[Closed] @eidxiety 🐉🐉🕊️

[winterbolt]

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[lupusxylem]

[The Kingdom of Elrios, in a distant, faraway land, has a dragon problem.

Elrios seems to have always had its issues with beasts. From Minotaurs to Centaurs and every creature inbetween seeking to reclaim lost territory or expand on their own, the Kingdom is almost constantly fending off some kind of threat beyond its borders. To hear the people tell of it, these beast attacks are akin to the occasional hornet trying to attack a bee's hive. It's a futile effort, as their Kingdom has some of the most powerful knights and mages this side of the vast land, making things seem peaceful even during times when they may not be, so much...

But while this may be true, it's also true that what the Ishmael family might have the people believe isn't always what's going on, at the heart of the matter. Sometimes, these beasts may actually be oppressed communities simply trying to reclaim what was already rightfully theirs, having their actions smeared as aggressive attempts to attack the good Kingdom for no reason at all. Or, worse still, the Kingdom is simply pushing its way outwards ever so slowly, bit by bit with each year that passes, gobbling up more of the land either by "peace treaty", conquest...or both. Not everyone lives in blissful ignorance, of course, as many of the impoverished on the fringes of the capital understand the deeper intent behind what the royals do, and their discontent brews with each passing day. But who would dare rise up against a Kingdom so powerful, so mighty?

Why...dragons, of course.

The dragons are the only creatures to date that the Kingdom, as a whole, does not try to aggress. The dragons really have nothing to fear from the Kingdom and their toys. At least, they know that they would never truly retaliate, lest they incur the wrath of dragons who breathe fire, ice, and electricity razing their "hard fought" land to the ground. So the dragons tend to do as they please, coming and going to pillage and plunder, with Elrios not even the sole exception here. Tales spread far and wide of a terrible black dragon who snatches sleeping Princesses from their bedchambers, never to be seen again...or a sleek, purple dragon who breathes bolts of electricity, winding like a snake through the air as he steals from passing caravans.

It's been a very long time since Elrios has personally seen a dragon attack- many decades, in fact- but it doesn't mean it can't happen. Yet, even the royals themselves had become so complacent, so confident in their army's own ability, that they simply don't worry themselves with such possibilities. After all, the Queen has her family of many sons to attend to, each one beloved in his own right. Most of them had left the Kingdom many moons ago to seek their own land, some having already expanded the Kingdom as rulers of their own parts of the continent. Others left to become emissaries for Elrios, leveraging the trade of goods and information between further away lands. And the very youngest...the Queen's most beloved, precious child, still remained at the castle, acting as the cornerstone for the walled-off kingdom who the people looked to for guidance, comfort, and assurance. Prince Ain always seemed to know what to do or say for them, even when things were harder than they were used to.

Yet, despite this, some would claim that he seemed a bit...sad, behind his eyes. It wasn't easy to understand why that might be. Perhaps he missed his siblings, so far away?

It's an unassuming, quiet night in the Kingdom. All is peaceful and calm, and the Kingdom is silent as the populous sleeps. By now, Ain is likely long since asleep in his bed given how late it is...he just won't be for much longer. For where he sleeps in the castle, he'll feel a sudden impact so heavy that it causes the walls around him to shake. Books on the shelf tumble to the floor, things on his table fall, a chair across the room clatters as it hits the ground. And for just a fleeting moment following this singular impact, all is still. Did lightning strike the roof?

But then...across from his bed, right where the window lies, a singular eye suddenly appears, staring right inside.

The eye spots Ain, then abruptly dilates.

Within seconds, the window shatters, part of the wall crumbling with it as a massive claw shoves its way through, scrabbling and tearing at the rug under Ain's bed. It drags the bed forward a fraction before managing to find purchase, reaching in further to snatch Ain up right out of the bed itself. With the claws tight around him like a cage, too tight to escape, the black dragon pulls back and takes Ain outside into the chilled night air, beats his wings hard, and disappears into the night.]