Vivell, Acuran of Dragons
The old man sat at the front desk of the Great Library of Birohhal, engrossed in heavy handed caligraphy painting a picture in his mind. So enthralled by what hewas reading, he almost didn't notice the pair of younglings looking up, waiting for his attention. It was only when the ring of his side desk bell did he manage to peer from the papyrus pages and offered a pleasant smile.
"Now, what can I do for you two young readers? Are you lost perhaps?" He asked with a softness in his voice and a whispiness only gained from years of life experience.
The children almost in unison reply they wish to hear a story. " A story you say? Hmmm, perhaps I could help you. But you promise me not to interrupt, do you understand?" The children give each other with eyes filled with excitement, before turning back to the old Librarian and agreeing to his terms.
The book lover grins and picks himself off his wooden stool, walks round to the front of the desk and escorts the children to a window peering over the streets of the city. Then to the surprise of the children, the man jumps onto a nearby table, crouches down gestures them to come close as he begins his tale of a historical figure.
The Tale of the Dragon Tamer
In ancient times, life was very different to how we perceive it in the present. The smell of magic bloomed from the petal and leaves, wonders beyond our imagination roamed care free and creatures were free to pass between the realms. From the Mittman of Garla to the greenskins of Kurse, beings and monsters could pass from one plane to the next with little consequence. The same was true for the most common beasts of legends. Dragons! Now when we think of dragons in this day and age, we know they reserved creatures, cast away in a land of their own. Avoiding conflict with lesser beings such as ourselves. But that was not the thinking of the earliest of Acurans. It wasn’t until a young woman subverted expectations that we began to understand these majestic animals. Tell me child, have you ever heard the name Vivell? Well if you haven’t allow me to paint you a story of the Acuran of Dragons. Vivell was not a maiden known for her beauty, or her potential for controlling the magical essence that flows through us all. Instead, her dark hair was usually tied back and her tanned skin covered in soil as opposed to being clean. For she was a rather more, practical practitioner of sorcery. Getting hands on with the elements and often exploring the land. Ending up in places she was not meant to me. Which is how she came face to face with one of the legendary creatures, resting in the forest. Wandering off the well-trodden path, Vivell was searching the forest for new ingredients for her potions but got distracted chasing woodland critters. As she ran, we found herself lost and in a clearing she had not seen before. But whilst there was a natural break in the tree trunks reaching for the clouds above, the area was not completely empty. For in the centre was a large black scaled animal, curled up with its wings tucked away and a tail wrapping around itself on the ground. Lay a snoozing dragon, eyes closed. Inhaling and exhaling at a peaceful rate. Many in her situation would have panicked and most likely ran away. Perhaps they would have been foolish enough to attack the unarmed monster. Cause like I mentioned, dragons were not common knowledge, and the natural response of something we don’t know is to kill it. A natural response unfortunately. But not Vivell, instead of freezing in fear or crying home in a worry. Curiosity got the better of her. She crept around the mysterious new creature, observing it from all angles. Inspecting the shape of the spines flowing down its back, the sharpness of the bone white claws digging into the dirt. And its head sitting comfortably on what she assumed were legs. Oh, and the eye staring back at her. Like a snake with a black slitted pupil enclosed in a sphere of colour. This beast had an eye that shined gold, similar to her own but somehow brighter. In that moment, the two beings saw each other for the first time. Perhaps it was fate, perhaps it was something more. But rather than the traditional response of fear and violence. Vivell and the dragon grew a bond that would become inseparable for the remainder of her life. They learned from each other formed an alliance of love and admiration for one another. Like a dog and its owner, she too grew an attachment for the gentle obsidian reptile. Overtime it transformed from a once dark figure and shed its scales to reveal the vibrant shades of blues and greens. The two became a united force that would be a formidable foe. As many would soon learn the hard way.Destiny:
What I failed to mention so far is that, whilst Vivell was the first Acuran to grow fondness for dragons and admire them. The rest of the early Acuran were not so welcoming. Many of them choosing to react in fear and hunt the disciples of destruction. With elemental breath destroying the lands and raw strength destroying the villages and building they erected, in the eyes of most dragons were nothing more than a threat to their world. Resorting in building weapons and armour to fight against dragons. And once they found Vivell, they were not going to stop believing in what they knew. And so the Acuran turned on Vivell and her dragon, chaos broke out as combat commenced. But the hunters did not expect a strong resistance from Vivell or the swiftness and efficiency of her pet dragon. The hunters quickly realized they were outmatched and retreated as far as they could possibly travel. Never making a move on the dragon tamer again. But this conflict led our defender of reptilian beasts to consider the question. How can she protect her dragon? How can she protect all dragons? Can the Acuran learn to respect these winged giants? She would not find the answers staying in the forests and fields she grew up in. So she moved, with her dragon, away from the Western regions of Ascor and travelled the continent, the seas and the realms in search of a way to protect these beings for all eternity. Many say they never saw her again but her legacy was carried on. She taught people to trust dragons. Discovered the path to their home world and even inspired other like minded Acuran to build a guild that would serve as defenders to dragons. The Vivallance. And that, my dear youngling, was the start of our relationship with dragons. The beginning of our history with them and the story of, in my eyes, one of the greatest Acuran to exist in our long history.Potential Plot Hook: After decades of no sightings of dragons, the city of Ofallo in Eyaton erupts with new reports of a dragon flying around. Many are confused, some are scared but the group of Vivallance come out of hibernation to save the dragon.
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