deal with the moving thing first.

[Ara]

The Nirnroot was very pleased with Bucky’s attention. He had just the right amount of coo’ing, just the right amount of sweetness in her voice. She allowed the pets, crooning to him sweetly. Yes that’s right, all eyes on her. Just the way she wa- suddenly there was screeching. A LOT of screeching. She watched as his attention moved from her to her idiot sister. As the Agate was covered in potion, and a chain reaction of screeches happened, the Emerald hissed furiously. A swipe of her claws ran across the outstretched arm of Bucky, and she spun around and charged through the remaining eggs to her mother. Hebask hissed and comfortingly nudged her daughter.

Because of their sister’s rough handling, the Khajiit Has Wares Egg couldn’t stand not seeing everything himself. The shell burst outward, egg pieces scattering amongst the nest. In its place now stood the Creep Cluster Bronze. He churred in a deep rumble, stretching out his wings. He heard his emerald sister hiss in annoyance, but she was ignored. He stepped delicately around the rest of his siblings, stopping when his other sister started making a fuss.

The other sister being the Moon Sugar Agate, of course. She was shrieking and had rapidly back pedalled away from the cauldron. Hebacious was cursing, dropping the herbs and reaching over to pick the cauldron back up and place it back on his table. The Agate was standing there, disgusted with the sweet smelling liquid all over her. Ren was given a sharp, suspicious look upon her approach. She hissed and lashed her tail, but when she started wiping the goo off of her, she settled immediately. Hebacious, scowling, said, “No, I don’t. You can try dumping a bucket of water on her.” He jerked his head towards a bucket near the table. But the Agate wasn’t having any of that. She allowed her to get the majority of the liquid off, and once the smell had been reduced considerably, she snarled again and dashed off.

Since the shrieking had quieted down, another egg decided to emerge. Arrow to the Knee Egg cracked and split neatly to allow a much calmer hatchling out into the backyard of the mage. The Deathbell Amethyst emerged and looked around. She clicked, swinging her head low. This was not satisfying, no. These people didn’t look like they knew what they were doing. Tail lashing, she took out her immediate anger on the poor egg next to her- The Nordic Tombs Egg to be exact. The egg itself wasn’t looking too great to begin with. The Deathbell slammed her tail into the egg, sending it rolling away from the rest of the clutch. The mother of the clutch snarled at her daughter, standing roughly and displacing the Nirnroot, who hissed even more. Meanwhile, the egg stopped halfway to the alchemy table. It shuddered, and a couple pieces fell away. Then it stopped. Enough of a chunk was removed, revealing the Nordic Barnacle Opal- but it couldn’t get out on it’s own. It needed help.

Tuk-Tuk would suddenly find himself standing next to the Creep Cluster Bronze. He had moved to his side, drawn by his yelled question and flapping motion. The bronze’s head tilted to the side, silent and staring. What was your issue, strange creature?

Oh, and poor Haelys. For all of her guts, she wasn’t going to be rewarded very well. The Sovengarde Awaits Egg sensed her approach. Hebask saw it, but was too busy snarling at her two daughters to give the queen any heed. The egg rocked as Haelys got close, then it cracked and crumbled and split apart to reveal the Slaughterfish Scales Iron. The Iron was standing, still dripping, his eyes locked on her. A low rumble started in his throat. He refused to break eye contact. What would you do? Run? Approach? Choose carefully.

ooc.
Sorry if I missed anything! A lot of the babes are hatching now. I will be hopefully making another post sometime this week, as I'm on vacation, but no pressure if you can't get it in! Joining will remain open until all whers have been bonded.

[Deleted]

Look, when it came down to it, Zirah would spend all day telling himself he was a useless coward. He'd happily mentally berate himself, beat himself up, and just generally be outright cruel to himself. It was a longstanding habit, brought on by years of living in a toxic environment where he didn't fit in and couldn't bring himself to do what he was told.

He was simply utterly blinded to how his actions, when push came to shove, were anything but cowardly.

The Whers were terrifying to him. The loud group was pushing his anxiety to its limits. He wanted to go home, and possibly have a good cry, and maybe not leave his house again for the next five years. He didn't want to touch an egg, let alone handle one of the hatchlings. He certainly didn't consider what might happen if one tried to follow him home. Shaking hands, quick, shallow breathing....he was one small push over the edge into a panic attack that probably would be dangerous to have around wild hatchlings.

And then a sickly looking egg rolled away from the clutch.

A chunk was missing, and a baby seemed to be stuck. The egg had already been attacked once, and who knew how the hatchling inside fared. If it was alive at all. If it was on the brink of death.

He could turn a blind eye to it. It would put him that much closer to the nest and the mother and the other rampaging babies. He could pretend he didn't notice, didn't see, didn't think it might die there. Someone else would surely help, right?

Except he just. Couldn't. It was impossible for Zirah to ignore that. Whatever killer nightmares these were, it was still a baby, and it deserved a chance at life. 

One shaky step forward became two, then three. He found himself taking deeper breaths, though his hands were still trembling, his body still on the edge of fight or flight. But he moved closer, one terrified step at a time, and sunk to his knees next to the Nordic Tombs Egg. "Dear child, please don't maul me after this." He murmured nervously. A quick glance around, hoping the mother and none of the other little demons were paying attention, before he reached out with shaking fingers to grab the egg. He went for the hole that was already made, and began to try and pull more of the shell away from the hatchling inside. 

He could do this. Free it and then he would be able to retreat and maybe no one would care if he took off home after. 

But he'd never be able to forgive himself if he didn't try, and he found out later the poor thing had died.

[Haelys Celtaris]

Dread washed throughout her like a quick poison. The egg. It was moving. Not only was she surrounded by creatures that would grow to be the end of this world, but the reality that she would not be able to sell any of these eggs weighed her shaky arms down. The hand that had been reaching forward fell to the ground in a pitiful, hopeless droop.

She wanted to be angry (furious) at Hebacious for promising eggs and delivering double-muscled dragon babies instead, but luckily for him, she was preoccupied with everything around her—particularly the thing in front of her. She stayed very still, grey-blue gaze locking with that of the Iron's. She couldn't tell if he seemed bigger than the others because he actually was or because her fear was playing tricks on her. Her initial instinct was to scramble and run, but her logic was screaming that she was practically asking to be prey if she chose such a move.

A long, shaky breath entered her nostrils, then exited out her slightly-parted lips. Palms to the ground, she slowly pushed her torso up and back. Head and shoulders were held high, but stiff with forced posture. She was practically crawling backwards in slow-motion, attempting to make a pseudo-confident exit. She didn't break eye contact—not for the sake of dominance, but because she was worried if she took her eyes off of him, he might lunge.

Haelys' expression and body language were practically saying 'I won’t bother you if you don't bother me.' Could a mutual agreement be made with such a creature? Probably not, but it felt like the best option at this point. A tiny voice in the back of her head was cheering for the fact that Hebask had not yet mauled her.