Ridvan and His Dragon

Life, Relationship change

At the next significant war council meeting of Fainarr, Ridvan showed up with a small green dragonling perched on his shoulder. This knowledge was shocking to the council and to all of Aen, as the last living dragon was believed to have been felled just a few months beforehand by a group of dragonslayers, and no new dragons had been born for nearly a thousand years. The green dragonling would accompany Ridvan everywhere it could from here on, at least until it was too large to fit within the castle walls.

Morale in Fainarr had never been so low. War with Grozav had been (mostly) a simple, distant issue. The massive loss of nearly half the nation's naval fleet and the knowledge that they were up against three nations was enough to cause some discomfort among the ranks and population, but the Night of the Dread Knives made many abandon hope, expecting that the enemy could strike at any moment and fell anyone they chose.   King Ridvan, in his desperation, sifted through his father's notes on his own war with Grozav. Ridvan knew how to fight, knew how to lead, knew how to strategize for war, but he had never had to unite an entire kingdom under the Fainarran Banner, nor had their enemy ever been as clever and capable as the one Ridvan was facing.   His research bore fruit, as Ridvan uncovered one of his father's most well-kept secrets: he was devoted to Revansa, the same goddess their former enemy Grozav had worshipped. Much of his father's strength had come from Revansa, though he had always kept this worship private. Ridvan decided that he would follow in his father's footsteps in appealing to Revansa. Instead of keeping it secret, however, Ridvan would make it public. He would use religion to unite his populace under a new banner.   A skinless man appeared to Ridvan then, prompting Ridvan to strike out at him. After a brief, unfruitful bout of violence, Ridvan relented and asked the man who he was. The newcomer revealed himself to be Sullivar the Lich, a renowned sower of chaos and despair. Sullivar explained that he had heard Ridvan's prayer and that he was one of Revansa's most trusted followers. If Ridvan was going to hold to the vow he'd just made, if he would lead all of Fainarr into worship of the Queen of Dragons, Ridvan would be given a gift. Ridvan swore to uphold this promise and was handed a weighty green egg, which hatched the moment it was given to Ridvan to reveal a small green dragonling. As Ridvan admired it, Sullivar vanished.   Ridvan named the dragonling Igrenax and brought it with him everywhere he went. The little green dragon was always nearby, either perched on Ridvan's shoulder or watching Ridvan from afar. He appeared at his war council the following morning with the dragon in his presence, making no effort to conceal it. This alone was enough to cause fear to erupt in all the nations of Aen: the King of Fainarr had a dragon on his side that, while small now, could be a serious danger in the years to come.