She had the fire-lizard queen on her hand by the fifth lure. She rose carefully to her feet, popping food into the wide maw every time it opened, and moved away from the hearth and the chaos there.
For it was chaos, with the over anxious men making every mistake in the Record, despite her advice. Merons three eggs cracked almost at once. Two hatchlings immediately set upon each other while Meron was awkwardly trying to imitate Kylaras actions. In his greed, hed probably lose all three, she thought with malicious pleasure. Then she saw that there were other bronzes emerging. Well, all was not lost when her queen needed to mate.
Two men had managed to coax fire lizards to their hands and had followed Kylaras example by removing themselves from the confused cannibalism on the hearth.
How much do we feed them, Weyrwoman? one asked her, his eyes shining with incredulous joy and astonishment.
Let them eat themselves insensible. Theyll sleep and theyll stay by you. As soon as they wake, feed them again. And if they complain about itchy skin, bathe and rub them with oil. A patchy skin breaks between and the awful cold can kill even a fire lizard or dragon. How often shed told that to weyrlings when shed had to lecture them as Weyrwoman. Well, Brekke did that now, thank the First Egg.
But what happens if they go between? How do we keep them?
You cant keep a dragon. He stays with you. You dont chain a dragon like a watch-wher, you know.
She became bored with her role as instructor and replenished her supply of meat. Then, disgustedly observing the waste of creatures dying on the hearth, she mounted the steps to the Inner Hold. Shed wait in Merons chambers thered better be no one else there now to see if he had, after all, managed to Impress a fire lizard.
Prideth told her that she wasnt happy that she had transported the clutch to death on a cold, alien hearth.
They lost more than this at Southern, silly one, Kylara told her dragon. This time weve a pretty darling of our own.
Prideth grumbled on the fire ridge, but not about the lizard so Kylara paid her no heed.