To 'complete' this Event, please respond to at least one toucher from each touching group: the Leaders, the Led, the Believers, and the True; and complete the Alternate Response prompt.
The Wheel:
15 / nb
They were looking forward to another Hatching! Only so old, still the Wheel had been to several Hatchings and felt like they had the routine down by now. The Touching was one of the calmer parts, but this time it was different. The tides had changed for these poor eggs and now they lay in ruins under a canvas sky that only barely kept out the weather. The Wheel felt some sorrow for them but -- such was the way of the world. Sometimes things looked up, sometimes they looked down.
The Sun:
22 / f
What a joyous time to be alive! They had survived, and that was something to celebrate. Right? The Sun was a woman who knew she was a step ahead, knew she was one of the lucky ones -- and she thrived in it, would never throw that success away -- but something darker dogged her heels. The celebration of being alive, of the joy of survival, was not enough. How she hoped that the eggs would all hatch. The Sun didn’t know if that would be the straw that broke her back.
The Moon:
19 / m
The Moon was a calm soul, stepping in among the eggs without any pomp or excitement. The young man seemed to be motivated by a subtle kind of curiosity; in a way, he seemed to hide his own feelings and wait to reflect those he heard. He followed his whim around the clutch, putting his hand out when the moment seemed right. Yet even when he did so, the Moon didn’t release his mental cloak. He was afraid to be seen.
The Star:
18 / m
The Candidatemasters’ inspiring speech about the health of the eggs had put so much hope in the heart of the Star it seemed like he might burst from it. He was reverent as he carefully put his palm on every egg, projecting thoughts of happiness, trust, and wishes for health onto them. Like a glass castle, the Star’s faith always seemed an instant from crumbling; his mental voice was shrill and desperate, as if he could save himself by wishing others be hale.
The World:
16 / m
There was so much the World wanted to do when he grew up. And, if he was right, this would be the final step to achieving it all. The boy was giddy, but he kept it in with a deep breath. This was it, the end, he knew it -- he was going to impress like he’d always dreamed, and he and his dragon would be perfect partners and love each other so. A part of him deep down knew it wasn’t so neat an end, not at end at all, and he quailed before the uncountable future of it all.
Death:
22 / f
Death slumped into the tents and barely even looked at the eggs. She was exhausted. Not only by the events that had recently rocked the Weyr but also by doing this, again and again. If Death had another month to recover from the quake, perhaps she could have reflected on the beauty of the cycle of it, the beginning of new life and the silver linings of rising from the ashes. But for now... it felt like a sham. Two or three times a turn, Touching, Hatching, being left standing... and repeat.