Beautifully written, I like where this is going. :)

Glad to hear it ^.=.^

I second Shorty's comment.

^^

Great writing as usual, and interesting to learn the motiviations that that have brought some dragons to a city to become 'performers' to their amusement. Some of these revelations do bring up more questions though.

I was surprised to learn that while the human divers are lavishly fed, the dragons, at least according to Sunset, are essentially kept on a starvation diet, feeding them just enough to keep alive. This seems like an extremely foolhardy act, given the fact that dragons are large, powerful, man-eating predators, who sometimes find it difficult to control their normal instincts. Starving would also make it less likely they would ever release a human meal already in their belly even if they wanted to. I would have thought the dragons would have been more prudently fed to the point of being 'content' , but would be rewarded with something like a 'gorging' if they were able to spare their diver during a performance. Even if the dragons were fed to contentment, it is still hard to believe 'accidents' might occur if it were only tiny human 'morsels' dictating rules and orders to massive maneaters dragons, some of which desperately hungry, fresh from the wilderness where thy may have only regarded humans as prey. While the whole dragon diving idea is great, I think it would seem more believable if the human 'manager' of the arena was backed up by the largest, toughest dragon that could be enticed into the position. Other dragons would readily acknowledge that the city/arena were its territory, and would be more inclined to respect and obey the many rules coming from a dominant member of their own species than from what is essentially a tiny 'food item'. This alpha dragon which insures all the other obey the rules, may have been one of the oldest and largest dragons originally in the game, that was offered the position, and no longer performs. I could imagine that every city would try to recruit, and keep well fed, a dominant dragon to make their city its territory to discourage wandering dragons to hunt their people and domestic animals. It would be more likely that Sunset was discovered by such an "Alpha" watching over its territory, than merely one of the 'performing' dragons that would be discouraged from wandering much due to their potential for preying on vulnerable citizens, particularly if so underfed.

The idea that the dragons could leave the city to "hunt" in the surrounding contryside seemed odd, and likely would be frowned on by everyone, in the fear they would eat domestic animals and people, which the dragons themselves regard as legitimate prey. Any person that comes up missing would be blamed on the hunting dragons, and not without good reason. Yet another reason to keep them fed to contentment. I can imagine the dragondiving performances could generate much revenue, so the economic reasons for not feeding the draons to contentment should be nil. (Not to mention a large city might generate numerous criminals unfit to be 'divers' but fit enough to be a free source of 'food'. Perhaps the best way to keep the dragons from deliberately eating their divers is what was hinted at before with the Temptress, expulsion from the arena/city and all the free food.

Something that seemed wrong aobut the whole Dragon Diving was the fct that the fate of the divers was always hopeless. No matter how skilled they were, they would eventually die in a dragon's belly. This makes the whole spectacle less entertaining to the spectators, and keeps the divers at a very low morale, where they would likely give up trying. In the Roman arena, it is possible for a skilled gladiator to eventually received his freedom, and I believed the diving games would be better received by spectator and diver alike if there was some way of a diver receiving his freedom, perhaps if surviving 50 fives. Maybe there was a way, I missed in the previous stories, as Jace seems to think he may get out of this. Perhaps if someone is condmened to die, they could never actually be released into the greater world, but would no longer have to perform, and instead be a coach/instructor for new divers.

I was also surprised at how easily Sunset received a life threatening injury by being gored by a wild boar. Eight foot long Komodo Dragons commonly stalk and devour wild boars, and their scaly skin is enough to protect them from boar's tusks. To swallow a human whole, yet keep the gracile, long necked appearance of the typical fantasy dragon, I would estimate Sunset would have to be at least 50 feet long, and it is hard to imagine such an enormous, scale covered reptile to be less protected than an eight foot long lizard. Indeed, virtually every ancient account and most fantasy stories sensibly give a dragon's scales great protective ability, which can usually only be defeated by 'magic' as human strength and traditional iron age weaponry would not be enough to seriously injure such a huge creature. Keratin scales offer excellent protection, yet are extremely light weight. Similar scales, crafted from cows horn for human armor, can even repel the stronges sword strokes and arrows, and provide good evidenc e on how protective a dragon's scales would be. As to shooting Sunset in the wing membrane to repel her, for many years it was thought pterosaurs had leathery wings that could be easily torn, yet we now know that these membranes are made of tough, tendon like fibers. Of course fantasy dragons need not have realistic reptilian characteristics like scaley skin that actually protects them, or wings like the living creatures which dragons seem to be the most like (pterosaurs), though fantasy stories with some basis in reality are generally more accepted, than giving huge dragons inexplicable weaknesses (for either human heroes, or in this case, a wild boar), to exploit that are nonexistent in the real animals which dragons are most closely based on. Sunset's fear/inability to prey on any human that it not alone, seems in sharp contrast to your other dragons, which in some cases singlehandedly defeat five or more trained. well equipped human warriors. One explanation could be that Sunset suffers from a rare genetic disorder of being hatched scaleless, making her far more vulnerable to a mere wild boar, than any eight foot long monitor lizard could easily dispatch without injury.

I meant to add that unless Sunset did have some genetic skin defect making her otherwise scaly hide vulnerable to a wild boar, that it would be more convincing that Sunset was seriously hurt by another, larger, stronger, probably female dragon, intent on taking her territory. I also wondered why Sunset would try to keep her gender secret from other humans when inevitable sexual advances by what must be otherwise very bored male dragons doing little more than eating and sleeping in the arena until their next performance that would let the other humans know by their actions. I would think humans around dragons a long time, like the 'manager' would probably know the differences beteween the sexes by his long time familiarity with the creatures, or simply asking the other dragons. I would think that the spectators would want to know the sex of the performing dragons as well, since they are celebities in their own right.

The reasoning behind the amount of food the dragons get is threefold, firstly, they want to be sure the dragons won't swallow down their diver then spit them up outside later, seeing as these are generally the worst criminals they have. Secondly, the sheer budget of keeping so many dragons well fed, though, I think perhaps I worded it poorly in the tale, they are not kept starving, rather, kept sated, to the extent that if they spend their time outwith the grounds, then they'll likely need to hunt to account for that energy spent. And, the third reason is that while these dragons have more regular needs than most reptiles, they can still last a while, so if they overfeed the dragons, there is the risk of food being in their belly when a dive begins, which would also mean the divers would be literally diving headfirst into an acidbath. It's also why the hunting has rules, so the dragons don't overfeed themselves either. It's not like they keep the dragons with ever growling stomachs, though, it can be quite niggling, because for a lot of them, surrounded by these morsels, it's like spending your life in a buffet room when you can't eat any of it... Also, in reference to the other point, about an alpha dragon, I could accept there may have been one, once, but the way it works in the present is that the other dragons consider the place a joint territory, which they all have an interest in, they don't take orders from the actual owner of the building, and runner of the games. I'd also note, though the dragons do have rules placed, its rules they agree too before they're allowed to stay, though, with Sunset, She was sufficiently intrigued, and felt sufficiently indebted that she stuck around to see what all the fuss was about.

In general, the dragons hunt for excercise more than for food, though they will eat what they catch. They're fed well enough to turn a blind eye to the humans on the paths. Also, the town as I think I mentioned in the first dragon divers tale, is right next to the Drachenpass mountains, they don't have any domesticated food animals within sight of those dragon-infested hills. They are a large trading town, with direct routes from the southern ports, and more inland regions, so they generally get most of their food in by trade, which is anouther reason why buying and selling dragon quantities is a little tricky overall. The place is very much a trading hub, which is anouther reason why the divers flourish there, regular new audiences. I'd wager some people would only ever want to see it once... but then again, in the past public executions were popular enough, so that last point might be a little optimistic.

The divers have two classes, those who are diving for their freedom, and those who are set for life terms, and elect to spend their last days in luxury rather than taking up a jail cell for many years. So, unless their sentance is life, if a volunteering prisoner gets into the divers, their sentance is heavily slashed. Often priority is given to volunteers who are to have life terms, but often half of the divers are indeed people who have picked the option in order to cut down their sentance time. In fact, though it hasn't been officially stated, i've been hinting that the one who has been guiding Jace, Peter, was in fact a diver in his day, and took a job there to be a shoulder to cry on for those who didn't really grasp what they'd agreed to till they were locked in... to some, it doesn't hit them till they actually see their dragon up close, then they wonder if the jailtime would be better... But to sum up my rambling, yes, there is the goal of freedom that the divers are striving for. As for how long it tends to be, generally any sentance, will never sum up to more than ten years diving... that of course is a length very few would have, I think, though off the top of my head I may be wrong, that the minimum is six months... none may dive for a shorter time, because it's not worth training them. Which equates to... well, roughly 24 dives minimum if you assume four weeks per month... how long depends on what they did, the ten year max is for those who somehow got just shy of life, the average would probably be around a year, which is pretty close to your fifty dive suggestion.

To be fair, I've supposed in my take on dragons, that their protection is in their belly, that their flanks scales are more suggestive of strength than anything, since I assume their defences would evolve in early primal fights between their ancestors, and if claws can reach the back, then they can reach the wings, and a dragon that loses its wings, I think, is going to be at a great disadvantage in struggles to find a mate. Now, I'll certainly grant you, in a fair fight, or any fight at all really, a dragon like sunset could squash a boar, and, I tried to imply the real issue of the wound was not a level of severity, but more its placement, for it would cause a wince with every wingbeat, or step. I've tried to balance the defencive level of my dragons with the real biological issues of having the largest land animal also taking to the air. Though, in reference to her nervousness to attack humans groups, I would suggest that having been injured by a boar, her self confidence was low, in attidion to her being weaker than normal, weak enough to abandon her own territory. And, I'm not suggesting she wouldn't be capable of taking down more than two or three, more, that she wasn't willing to take the risk. Yes, even with the example of those who she abandoned her hunt of, the chance of her being seriously injured would be low, but, in that moment where she must make a choice, I would suggest that she doesn't consider it worth that risk, even if the chance of such injury would be only five, or ten percent, that's still enough. Even one percent chances happen sometimes. I figure even dragons decide sometimes its not worth fighting over, get nervous, lose belief in themselves, and decide they'd rather play things extra safe when they're not at their best. Also, because I just noticed I forgot to bring it up, the one thing that allowed the boar to even injure her was the element of surprise, a full charge, and the fact it was an especially large one, but even then it didn't stay put after a single strike, it knew it was outmatched, simply wanted to give the big dragon a warning to find its easier dinner elsewhere.
My explaination to Sunset's relative weakness compared to other dragons, is in part her youth, her inexperience, and that she's not especially confident. I'd also have to admit, that the initial examples you mention were written by a much younger me, and a me who was loathe to write an injured dragon, I eventually had to admit to myself that I was a big generous to my beloved dragons back then, for one thing I used to write them a bit larger I think... I think I eventually placed that as a stage of age.
As to dragon wings, I didn't mean to imply they were especially easy to damage, more that, as their wings are so important, any blow to them grants a very painful responce to make sure the dragon avoids whatever is after its wings, a relic from the times when dragons did fight more openly, or nestlings, in biting play, would quickly learn that the wings were not a place to nibble.

Hmmm, if they want to control the amount of food the dragons get )which makes perfect since due to the divers), then it would seem more logical that the dragons aren't allowed to hunt their own prey. What dragon with a bellyfull of deer, or maybe even a big moose or bear would want to hurk up a hard earned meal prior to their dragon diving session? I also cannot imagine the area around the city sustaining so much game for that many dragons, plus human hunters. Without exception, human cultures that rely entirely on hunting, must be nomads, so they can move on as the prey diminishes. So even the Drachenpass village would have to rely on more than hunting, particularly so because the must compete for meat with a huge dragon! The 'permanent hunter' scenario really only works with the dragons, becasue with their flight ability, we can imagine their territory is far larger than humans on foot or even horses would have. Because of the scarcity of game in permanently occupied areas, in Meieval times, only the nobility were allowed to hunt and anyone else was a poacher sometimes often punishible by death.
I really cannot imagine all of those dragons trying to hunt, not to mention how unpopular the idea would be to the inhabitants of the region whose main form of entertainment is watching the very same dragons eat people! There would be almost zero game in the area even without the dragons, because these people of the wilds would have hunted it out long ago. This is why wolves and bears were all but wiped out in Britain during the middle ages. Because this is an important trading center, we can imagine there would be many worn out horses and oxen used for wagons that could be obtained. Dragons would also be able to utilize everything that humans couldn't or wouldn't eat, like complete heads, large bones filled with marrow, organ meats not eaten by people, etc. These things could be inexpensively bolstered with a grain based 'porridge' just like how dogs, cats and even alligators are fed today, as grains constitute a large portion of their 'dry' foods. Since the dragons are not prisoners, for safety sake, they might be fed every day but performance days with this inexpensive misture of grain and butcher's offal, but on the morning of performance days, fed only a smaller portion of the grain porridge, flavoured with cattle blood and some organ meats, that would be completely digested and out of the stomach by the time of the performances. With this somewhat unappetizing, though healthy food bein the daily staple, the dragons would try their best to spare their divers with the reward being something like a whole cow or horse as their reward - a far more substantial meal than a (usually) scrawny human diver.

I agree that it would be possible for a dragon to swallow and then fly away and disgorge a dragon diver if tempted with a great enough reward, and this is another problem with the whole idea, as I doubt the dragons would tolerate any kind of imprisonment. This is another reason why the idea of there being a big, bull dragon claiming this city as his territory (and therefore also working for the arena and probably rewarded very well for doing so). If a transient dragon 'performer suddenly flew off with a failed diver, instead of staying in place to insure his prey's digestion and demise, the bigger dragon 'overseer' could make him regret it. Overall, it is hard to believe these wild, man-eating dragons could even be handled at all by a mere human 'arena manager', unless he had the 'back up' of a large dragon whom the others would respect, and even fear.

With a bit more refinement to make it completley believable, the whole dragon diving scenario would work well in even a more 'mainstream' fantasy story.

I will grant you, that a settlement cannot sustain themselves on hunting alone, hence why the city of Berin is funded by trading, and as you say, the only humans who might hunt from there would be the high and mighty, but, they find a certain pride in that region also being hunting rounds to dragons, they feel it makes them equals in hunting... they are not, but I'm assuming these nobles won't worry about things like reality when it comes to their bragging. Also, the small place within the Drachenpass, is directly in the middle of the safest route through, and are a common stopping point for any who travel through the mountains, so, while they do hunt the woods, they are also a place of trade, they are not especially isolated. I would also suggest that my humans, having natural predators to keep their numbers in check, do not have quite the same devastating effect on their surroundings as in our history, making small settlements able to maintain a balance, though granted, only small ones.
I will also grant that prey around such a town is indeed very scarce, but, as I said, it's more for exercise than hunger, the dragons are fed well enough that very little prey doesn't matter much, makes it all the more thrilling when they do get something. I would say, I haven't really described what exactly their diet consists of, but, I've always assumed they get fed after the dive, and have a week to digest it, also why their hunting is requested to only be in the first couple of days after a dive.
I do hesitate to consider there lives as imprisonment though, no human dares to restrain them with more than polite request, but the other dragons, without the need for a single dominant dragon, self-police. I take my dragons to be fairly honest, trustworthy creatures, as they didn't come into being with the... complex social system humans have. They see little point in such things, so, if they agree to the terms, they tend to abide them, and any who do not, would find the other dragons rather peeved, since they followed their word.
Also, what customs these dragons have, include a submissiveness in the territory of another, and within their nests. To an extent, they see the town as the nest of the humans, and so feel obliged to follow guidance while within it, within reason, of course. The thing is, any dragons who don't like the sound of it, don't enter, so those dragons who do take part in the divers are already those who are more complacent.

You didn't say how the arena franchise could prevent a dragon from simply flying away with a notorious prisoner for the right price. You said it was possible, and one of your dragons already works for criminals as an assassin of humans (though you could say any dragon that eats humans is little different). I would agree that the dragons would respect the territory of another dragon, which is why an overseer would be more reliable than simply expecting a guest dragon to risk personal injury fighting/restraining another guest dragon to enforce human laws. Since dragons consider humans as food like any other animal, I am not sure why they would feel submissive in a human nest. Would they be so in a bear's den? If there were a dominant dragon though, they would be submissive for his sake and pretty much naturally assume the humans must work for him! But without an alpha dragon, perhaps one thing to curtail dragons assisting prisoners to escape is to never enlist as a diver any 'important' criminal who still has access to wealth and outside assistance, even to the point of bribing a dragon. Maybe even Jace has some potential help that may be revealed later in the story. His incarceration seems a bit of a mystery, and the insistence that he be a diver hints of some sort of 'plan'.

In a way, as you said, the fact dragons see humans as food makes them hard to bribe, and I'll note, these dragons don't get into fights over these rules, all it takes is several glowering eyes, and a dragon wishing to disobey would back down, and even if they did so, chances would be they could leave peacefully before long, they're not under that much restraint. In the case of their relative submissiveness, it's the one respect they'll pay to human sentience. Were they hunting, say the bear you mention, they wouldn't stop and wander off just because it entered its den, but, as they have been invited into the human nest, as it were, and are being given food, and amusement, they are generally willing to give into the really quite minor restraints put on them. I'm sure you'll debate the bribe idea more, so, I might say what springs to mind, what a human could realistically offer... money, not important to a dragon, perhaps a little for decorative value, but, I don't really go for the whole hoarding thing beyond collecting what interests them, like a human plucking shells from a beach. Such a human could offer a replacement meal, or several, but, what would a dragon do with a herd, more than it could eat anyway, and, it has meals waiting for it how it is, and, the human is as good a snack as any. I'm unsure what else such a diver could offer a dragon that would interest more than offend it...
Also, I really have to point out, that one dragon you mention who works for criminals, is an exception, from a single village that is completely isolated from the world, in all honesty, I've barely even considered that story part of the Drachenpass world. Yes, I did set it there, something I've regretted from the moment I posted it. It was an idea really written for a different world I was constructing at the time, but that idea collapsed, so, I decided to channel that idea into the Drachenpass. So, really, if you even consider that story cannon to the events of this world, then appreciate the sheer exception of it, as it is in a village which, unlike everywhere else, dragons and humans are living as equals under heavily enforced rules, a place where a dragon can be underling to a human. I'd prefer it not be considered a part of the world's cannon anymore, that amoungst many reasons is why I didn't move it over to this site, I didn't feel it a story worth telling twice, which is something I rarely feel about any piece of my work.

Ah, if the 'assasin dragon' is not canon to the Drachenpass world as I believed it had to be, then the idea of bribing one to break human laws might be less likely. As I said before, in fairness I can only critique your dragons' behavior based on their actions in your stories. You have included some very dangerous, human hating dragons as well though, and it was you that did bring up the possibility of a dragon quickly flying off to regurgitate and thus save a diver instead of digesting him. And this was the only 'fighting' I was referring to -- was the liklihood of one 'performing dragon' fighting/hurting another performing dragon for no more offense than attempting to fly off instead of digesting a swallowed diver as per 'the rules'. Perhaps the least believable part of the dragon diving saga is not the complacency of the wild, man-eating dragons to unerringly obey somewhat 'unnatural' rules dictated by a tiny human that would in other circumstances would be a quick snack, but that the humans of the diving city are so complacent in trusting so many giant, deadly, man-eating beasts in their midsts. You are the one that keep emphasing human stupidity and prejudice in your stories, and rightly so, yet in this one instance, the humans seem incredibly amblivient to the idea of dragons fresh out of the wilderness that considered humans perfectly legitimate prey, now 'hunting' in their backyards and eating condemned humans in front of other humans, that could just easily be snatched from their seats sent down the same gullets. Perhaps that's part of the 'thrill' of the diving games, and these traders and hunters are grittier, rough and ready souls, than those in a bigger, more civilised city in 'the lowlands' where the sight of a 'wild' dragon flying overhead is apt to cause a panic. All that said, the fact that these potentially dangerous creatures are in this one instance, completey trusted by 'fallible humans', and these humans essentially placing themselves at the complete mercy of wild, unknown dragons simply for the sake of 'entertainment', (however honest and true every dragon in this world might be). So it is this unnaturally complacent human behavior towards giant, unrestrained, natural man-eaters, rather than dragon behavior, that is probably the weakest part of the Dragon diving arc seeming believable. However, if there were a powerful dragon, that may have lived in the city, without incident, longer than any living human, and considered 'tame' and 'domesticated' by human mentality, and has driven unruly dragons away in the past, it would do much to quell very legitimate human fears and give the dragons a far more 'natural' authority figure to obey than a potential 'light snack'.

Because these dragons are so complacent to human hospitality, (and I don't question this part of their psyche), if the Drachenpass world were truly realistic, then adventurous, innovative humans would certainly be recruiting dragons into far more significant occupations than circus performers, and the 'diving dragons' (from the human perspective)would likely be the safest dragons to approach with such propositions as they would already be considered 'tame' by human mentality. What army wouldn't want at least a flying scout, if not a fighter squadron of dragons, or rich or noble person, an utterly trustworthy, unbribeable and near-undefeatable bodyguard willing to do their bidding for no more reward than merely a full belly of spoiled meat?

I will concur that the humans in this town close to the Drachenpass are made of sterner stuff than others, though as to the aspect of fear, it is generally accepted that the divers have existed for quite a long time, generations. The common people don't really understand how unrestrained the dragons actually are, and that it's just their word that really keeps them honest. If they knew the full details, they might be more worried, as it is, they tend to see the diving dragons in a different light, as if they can break dragons into different sorts. Of course, as I mentioned, not all do like it, or feel safe with it, but these people tend not to stay around if they fear one day the dragons will decide to eat normal people too. Those who stay sometimes think the dragons are there out of a sense of justice, only eating criminals as they are... of course, such a mentality is rarely the sole reason for any dragon being there, but, the organisers are more than happy to spread the more optimistic views to the masses.

I'd have to deflect the suggestion of dragon recruitment with this idea, that, the dragons are not diving for the payment, nor for the easy life. In the long run, dragons want to find a mate, and hunt over their own territory, a nice wide, fertile stretch of land. Mating prospects for diving dragons are very low. Now, some young dragons will go there, till they feel they have grown enough to start claiming a home, some older dragon, who have had a stretch of bad luck might rest there, in these ways, the town has guided its growth by harbouring goodwill from dragons, hence protecting themselves. The dragons always see the position as temporary, because while not a comdemned life amoungst their kind, living off human handouts isn't something a mate looks for, they want to see their partner can hunt, to feed offspring, and to make sure their offspring are good hunters too. So, in general the dragons remain divers out of amusement, for in their long lives, its a unique experience, a little adventure. So, in the same way they are hard to bribe, it's hard to make a deal with them, to become, say, part of an army. I'm certainly not saying nobody will have tried, and, though I havn't touched on royalty yet, it has not been completely unheard of for a dragon to protect, it has happened twice in history, one of the occurances is in the current era (though I havn't finished those projects yet) But, all in all, dragons don't make good soldiers... they are powerful, fear inspiring, and very loyal, but, that loyalty cannot be bought. If they actually respect a human, they'll protect that human underwing as they would their offspring, but that's very rare, for a dragon and a human to really bond in such a way. So, while perhaps, if they were lucky, an army could get a dragon present, it would be only because the idea vaguelly amused it, and it would leave once it no longer found amusement in it. I would also add, it's hard for these humans to give the dragons orders... if a dragon agrees, then fine, but it won't do what it doesn't want to just because a human tells it so. The exception would be if they gave their word, then changed their mind, they might feel obligated if it was pushed, and their honesty was questioned, but that would be a balance, push too hard, and the dragon would just squash them, or such... I suppose, I've generally assumed my dragons interactions too based in whim for them to hold down the sort of authority and loyalty, and obediance an army demands.

Yes, but the idea of engaging in far more 'adventurous' occupations among the humans would surely be more 'amusing' for many dragons, than doing little more than a lion in a circus. If the goal were to grow bigger and more experienced with the aim of impressing a mate, then joining an army, or protecting an important human, joining expeditions of expoloration, mail courier, etc, all would probably bring more and better food, travel, testing their mettle, and being able to impress a perspective mate with tales of daring deeds and adventures........ compared to "I just sat on my butt in front of thousands of people and let human prisoners jump down my throat trying to grab a ring in my stomach." I would agree that most dragons would not make model soldiers, but this would be understood when they are recruited. Even with their quirks and independence, having dragons would be of incredible tactical importance, even if it were made clear from the beginning that most, if not all, would not do anything that would endanger their lives. If 'military' dragons exhibited no more respect to authority and obedience than diving dragons (which show an incredible amount for wild creatures), it would be enough for any nation to want to recruit them. Of course, you are not compelled to tell the stories of every dragon in your world..... I'm just saying that if you have 'diving dragons' in your world, there would be many other 'amusing' occupations among the humans that would likely attract far more dragons -- not to mention there are only a limited number of positions among the divers, whereas the military/royalty would probably want to recruit as many dragons as possible-particularly so if there were some potential crisis brewing with other humans (who likely are trying to recruit dragons as well!)

I'll certainly grant you couriers, messengers, if it took a dragon's fancy. I'd also at this point note I don't see the diving dragons as performing animals... it's not like they're in a circus, it's a public execution of sorts, but where the condemned get a chance to save themselves... tapping into a trial by dragon thing, like a religious trait they hold to, believing that if they can survive so long without dying, it must be destiny. Yes, some to see it with performing flair, but comparing them to circus lions is a little demeaning... more ritual that has become turned to public display, it lessens the true gravity of the situation.

I think, the thing I'd say to contest the army is in something you said, protecting an important human. Dragons hold no real sense of community, armies and nations are odd concepts to them, and they hold little capacity to hold loyalty to such things. What would interest them is individuals, single humans. But, that would mean the one to "recruit them" would be one they felt they could hold respect for, or found interesting. So, should a dragon who would have a tendancy to become so intrigued meet royalty, they'd either consider following, or, decide it would be more interesting to say they consumed a human who could command so many. But, for army recruitment, it would have to be the leaders who impressed a dragon, the one who issued the commands, for I doubt a dragon would find taking second hand suggestions from a soldier down the chain very amusing. So, this would mean such recruitment would involve either sending the majority of their better leaders to their doom, on the off chance one such meeting would lead to something, or, send more common soldiers, and then rise themup the ranks if they succeed, either way would leave an army with a lack of competant leaders, I assume. For either they'd lose the leaders to dragons, or promote fairly randomly. I'll certainly give you that a dragon would be a boon to any army, but I'm unsure the potentially fickle alliance of a dragon is worth the overall cost, for powerful as a dragon may be, should things somehow come to war in the Drachenpass, (which is unlikely due to the dragons, and wars becoming a buffet that gets nowhere), then while whereever such a dragon was sent, the battle may well be won, the potential inneptitude of the rest of the army could as easily cost the war. Add into the bargain that the dragons mindsets are not turned to warfare, due to their power, confrontations between dragons hardly ever turn to violence, they just roar till one conceded. I'd say most of these dragons would balk at a request to go into a human war. I'd compare it to asking somebody who doesn't want honey to go bat down a beehive. They certainly have the power to do it, and the capability to come away with no permenant harm if they use their heads... but they really would rather not...

While the diving may in reality have begun as a 'solemn execution ritual' most humans and even the dragons would probably see it more at its current state as a form of entertainment. Gladitorial combat began the same way, a somber funeral ritual that became the national form of spectator entertainment. I could imagine all the bet placings, cheering, rewards for both 'winning' dragons and humans, etc. If one of the Diving Dragons ever became worldly enough to view a human circus with lion tamers putting their heads in the mouths of the beasts, they would indeed note a resemblance to their own 'performances' with 'brave humans risking death in the jaws of a carnivore'. Once just a single dragon becomes 'hooked' by the adventurous pastime as an auxilary to a human army, it would clearly be the best recruiter for any more, just as would be the case with the divers, and how Sunset was introduced to it. If the human manager had approached the hurt and starving Sunset instead, he probably would have been eaten before he had a chance to recruit her.

Perhaps you do not see the many uses for dragons, that would put them in no real danger, yet provide a life far more natural to them than swallowing humans in a human city. One of their main jobs would still be 'hunting', searching for the enemy forces, patrolling borders with potentially hostile human nations/kingdoms, capturing prisoners for interrogation, seeking out the best route for the army which they could see from the air.... all the while knowing they will be well fed when they returned from a mission, even if they caught no game. Even if they vowed never to come within range of an enemy arrow, their presence on a battlefield would be decisive. A roaring dragon overhead would send the best cavarly horses in the world into a terrified fleeing herd which their riders could not control, thereby making this highly significant part of an enemy army useless. Human soldiers too would be extremely demoralized if they thought they would be attacked by a dragon, even if it never came to that. The terror of the dragon(s) would even be increased if they had captured stragglers of the enemy army and began eating them alive in clear view of their comrades before a battle. A general on the back of a consenting dragon would seem invincable to both his own troops and the enemy's, thereby boosting morale, and from this vantage point would have a complete grasp of the terrain and troop dispositions of both sides, and could arrive instantly to a key point to rally troops and relate orders. The tactical advantages of this alon cannot be overstated. I cannot imagine an intelligent, flying predator like a dragon not finding these activities far more interesting/amusing and more suited to their natural lifestyle than the diving performances, not to mentions better and more food, exercise and life experiences that would help them in their future goal of raising a family. Though I can imagine that whatever kingdom or empire in which the diving city is located, would have a permanent recuiting station for dragons there, probably with its own dragon to recruit others (when not required for active duties), as another dragon would be the best recruiter, and diving dragons bored with the game, would be the best recruits due to their demonstrated ability to work with humans and follow orders. And then, there would be dragons that had heard about the diving so came to the city, but couldn't get a 'position' because of the limited number required. Even dragons desiring to build a family soon could be lured into the service with a promise of food if it ever came on hard times and needed more than it could catch with a family, by remaining 'on the rolls' as a kind of reserve, with its promise of temporarily coming back only in emergencies, like an enemy invasion. The majority monetary expenditures of any country goes to defense, and since having dragons would be so important, the 'government'could offer them any amount of food and whatever material things that suited them. Some dragons might even want to get directly involved in combat for greater rewards. Because of their great size and strength, a dragon could easily wear a full suit of armor completely impervious to any human weapon, (though it would not be able to fly in it). Such a dragon could simply wade into an enemy formation, crushing, burning, clawing and biting anything in its path. This power, and the rewards for doing it, could certainly appeal to certain dragons. If a dragon lost its ability to fly through some disease or injury, it would likely die in the wild, yet it could live like a pampered king if it agreed to don the armor and become this ultimate weapon in time of war. Unless they could recruit and similalry armor their own dragon, no enemy force could stand against it.

I do appreciate that the divers have become more as entertainment, but it's not really like putting your head in the lion's mouth... for one thing, I would suspect any number of precautions could be taken to ensure safety, that's just it, a circus performs dangerous stunts, perhaps, but they do what they can to make the danger more an act that a reality. It's never completely safe, but they take precautions. The divers, is much more like an arena, I'd compare it to more roman ideas before any circus.

I'll admit you have some good points there on the value of a dragon in war, clearly you've given this topic a lot of thought, maybe they'd be more valuable than I assumed, if still very costly. I would contest the idea of dragons recruiting more dragons, they're not really as social as people, and wouldn't generally assume something would be worth their while because a dragon they don't know tells them so... and Sunset's example wasn't exactly a recruitment, the dragon who found her on his hunt noted how close to death she was, so took her to the divers, more because he knew they had an empty stall, and a dragon-worth of food going astray, and also, he noticed a female in need, a female he decided might just happen to be especially grateful to the dragon who saved her life.
The only real thing I can contest the presence of military dragons with is really the lack of war on this world. There are two factions, on either side of the mountains, and hence somewhat apart, any war between them would be marching soldiers through the most dragon-plentiful region, it would be a massacre before the war even began. And indeed, more local conflicts between regions in these kingdoms tend to be avoided, for a massing of humans draws in predators, so, armies may clash, but in the end, both sides will likely be dead on the ground or in bellies, with no winner. When every battle becomes a dragon feeding stalemate, humans have to find other ways to contest each other. Another way to put it, is that the lording humans become peacocks not warlords.

While your stories center around the 'drachenpass' region, the world seems overly simplistic if there were essentially only these two human nationalities seperated by the Spine. Think about how many different nations and cultures are in Europe alone, and area not much bigger than Texas. Just the number of dragons mentioned in your stories so far would likely require quite an expanse of territory.

Advances in human technology are largely thanks to the constant need to develop and improve ways of defending yourself. If these two peoples lived for centuries at peace, it is unlikely they would have even attained a late iron age clevel of technology. An explanation of course, could be that when the dragons migrated into human lands, many settled in the mountain range seperating tribes once at war, and the presence of the dragons effectively ended the war by seperately these otherwise warring peoples. But other peoples must live on the other borders, and it has always been human nature to war against other humans. Apparently the presence of the dragons may have largely ended the feuding of these two human groups since there seems to be free trade through this pass, so one wonders which 'side' the city actually belongs to. Or could it belong to the dragons? If this were the territory of an 'alpha dragon', or a more unusual prospects of whatever diving dragons occupy it at the time, it might be considered a 'neutrel zone' for the two human cultures. That being said, if there is a 'wider human world' than simply the lands around drachenpass, dragons would still be recruited for military purposes, and even the two cultures seperated by the dragon occupied mountains, would both try to make alliances with them to insure safe passage through their territories. Of course, without a single leader among the dragons, securing any kind of 'treaty' would be very difficult. Unless an envoy were already in the company of another dragon, just approaching any 'wild' dragon could be a fatal mistake if it is in the mood to regard the next human it meets as prey. And this is another reason to recruit dragons into human service, not just to fight enemy humans, but to allow humans to travel in 'dragon-infested places too dangerous to travel alone.

Each of the sides of the Drachenpass are under one banner each, but it's very spread out, when they developed early on, the presence of dragons prevented settlements being too close, back when they did have a significant portion of their food gained through hunting. The regions are broken up, somewhat, it's more like several regions under one overarching leader. Maybe, a good example would be europe, if the alliances between the countries were governed by a single ruler, as opposed to concensus. The space is there, but the people aren't as tightly packed.

I am unsure which city you speak of, though, as some place between the two kingdoms... I assume it isn't Berin you speak of, even though you seen to bring it up, because that's distinctly on one side of the mountains, and feels trade mainly from its own kingdom. As to the wider world, the lands around the Drachenpass, as far as humans and dragons on it are concerned, it's all there is. No other significant landmass is within reach of even the dragons, nor within their sight. I don't exclude the possibility that there might be a wider world, nor have I really gone into what sort of a world it would be. Perhaps it could even be a world more like our own, and more advanced, having not been restrained. These are issues I havn't raised. If I continue developing the Drachenpass long enough, maybe I'll go into other landmasses, or cultures, but for the time being, the lands they have are what is within the knowledge of all.