The longer Kokuuzou and Acerbu stayed and observed the xeno clutches plastered to the walls, floor, and any place the mother so desired, along with the eggs lain by the local mutts, the more both of them decided this was quite the wrong clutch to be standing for. Most of the parents gave of a decidedly evil aura, something Acerbu in particular feared. The last thing one already so close to the evil side of darkness needed was a bond that would tip the scales in the wrong favor.

Kokuuzou was fascinated by how the xenodragons reproduced; by many eggs with a petal-like opening that eliminated the need for the hatchlings to waste energy breaking shell when the time came, or by laying the offspring into living hosts then plastering the hosts to the walls of the bay in a sort of suspended animation. From the latter came the higher-ranking offspring, having ample nourishment to develop in until they were fully grown.

It was late one night when the intercom blared the message that the enormous gathering of clutches was hatching. Acerbu was already awake, prefering to sleep during the day-cycle, and Kokuuzou was sleeping lightly. They two arrived together at the hatching bays in their dragon forms to better see over the huge mass of candidates that had turned out to bond. The creatures that had played host to the xenodragons were screeching and crying in pain as their "charges" began to stir within rib cages and abdominal cavities, but the first to hatch was a drone from the petaled-eggs. A two-headed dragonet was born and promptly mauled the first candidate to approach her.

Both Kokuuzou and Acerbu let out audible gasps with a number of the other candidates who had never heard of a xeno's sometimes mindless lust for violence and blood, perpetrated not only against those attempting to bond or restrain them, but against their own siblings unlucky enough to get caught in the way. The single first hatching seemed to send a signal to the rest of it's siblings, causing a mass hatching-bursting amid them. The creatures cemented to the walls began to cry more loudly in pain as the burstlings did what they were named for, with hideous crack-splikit! sounds accompanied by sprays of blood and their "shell's" final cries.

The purple and black dragons watched the hatching with a wary gaze, they were more than ready to assist the ample amounts of security should they need it, but Acerbu's attention was drawn elsewhere. For some time now, the darkness mage had had the feeling that he was being watched, but had not wanted to turn away from the carnage that ensued on the hatching bays. Finally, his curiosity became so overwhelming that he shifted his gaze to the right and found an odd-looking furry dragonet. It was one of the chaos-xeno hybrids, and though it had no eyes Acerbu had the distinct impression that it was staring at him.

The voice that entered his head was quiet, almost difficult to hear. You... are so perfect for me. he said simply, and Acerbu gave a welcoming rumble to the hatchling, Nacht. This left Kokuuzou to wait and see if his turn came. He didn't have long.

As Acerbu led the chaos-xenohathian away from the throngs of people and to the food he knew the beast desired, he asked Nacht privately, "You aren't... evil, are you?" He felt ridiculous asking, but fear had welled up like bile in his throat of the little dragonet, that he would be the deciding factor whether Acerbu would resist Atrox or finally submit to it's never-ending call. Nacht turned his eyeless gaze on Acerbu and replied, Do you wish for me to be? The black dragon blinked, "What do you mean?" Now distracted by the meat Acerbu was feeding him, Nacht took a moment to answer. I will only do what you wish, only what you wish.

By now, Kokuuzou and his xenoqueen bond had arrived. Already, Touzaya knew who was part of her newly-forming "hive". She easily found Acerbu and Nacht in the crowd of feeding burstlings and hatchlings. She attempted to assert herself over Nacht at first, but the blue chaos-xenohathian only looked to Acerbu for orders. "It appears we have quite the pair on our hands brother." Acerbu agreed, "But they are strong... we will need that strength, when the time comes."