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“To understand why the forest dragon clans exist as they do today, you need to know what they once were. The elders would have you believe we are creatures of steadfast tradition, but our history is one of adaptation.” Ollimar began, rearing up onto his hind legs. Magic gathered and swirled around him as the green took the opportunity to perform a bit of showmanship in his storytelling, the Prestidigitation spell doing nothing more but adding a dramatic flare to his visage as he began his practiced tale, his eyes engulfed in brilliant emerald light.

“Long ago, we forest dragons lived on this continent the same as any other being. We fed, we bred, we populated. Of course, we spoke the old tongue then, but we were far from feral beasts. Simply devoted to nature, as our druidic ilk is known to be, we kept to ourselves and we followed the ways of old. Mankind, young as they were, also inhabited these lands. No one knows quite when they arrived, where they’d come from, or when they began to civilize. They were new, and at first we weren't sure they were anything more than the other apes. Even after we began to notice that they were incredibly resourceful and bright, we still afforded them the same place in the food chain as anything their size. The longer we preyed on humanity, the more we saw that they were greater, still, than we initially had thought. When we took one individual from a group, well, they'd mourn. They could mourn for days, weeks, and months. Naturally, that grief would then turn to rage, and hatred, and they would attempt to retaliate. A human, as you know, is hardly a match for a dragon. But a large group of pike and blade armed humans, well. . . We quickly learned it was best to avoid them altogether if it were possible and food was plentiful. A mutually beneficial arrangement, we deduced in our wisdom. And so, their numbers grew and ours did as well. But our food supply waned while theirs sustained, the humans capable of hunting, gathering and cultivating the fertile soil to feed their masses. We began to see and understand the merits in banding together, working, living and growing as a whole instead of individuals. Factions of forest dragons formed in their respective areas, precursors to the clans of today. We began to find our identity as more than the reclusive, druidic dragons of the wild. We began to grow." The green dragon said, plucking a fallen oak branch from the grass with his dexterous tail idly. He examined that tree limb for a moment, taking it in his hand paws, stalling purely for effect before he continued his tale, his next line uttered succinctly in a grave, theatrical tone.

"It was then that we first encountered an earth dragon.”

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An utterly stunning piece by the talented  Rai-che Be certain to give their gallery a look!

Rai-che did this piece for me as part of an experimental, tarot-based offering. I absolutely adore how it came out, and it always reminded me of something very Storybook-esque, so I thought I would use it to show an edited excerpt from one of my favorite RPs. The story will continue in the next two images, if you care about that sort of thing.