[DL-J] Digging Up Trouble
By "Arlene E. Jacobs" <wondermom@ij.net>

Day 18
Afternoon
Dining Hall.

<SNIP from Jason's Post>
Rellik shoot his head, "Its not that, I tend to travel a lot, and will stay
here as long as there are such new and wonderful people and places to see
and research." Rellik indicated all the people around the hall, eating and
living their lives, "But eventually I will need to move on. I'd like that to
be understood."

The warrenlady nodded, "We can handle that I think. All the help you can
give us and our new riders would be greatly appreciated."
<End Snip>

"I know I would!" Corwin beamed, his loud voice booming over the noise of
the other diners. "I can't tell you how many times Sy and I wonder if we
should try somethings -- or if we'd get ourselves hurt or worse...."

Corwin launched into a discourse with Rellik on some of the finer points of
underwater maneuvers and the problems with teleporting from certain depths
to shallows or worse, into the air. Corwin pumped Rellik for information,
though his friendly manner made the whole seem rather like they were only
chatting. He was thankful to have the opportunity to learn about seadragons
from someone who had been around them a lot longer than he had.

Tara had nodded along with the conversation, though her eyes had been
scanning the crowds in the dining room as if looking for an escape. She saw
her chance as Shawnee and her mate came in to the dining hall. At a quick
pause in the conversation, and before Corwin could think of another
question, Tara broke in, "Rellik! You have to meet one of the other
Wingleaders... I see her over there! Will you excuse us, Corwin? I'd like
to introduce Rellik to Shawnee...."

Corwin could only nod, as Tara swiftly whisked Rellik away. Corwin gathered
up the empty dishes and piled them high and started off towards the kitchen.

****
"Can you believe what he wanted us to do?" Tyler grimaced as he felt the
aches and pains of muscles he didn't even know he'd had.

Several of the other new trainees nodded, adding their own complaints. But
as tired as they were from the workout, they were also famished.

They piled their plates full. As they headed for the only empty table, near
the door, they saw Aitzan dancing about, in an attempt to keep her lizard
Bakke from pulling hers down before they got a chance to sit. She cursed at
it, as the other trainees laughed.

Tyler attempted to shoo the pest away with his foot, only to have the lizard
attempt to climb him for his plate. As overladen as he was, it only took a
little push from the anxious lizard to send Tyler stumbling, his attempts to
regain his footing being made more difficult by the myriad legs and the tail
of the hungry creature. It happened all in a split second, when Tyler
collided with a much larger individual.

***
Yasu stood silently at the entrance to the dining hall, his eyes adjusting
to the dimmer lighting. He scanned the room wondering which of the
individuals there might be best to assist him in his attempts to enlighten
the rather rotund Selene. It was at that moment that he witnessed almost in
front of him some plates flying into the air, followed by a rather large
crash.

Ishtey and Jemma were out of the kitchen in a flash. Brooms swinging as
they batted indiscriminately at the legs of the hapless trainees as they
attempted to drive Bakke from the dining hall.

Yasu smiled. This was a good training lesson. Avoiding the broken crockery
as well as the swinging brooms while attempting to maintain a grip on dishes
and cups filled to overflowing. Very good training, indeed. He assessed
the abilities of each of the trainees as they either made it to a table with
their food intact, or ended up a casualty of Ishtey's swift broom.

Bakke, he noted, had snatched several interesting selections from the
spilled food, and had made it under one of the larger tables, where she was
munching happily, out of reach of the irate cooks.

And while everyone was distracted, the point of a yellow snout edged as
close to the doorway as possible, and a long, pink tongue slipped in through
the doorway, and began licking up the smorgasbord.

Yasu shook his head. His eyes met Corwin's, who though having lost his
plates, had remained rather unscathed by any flying food. "Friend, Corwin,
if you would be so kind... I think this tongue belongs to a certain yellow
dragon whom Lady Tara has asked me to council. Do you think perhaps you and
your dragon could assist me in this?"

Corwin stepped gingerly, at least for one his size, over the crockery and
joined Yasu at the door. "Why, I do believe you are right. This tongue
does look like it belongs to a certain yellow dragon."

<*Syngnath? I hate to interrupt your games, but... I need some help with
your friend Selene...*> Corwin sent to his soul mate

A moment later the sea-green dragon landed outside the dining hall. He
watched as the large, yellow dragon scrabbled with her claws at the edges of
the dining hall doorway, her nose pressed as far into the hall as she could
manage. <HMM.. Uh, Selene? My rider is inside and I think he'd like to get
out?>

***
TAG KK and Chris!
***
Later Afternoon
The Beach.

"So, buckets...and a large tub...?" Corwin looked around wondering where
they'd find such items.

"I know where we can get those. There's a storeroom over by the barracks,"
Elly smiled.

The two riders walked the short distance over to the barracks and found the
room just as Elly had recalled. There were all sorts of interesting items
in there, including many empty bags stacked neatly besides some shovels.

Elly shivered when she saw those, recalling how Lainie'd nearly drowned
during that terrible storm when the sand bags that they'd been stacking to
keep out the flood waters had given way. If Elly hadn't been there to save
her... she shook it off, no good thinking of that!

They each grabbed a few buckets, and Corwin piled his into a very large tub
which they took to the hatching cavern. They dug up some of the sand and
put a soft layer in the tub as Syngnath directed. Then, each carrying a
pair of buckets, they strolled down to the sea. Syngnath followed, looking
on as the humans filled the buckets with seawater and trudged back up the
path to the warren.

<It will take a lot more water than those four buckets...> Sy warned.

Corwin relayed that information to Elly, who sighed, as they repeated the
process. By the third trip their arms were aching and their backs were
sore. By the fourth trip down and back from the water's edge, Elly found
herself too tired to return again, and sat down on the hatching sand to
rest.

"Syngnath insists that the tub needs to be completely filled, and we need to
roll the egg carefully into the bucket." Corwin frowned, trying to imagine
how they'd get the egg up into the tub.

"Maybe we should have dug a whole and set the tub into it?" Elly frowned at
the unanticipated problem.

"Or we can build a ramp and roll the egg up the ramp..." Corwin slumped to
the ground beside her.

They both looked from the partially filled tub to the orange egg and back.

"A ramp." Elly answered.

"A hole." Corwin stated at the same time.

They both laughed. They argued a bit, but finally decided a hole would be
easier than a ramp, as they could pull the tub into the hole and then finish
filling it with water. They set to work digging the hole, while Iris
snoozed and Syngnath looked on. After a while, another set of eyes joined
the observation.

Raven had been drawn to the cavern by some inexplicable force, and if anyone
had asked him what he was doing there, he wouldn't have been able to answer.
But what he saw were two people laboring over a hole while two dragons
looked on. It was almost comical. Yet...

Without turning to look, Corwin called out to the person standing in the
doorway, "Don't just stand their gawking, come in and help!"

****
TAG Han and John.

****
Respectfully submitted by:
Arlene Jacobs
AKA
Corwin, Maritime Wingleader and rider of Syngnath
& Tyler, rider of Plastyra.
Of Jasra Warren.