D'Ren moaned and rolled over trying to get more comfortable.  But it 
was hard to do since he was laying on the stone floor of his room.  He 
wasn't sure how or when he returned from the dinning hall, but he knew 
that he had too much to drink.  Daylight leaked from under the door and 
dimly lit the room.  He slowly staggered to his feet, and steadied 
himself against a wall.

"That was definitely not worth it," he moaned as he held his head 
together and wished to the Gods for death.

***
D'Ren was feeling much better after he had taken a short walk and fed 
the birds.  He was slowly nursing a cup of strong herbal tea that 
Sarina had given him, she wasn't surprised that he needed it and had it 
waiting for him and his friends.  As he recovered his strength, he 
thought about seeing the eggs that Tymor had just laid.  Maybe Brisse 
would let him see them; Tymor was probably not in the mood for visitors 
right now...but he knew that this *was* the last chance he would ever 
have for becoming a dragon rider.  "This was it," he told himself, "If 
I do not find a dragon this time, I'm never going to, and I must 
promise myself to get on with my life."  The stoneworker stood, 
suddenly feeling like an old man that just realized he was no longer 
young.

"Thanks for the tea, Sarina!", he yelled and waved to the kindly cook 
as he walked out.  She waved back wishing him good health.  He walked 
out of the dinning hall and around the warren.  A warm dry wind blew 
through the warren, and D'Ren helped several workers secure a pavilion 
that had been blown done.  He then continued his stroll and before he 
knew it, he was stopped near the path to the hatching cave.  He looked 
anxiously at the cave entrance and fought back the urge to go up the 
path.  

"I can't do this to myself again.  I must accept the fact that I'm 
*never* going to be a dragon rider.  I just have to understand that I'm 
going to be landbound forever," he told himself and walked quickly 
away.

Tom Oesterman
joesterm@neo.lrun.com

D'Ren Stonecutter
Forever Landbound Stoneworker of Cleft Warren