>>5762611>>5762658>>5762701>>5763005>>5763096>>5763140>>5763147You gaze upon the Princess and feel proud of the accomplishments—and the future—which she represents. How could you not? Oh, perhaps a female makes for a weaker heir, in theory but… Well, look at the DUELIST, after all. It is not necessarily so. And really, she is a female Dragonborn. You have no doubt that, fully-grown, she will be a fierce creature worthy of inspiring nightmares in any adversary! And speaking of nightmare-inducing adversaries, that’s BEFORE you empower her with the essence of a Greater Demon!
“She will need a worthy name,” you muse.
“Well do not speak it NOW, fool!” your Serpent Queen snaps, with surprising superstition… But then, this is the same female who still fidgets when you call her by HER name. Some cultural taboos run deep, you suppose.
You instead muse silently on the subject, while the Serpent Queen shoos away the attendants. You idly stroke the scales between the newborn hatchling’s horn-nubs, and gently apply the <presence> needed to make her hold still and stop biting at your claws. Ha! Yes, fierce. A fierce protector of the Kingdom of Bloodrise, its people, their faith and future… Hmm…
“Do you know of the great dragon Wajutovok?” you ask the Princess’ mother, when all others have departed and left your little family alone.
“What?” she asks, thrown off by the question. “No, obviously. I am not some dragon-dweeb like you, Degenerateborn. I research things which MATTER, in the here and now.”
You ignore the usual barbs, instead expounding upon the ancient champion.
“Wajutovosk was a serpentine dragon known for spewing noxious venom, superheated, such that it would burn away all life and poison the ground for decades to come,” you explain. “He was not a king himself, but served a queen, so the legend goes—his mother, a golden dragon to the south of the continent.”
“I like the ‘serving the will of she who birthed him’ part,” the shrewd Serpent priestess admits, regarding her spawn with renewed interest.
You knew she would, but as you feel your child struggle against the pressure of your <Fearsome Presence>, you silently suspect she will have her hands full with THIS one. Moreover, that isn’t the part of the story which captures your imagination.
