Black Dragon

There weren’t always dragons in the valley.

Once there were mermaids, fairies, and mythical creatures aplenty that continuously blessed the lands and kept humans protected from harm. It never occurred to them that the peace they coveted could crumble so easily.

It is said to have started with one woman who was a traveling merchant. While it was rare indeed for a woman to be in the trade, she had a compelling way about her, and once her stock was traded for new items, she left, with no trace and no name. Some speculate that perhaps the woman was a goddess, sent to put humanity in their place, but nothing was ever confirmed.

She showed up in a small village, on the outskirts of the enchanted forest filled with humans, and a few of the fae. It seemed every day her stock was changing, or perhaps it changed depending on who was looking as if she magically had everything a person wanted.

There was a man, who was said to only want one thing, his late wife. He was the most successful farmer within the area and stumbled upon the woman’s caravan after a day of restocking his feed. He, like everyone else, felt bewitched by her presence, and his dark eyes fell upon a large black gem.

“Ah, you have spotted the lost family heirloom of the Goardanins. A rare jewel indeed.”

“I’ve never heard of that family before.” The man said, skeptically.

“Well, why would you in this remote village. They’re a long-forgotten founding family of this country.” She boasted as if she was one of them, or perhaps it was an act to sell it off, but alas it worked. Confidence radiated off of her in contagious waves and without a second thought, he offered to buy it. “I do not accept money for my items. Bartering only.”

“What do you want in exchange? You can have your pick of my livestock! I simply must have that jewel.” In truth, he knew he did not need it, but it seemed to be calling him at this point.

“Bring me something precious to you. Then we will make the trade.”

Feeling defeated he returned home, knowing the only thing he ever held precious was his dear wife. Their love had burned him with passion, and without her fire, he had become empty. Thinking about what he might value, he realized there was one item, but the thought of giving it away tore at his heart. Surely the last item of his wife’s wasn’t worth that obsidian jewel, although remembering the gleam of its dark edges pushed away his sentiments and he was soon barreling back towards the woman’s strange wares.

When he arrived, he pulled out a delicate silver locket, with the engraving of the date they had married. The woman’s eyes lit up upon seeing the necklace and she all but threw the jewel at him, snatching away what felt like his memories in the process. She immediately closed up and left after that, leaving the man standing there with his prize, suddenly feeling as if he had made a grave mistake. The pull towards it had disappeared along with the woman’s caravan in the distance. His regret threatened to swallow him whole and he suddenly felt a deep sorrow whenever he thought too much about the jewel. To rectify the situation, he tried to see if anyone would buy it off of him, but no one would take it. He decided to put it out of sight, out of mind, although some say his grief was already too much and caused the dragon to hatch.

The man had just come in from the fields when he heard scratching from where the jewel had been stashed away. With his pitchfork in hand, he threw the door open, to see a shattered black egg, and a red-eyed reptile staring back at him. It did not look harmful, but something about it unnerved the man.

At first, he was confused, for dragons were a thing of legends, even back then, and he assumed he had been scammed to take in some random creature. However, rage boiled up inside of him. He bellowed at the little reptile, removing it from his home and hoping he’d never have to see it again.

Unfortunately, after two days, his livestock began to disappear, one by one. There was talk among the other villagers that it was a rival farmer from the neighboring town, but no one had seen him in months. They worried some kind of creature had turned against them, maybe the fae, or the centaurs, but it made no sense. It started with the chickens, then the goats, pigs, then the sheep, and finally his cattle. Devastated with all his loss, he laid outside where the cattle had once been, hoping whatever or whoever was taking them, would take him too. He prayed to end his suffering, but the answer he received wasn’t the one he wanted.

The night grew cold, and he fell into a restless sleep. His dreams were said to of been filled with misery, torment, and the sound of wings. He awoke the next morning thinking of how it must be God’s cruel joke to make him keep living. He drank himself into a stupor at the local tavern, finally telling people about the black gem’s secret, and the village elder stopped in their tracks, turning on him.

“Where is it?” He screeched. “Has it fed? What have you done?!”

“Piss off!” The deranged man slurred. “I put it outside! Lots of good it did me! All my livestock! Gone! I should have tried to sell the monster.”

The elder’s face went white as he looked around the small bar. Not a heartbeat could be heard as everyone noticed his panic-stricken face.

“You have no idea what you’ve done.” He whispered at the farmer in anguish.

The sound of shattering glass and a blood-curdling scream filled the room. A barmaid with a mess at her feet seemed frozen, staring out the window in terror.

Slowly, some of the braver patrons turned and the man included saw a familiar blood-red eye that filled the whole window. It blinked once, then twice, and its pupil was a slit as long as the farmer's arm. A roar shattered the other windows, and people tried to run, but it was no use.

Within hours the village had been reduced to ashes, with only the farmer left. His survival instincts were the only thing keeping him alive, and despite his willingness to perish the night before, this was different.

Still, the pain in his heart was a drug for the massive beast, and the farmer was found by the time the sun was rising again.

The beast circled him once overhead and landed right where the egg had originally been purchased. The farmer felt it was a fitting end, and consumed with his agonizing suffering, the dragon opened its mouth as if to breathe fire on him. But flames did not come out. Instead he was overwhelmed with hot air fanning over him, oddly smelling of flowers.

He didn’t have much time to figure out the reason before his eyes turned yellow, talons grew from his hands and feet, and his skin became riddled in shiny green scales. That was how they started to spread. From there humans who had suffered great loss, or people who held pain in their hearts, attracted the dragons until they too were turned.

The dragons weren’t like the other creatures, they didn’t care about peace, only about feeding on humanity’s grief. So when it came to the fae, the mermaids, and the rest who were protecting people, they turned their backs on us, letting humanity deal with it ourselves.

Our answer was simple. Make people happier. Fill villages with resources, and have a group of knights to watch over the towns. However, if someone even remotely seemed disgruntled, or was caught shedding a tear, they were exiled and labeled as a traitor.

Our emotions became governed and regulated to fit what the Queen wanted, but her definition of happiness and mine, are very different.

I come from the family of the man who first turned into one of them. His brother is an ancestor of mine, so our family will never forget the stories the empire has branded us with. Our family has suffered, been exiled, and tormented this whole time, but now I seek the freedom to make my own choices. I will take control of my destiny, even if it means seeking out the black dragon that started it all. The only question is, will I join them, or will I have to kill them?