Following the pull of her fire affinity, Vleskai soon found herself in what could only be considered a nesting area. She paused, not wanting to intrude on a nesting mother, but after a moment, she heard a voice. "No need to lurk at the entrance; you're welcome to come in. These eggs will be looking for caretakers once they hatch; I certainly don't want them all under my feet!" Glad she would not be imposing, the naga entered the cavern to see just who had spoken, and the eggs it had mentioned. The eggs seemed to be surrounded by flames, but didn't seem to be damaged at all, and she wondered just what sort of creatures were contained within. To one side of the fiery nest, was a dragon-like creature, but unlike anything Vleskai had heard of. She seemed to have been mixed with some sort of bird, given the beak, feathers and scaled limbs, but was also aflame. The naga approached the nest with caution; she may have an affinity for fire and fire magicks, but she was not invulnerable to its effects. She and the clutch mother spoke for a while, about the nature of the eggs' contents and a bit about themselves, before Vleskai was shown a place she could wait for the eggs to hatch. Fortunately, she did not have overly long to wait, and she was soon called to meet the hatchlings. They would not be ready to leave immediately, but she could get to know them, and see if any would choose her as their caretaker and friend. She spent some time interacting with the kits, and when the time came, not one, but two chose the naga to accompany. Little Triquee, the female, was darker in color and a cheerful, optimistic little kit, while Ineo, the male, was brighter, with a vibrant white belly, and ever so slightly larger than his sister. He was quite friendly, and, eager to make more friends, was quite looking forward to returning to Malnev, to meet all the siblings Vleskai spoke of. Now, all Vleskai had to do was figure out how she was to get home with her new friends!

To be continued....