Delrose has never been the strongest of dragons. She struggled to emerge from her egg, try as she might Delrose could not break the shell. Her lungs gasped like screaming birds for oxygen, crying out with shots of pain every moment she could not emerge. Until finally, her struggle was ended with her mother's frantic cry and a forcibly shattered shell.
Weakly gasping Delrose still struggled to find her breath, her lungs only filling with thin whispers of air. Blurs of colors rushed about her, panicked parents rushing to find help for their youngest child. She could not understand what was happening, she could only feebly whine as her parents flew her as quickly as they could to the Reedcliff Ascent. The altitude helped her weak lungs, the thin air was easier for her to swallow.
Exhausted, her parents rushed into the first clan they could find begging for help, their own clan's medic having no idea how to help her other than taking her to Wind territory. Soul did not stop their entry, the armored guard merely screamed for a dragon named Unna to come quickly and turned back to her post.
Unna was perplexed by Delrose, after all he was an electrician, how would he know how to heal a sick hatchling. It wasn't long before Yachi arrived on the scene.
"Do something! Can't you see she's dying?!" The imperial fretted over Delrose, anxiously trying to figure out what was wrong. Unna snorted, his whiskers twitching in annoyance.
"I work with MACHINES! I don't know how to deal with her!" Delrose's parents flinched at his booming tone, their worry for their daughter reaching new heights at the thought of losing her.
Yachi growled at Unna, her canines flashing dangerously.
"You WILL do something to help her or SO HELP ME I will destroy your creations!" Unna's eyes widened, a look of panic crossing his face at her threat, bowing his head the imperial resigned.
"I will do my best matriarch." Turning to the anxious parents and the limp figure of the hatchling he promised to try his best and swept her away.
~
Hours later he returned, claws bloody and an excited look in his eyes. Delrose's parents were horrified as he explained how he removed her collapsed left lung and replaced it with a prototype internal electronic breathing apparatus. Shoving past him they ran to their daughter, strewn on a table with various mechanical parts. They screamed murder at him until he pointed out her steady breathing.
"She didn't develope right from what I can tell. I'm no doctor but I can tell you that she will never be very strong. Her left lung was totally collapsed and her right is barely functioning, her muscle mass is far below what it should be, and I would be surprised if she made it to adulthood." Unna gave a sigh and an annoyed mutter.
"She will need to stay here for the time being. If my hack job surgery worked then she will need frequent breathing apparatus changes as she grows, but even then I doubt she will ever be able to breathe air at an altitude any lower than this. If you want her to survive, she'll have to stay here." Delrose's parents resisted to the idea of giving up their youngest child to a clan they barely knew, but they ultimately understood what must be done. Promising to visit frequently they flew back to their other children, hoping that Delrose would be alright.
~
Delrose survived against all odds. Unna was amazed and delighted that his invention was working, although he did notice that it caused her coat to take on a crystalline hue as a side effect.
Delrose decided to become a medical doctor, she wanted to make sure that no other hatchlings went through her ordeal and even though she would never become strong, Delrose still helps others find the strength to heal.