Airo had never seen people move so fast, not even during emergency evacuations.

The hatching ceremony was swiftly organized in one of the large observation domes. The Radiant Knights again were all present with no exception, and even some refugees had managed to find their way into the dome. Magus Dei had also arrived, although Mentoria remained nowhere to be seen. The egg was brought into the dome, stark white in color, and carefully placed on a wide, low podium. Everyone, humans and dragons alike, stood at a respectable distance from the podium, leaving a large empty half-circle before the observation deck of the huge chamber.

"A white egg," Airo heard one nearby dragon murmur. "This can't be good."

Stamat was chosen to have the honor. Lylana offered Magus to perform the ceremony, yet the old Knight declined on grounds he'd been exiled from the Order twenty years ago, and thus no longer true part of it. So Lylana stood besides the dragon egg and Stamat, blessing them both to always be able to see the Way and to forge a lasting bond in the light of the Fire Eternal. The Highlander Knight constantly glanced toward Glawlrhain during this short and evocative speech, and the sinuous dragon nodded encouragingly every time. Stamat also took a couple of quick looks at Alomar for some reason, yet the temperamental dragon gazed with a stony expression. Airo realized something significant was going on behind the scenes, since even Veralla held her breath as the event unfolded.

The blessing ceremony concluded promptly. Lylana withdrew from the podium and everyone began to wait for the dragon egg to hatch.

Soon it became apparent Yeoman Cloud had fumbled something.

"It's not hatching," Stamat said, his voice shaking with emotion.

The gathered crowd made scattered comments. The dragons were increasingly concerned with the egg being white in color for some reason.

"Au contraire, Knight Stamat," Yeoman Cloud objected blithely. "Here, have another look." The SAI summoned a cloud of golden particles around the dragon egg. The particles flashed and swirled, solidifying into a large lens, amplifying the view a thousandfold. Tiny, web-like patches of cracks had appeared in different spots upon the egg's smooth, glassy surface.

The crowd became even more agitated.

"I have never seen anything like this," Lylana said.

"Neither have I," Magus replied. "However, this does not change things." He lifted his arms high and wide, and his voice boomed with absolute authority. "Silence! The ceremony continues."

The noise died down and the observation dome became quiet once more.

Moments went by, then minutes, then hours. Beyond the panoramic window behind the podium, the twin suns lowered into twilight. Stamat stood by the dragon egg, nervous and concerned. The tiny cracks visible on the lens grew excruciatingly slow, deepening by infinitesimal amount. The crowd rustled, exchanging whispered conversations and stirring stiffened joints. Airo wasn't sure about the egg, yet by his reckoning the tension within the chamber had reached the breaking point.

At last, there was an audible pop.

The lens around the dragon egg disappeared. A second later, one of the cracked regions of the egg's shell caved in and broke. The crowd breathed a sigh of relief. Another spot broke free, and the top of the whole egg flopped away in several large, fractured chunks. The hatchling emerged.

The sighs turned into shocked gasps. Besides Airo, Veralla hrrr–ed with horror.

The dragon hatchling was a wretched sight to behold. Its scales were completely leached of color, whiter even than its shell, and its eyes were luridly purple; not in a healthy way, but rather in the limpid clarity of one whose sclerae and irises were completely transparent, showing the blood behind. The hatchling clawed weakly, and tumbled out of its remaining shell. Its body was nothing but scales and bones, giving the dragonet's already ghostly visage a skeletal quality.

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It had no strength to rise from the floor. Its thin wings flapped helplessly. Its albino eyes lifted toward Stamat, a glimmer flashing inside them for the merest of moments, and the dragonet hrrr–ed with exhausting effort.

"S-so c-cold..." she stammered in a high-pitched, fragile voice. "I-I a-am... s-so c-cold..."

Stamat stood frozen in place, his face a picture of utter shock and dread. Everyone else in the observation dome were also paralyzed with stillness. Airo himself was stunned by what he was witnessing, despite his hardened psyche. He simply couldn't fathom the sight of a malformed dragon.

"C-c-cold..." the dragonet moaned.

It was Glawlrhain who first regained his wits. "I can sense this hatchling is in immense pain," he said quietly. "Her life essence is almost non-existent. With great sorrow, I think she must be... released."

His words were met with dazed silence. Then Magus said, "Regrettably, that is the right action in this case."

"Do we have no other choice?" Lylana asked with strained voice.

"Unless we want to prolong the inevitable, no," Glawlrhain replied.

The misshapen dragonet moaned again. The other Radiant Knights suddenly burst into a tumult, fear and confusion gripping their voices.

Stamat broke free from his transfixed state. "I shall take upon this severe task!" he shouted over the din. "Mine shall be the responsibility to do what's necessary."

"Silence!" Magus demanded, and the chamber became quiet. "Are you consciously making this choice?" he asked Stamat sternly.

"I am," the Highlander nodded gravely, his face pale. He looked at the dragonet who was watching him pleadingly. With great effort, Stamat looked away and struggled to continue. "I... I was chosen to be a companion to this individual and... mine should be duty to bring her back into the light of the Fire Eternal."

Several long seconds passed. The misshapen dragonet hrrr–ed miserably, her voice desperate and weak.

"Very well," Magus said. "Then–"

"THIS IS DREYKSHIT!"

Everybody turned their heads. Kiana strode forward onto the podium, an avatar of fury. "How can all of you let this happen!" she shouted, turning to face the crowd. "How can you even THINK about it! You are the deusdamned protectors of the galaxy, by the Great Cosmos! And you dare to contemplate killing a helpless being! What kind of fucking Radiant Knights you are! Where the bloody stars is mentioned in the teachings of the Celestial Way that killing is fine?! What happened to your morals, people?! WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU CONTEMPLATING ENDING THE LIFE OF A HATCHLING?!"

"Because our choice may be a hard one, and yet it is the kindest choice, given the grim circumstances," Magus Dei said in resolute tone.

"Kind choice, my stardust ass!" Kiana retorted violently. "Just cure her or something!"

"We cannot," Magus replied. "I cannot. Glawlrhain cannot. Lylana cannot. No one else cannot. The miracles of modern technology cannot. Her very core is lacking. She is dying."

"Load of dragoncrap! What about Mentoria! That fucking bitch found a way to create fucking life! It's impossible she can't help this dragonet!"

"There is nothing impossible in the Universe," a calm, cold voice said. The crowd parted, and Mentoria stepped forward, exotic and austere in her scant starnight robe. She continued evenly, "And in this case, I have been bestowed with the possibility of being unable to intervene."

Kiana grit her teeth. She whirled, arms thrown wide, gesturing at everyone. "How the fuck did the most advanced organization in the known universe suddenly become so powerless!? Can't you voiddammit do anything?!"

"We dragons are still an enigma, even to ourselves," Glawlrhain murmured. "Our fates are immutable. And sometimes... twisted. I have seen this phenomenon before. We have tried averting it. There is nothing we can do for this one. She is doomed."

"Right," Kiana spat, "if you say so, oh great one." Her voice dripped with scorn. Her eyes scanned the crowd. "Then if no one from you will do anything, I shall take upon matters."

She turned and strode to the center of the podium. "Move away, dumb muscle," she told Stamat and he hurriedly stepped back. Kiana knelt down and took the sniffling dragonet in her arms.

"C-c-cold..." the dragonet whispered, reaching a tiny claw for Kiana's shoulder and looking into her eyes.

"Shhh, it's okay, little whippersnapper. Everything's gonna be okay." Kiana petted the dragonet's head, and gently embraced her shivering body. "Cloud, increase the room temperature."

"It's already at thirty degrees, Kiana."

"Raise it further."

"T-t-thank y-you..."

"Hush now. I'll get you nice and warm. Do you want something to eat?"

"Y-yes..."

"Good, good." Kiana began to massage the dragonet, rubbing her wings and back. "Let's get the blood flowing within you. You'll be warm in no time. Now, what do you want to eat?"

"C-c-can y-you... p-please... g-give me a n-name... f-first?"

"Yes. Yes, of course." Kiana paused for a second. "I shall name you Nightsong."

"W-why s-so..."

Kiana smiled with a warm, sad smile. "Because it reminds me of something. Of someone. You remind me of someone, Nightsong."

"N-n-night... s-song... I l-like i-it..."

"I'm glad you do, whippersnapper. I'm Kiana, by the way."

"K-k-Kiana..."

"Yes?"

"C-can y-you... s-stay w-with m-me... p-please?"

"Yes, Nightsong. Don't worry. I'll stay with you. I'm not going anywhere until you get better."