Delina had no trouble finding the nest in one of the back chambers of Argonnas' lair. Moving swiftly, for she knew that time was of the essence, she used the magic of her Staff of the Ancients to gently lift each stone, one at a time from the nest, placing it carefully to the side so as not to risk causing the others to fall in on the precious eggs. Within just a few moments, the eggs of Argonnas' offspring began to become visible to her. Her heart swelled with fear as the first egg was revealed to be broken, the unborn hatchling dead at its' center. Delina hurried her efforts to free the remaining egg from the rocks, taking less care to stack each rock to the side. At this point, there was little chance the rocks would fall inward, crushing the remaining egg. The second egg was intact. It was slightly larger than the one that had broken, and its' shell was well on the way to hardening as it should. However, Delina was not going to take any chances. She pointed the Staff of the Ancients at the egg and called forth a spell that would envelope it in a protective shield. Using a second spell, she levitated the egg in front of her, as she had done with the rocks before. Keeping her concentration focused on the egg, she carefully walked around the rocks piled at her feet and toward the entrance of the cave. She would take the egg back to her castle in the hills, and attempt something that had never been done before; the birthing and raising of a Dragon by a Human. -------------------------------- This is picture 8 of 10 in the series. Look for number 9 tomorrow. Full Series and Story Text can be viewed at: http://wraith3d-creations.tripod.com/index.html Credits for items used will be posted after last entry of series..