Dragon War: The Ballad of Ice and Fire - PART 2 — THE GREED OF HUMANKIND
PART 2 — THE GREED OF HUMANKIND
Thousands of years passed after the Dragon Accord was forged.
The world of Eryndor slowly began to heal.
Forests grew once more across the burned lands.
The seas no longer froze.
For the first time, the skies knew peace.
And during that time…
Humanity rose.
At first, they were merely small tribes living beneath the shadow of Dragonkind.
They feared dragons.
Worshipped them as gods.
But time changes everything.
Humans learned to build cities.
Forge weapons.
Create mighty kingdoms.
And eventually…
They stopped being afraid.
At the center of the continent of Eryndor, the Solaris Empire became the most powerful nation in human history.
Massive golden walls stretched high into the clouds.
Millions of soldiers.
Hundreds of ancient sorcerers.
Its ruler — Emperor Aurelius — believed humanity should become the true master of the world.
Not dragons.
Not gods.
But mankind.
One night…
An expedition from Solaris ventured into the forbidden eastern mountains.
A place known as the Valley of Dragon Bones.
No one had ever returned from there.
But greed was stronger than fear.
After three days crossing endless chasms and blizzards…
They found something that should never have existed.
The colossal skeleton of an ancient dragon lay buried within the mountain.
And at the center of its ribcage…
A crimson crystal pulsed like a living heart.
THUMP…
THUMP…
THUMP…
Its red glow reflected in the greedy eyes of the alchemists.
One trembling mage whispered:
“This is…”
“A Dragon Heart…”
When they brought the crystal back to Solaris…
Everything changed.
A single fragment of the Dragon Heart…
Was enough to power an entire city for years.
Weapons became stronger.
Armies became unstoppable.
Gigantic war machines were created.
Humanity began to believe—
They had surpassed Dragonkind.
But then…
Greed consumed everything.
Other kings became obsessed with the power of the Dragon Heart.
Dragon hunts began.
At first, only old and weakened dragons were targeted.
Then…
All of them.
Across Eryndor, the skies filled with screams.
Dragons were dragged down with colossal chains.
Sorcerers pierced their wings with enchanted spears.
Dragon hunters tore open the chests of living creatures to harvest the crystals within their hearts.
Dragon blood flowed like rivers.
In the south…
Varkaros stood atop a volcano and gazed upon the corpses of hundreds of Fire Dragons hanging from the walls of Solaris.
The flames surrounding his body trembled violently.
His burning crimson eyes ignited with ancient fury.
A young Fire Dragon chained beneath him trembled and asked:
“Father…”
“Why are humans doing this…?”
Varkaros remained silent.
But the flames around him grew fiercer.
Meanwhile…
In the north, Seraphyne soared above endless frozen seas.
She descended upon a ruined village.
Blood stained the snow everywhere.
The bodies of Ice Dragons lay scattered across the ice.
Dragon eggs had been shattered.
A dying hatchling lay amidst the storm.
It lifted its head weakly toward Seraphyne.
“Your Majesty…”
Its voice trembled.
“What… did we do wrong…?”
Seraphyne froze.
She knelt and embraced the small dragon’s fading body.
For the first time in thousands of years…
The Ice Dragon Queen felt something called hatred.
At the same moment…
Within Solaris—
Emperor Aurelius stood inside the vast golden throne hall.
Before him, dozens of glowing Dragon Hearts pulsed within ancient machines.
A general knelt excitedly before the throne.
“Your Majesty…”
“We now possess enough power to destroy Dragonkind.”
Aurelius slowly walked toward the window.
He gazed into the night sky—
Where dragon silhouettes still flew in the far distance.
“No.”
His voice was cold.
“I do not wish to destroy them.”
He tightened his grip on his scepter.
“I wish to enslave them.”
That night…
The skies of Eryndor trembled.
In the south, volcanoes began to awaken.
In the north, blizzards spread across entire oceans.
At the same moment, the two Dragon Kings opened their eyes.
They sensed the same thing.
The Dragon Accord…
Was being broken.
And then—
An explosion thundered from the Black Sky Frontier.
BOOOOOOM!!!
A colossal crimson flame erupted within the darkness.
And from the north…
A white storm of ice came surging forward.
After thousands of years of peace—
May you like
The two Dragon Monarchs…
Were about to meet once again.
