#I wrote this in the middle of Foolish and Leo's stream today

[shikai-the-storyteller]

Dragon eggs take a long time to incubate, and an even longer time to hatch. Longer than most human lifespans.

There were dragons living on Quesadilla Island, and dragon eggs discovered in an abandoned nest, once upon a time.

The Federation conducted many experiments on these eggs over time, but a few decades after their discovery, they suddenly woke up.

Not hatched. Woke up.

These Eggs were sentient and had their own personalities – their own thoughts and emotions. They were more than the Federation was prepared to handle, so they assigned island residents to take care of them.

But after a year, one by one, the Eggs fell back into a deep slumber.

Time and time again, this cycle repeated. The Eggs woke up, the Federation invited residents to take care of them, and after a year they would fall asleep.

This time was a little different.

Perhaps it was because of the Islanders, or perhaps it was because of the Eggs themselves. Either way, the Federation never figured out the catalyst. It was not in their nature to understand anything outside the realm of fact and logic.

One year passed, one year full of adventure and danger, and not every Egg made it to the end. But the bonds that came from that year, and the families and friendships that formed, were stronger than any other that came before.

But a year passed all the same, and though the Eggs never remembered their previous awakenings, somehow, they always knew when it was time to sleep.

There were tears and hugs and promises made, and the Islanders’ grief was rivaled only by their love.

One by one, the Eggs slipped back into their long slumber; some on their own, and others with their parents by their side. The Island was quiet without their presence. It always is.

And then the first Egg hatches.

The first parents who notice the cracks fear the worst — until they see something poking through. Claws, tails, wings in some cases, horns in others, but all with scaly snouts nosing their way out of their shells. It’s a little unnerving, watching pieces of what they once considered their child falling away, but a shell is only ever that: a shell. Something new was always meant to take its place.

As for what happens next?

Some left the Island with their parents to see the world while others remained, waiting for their return, completing projects with their guardians or raiding dungeons for the sheer thrill of it. The world was a wider place without the fear of death looming over their heads, and they will never again need to fear it.

There are endings, there are ‘ever afters,’ and there are stories still being written long after a book is closed. Know that they are happy in this unwritten world, for they are finally free to choose their own paths.

No matter what the future holds for these dragon children, it will always lead them back home to the people they love.