Fargona:
The Land of Dragons

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Rated T

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Story

800 years ago, when sorcerers and Dragon Tamers both thrived in Fargona, there was one especially powerful sorcerer named Rand Lorcend in the service of the king. One would think that Lorcend and his family would be proud of his position; however, it was not so. Lorcend came from a long line of Dragon Tamers, and when it was discovered that he did not share the bond with dragons the rest of his family did, they looked down upon him. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how great his magical abilities, nothing could ever change that he was not like them. Eventually, he began searching for a way to turn himself into a Dragon Tamer, using his place in the kingdom as a way to gain more knowledge.

Lorcend soon became consumed by his desire to please his hateful family, and that obsession quickly became a lust for power. Now, instead of just searching for a way to become a Tamer, he set his sights on the bonding with the most powerful dragon in all of Fargona: Skolgar. The icy dragon of the mountains was brought to his attention when it went on a rampage throughtout the continent, revealing its absolute might; what better way for Lorcend to impress his family than to take control of the one dragon none had ever Tamed?

Thus, while continuing to put up a facade of usefulness to the kingdom, he continued his research behind the scenes and undiscovered. He was, after all, a very careful man and would trust only himself to capture the wild dragons he required, and it was he would take them to the mountains in secrecy to lock them away for experimentation. How he ever managed to transport the beasts without help, no one is quite sure; for that matter, the lair where he kept them was never found.

The years flew by, and finally, the time came when Lorcend's work came to a finish; he had developed a spell that would allow him to bond with the mighty Skolgar, Dragon Tamer or not. The spell, however, would require a large amount of magic; enough to totally drain every magic user - including Dragon Tamers - in all of Fargona, in fact. If anything, this just pleased him all the more as it meant he would be greater than the family that had scorned him all of his life. The moment preparations were finished, he enacted his plan.

Throughout Fargona, sorcerers and Dragon Tamers alike collapsed to the ground as their magic was forcibly removed; many Dragon Tamers and their bonded dragons lost their minds or even died from the shock of losing the magic that held their connection together. Human magic users were not the only victims; many dragons fell prey to the spell as well, though most were able to hold onto small amounts of their magic. Still, the species suffered greatly, especially dragons such as the elementals who required magic to live.

Unfortunately, there was no way for the catastrophe to be traced back to Lorcend. The spell lasted for a total of a week, and it only ended because Lorcend could hold no more magical energy within his being. The amount of magic within him at that time was like a flare to those still powerful enough to possess and sense magic; the great Dragon Lords. The Dragon Lords, never before seen by the human eye, appeared on that day and followed the scent of magic to the Tonumskel Mountains. There, they came upon Lorcend in the lair of the sleeping Skolgar, attempting to use his new found powers to bond with the terrifying beast. However, his attempts failed as the slumbering dragon's mind rejected his.

Enraged that all of his efforts had gone to waste, he would have lashed out the surrounding land and no doubt rampaged throughout Fargona if the Dragon Lords had not been there to stop him. With the vast amount of magic they still possessed, they fought tirelessly with Lorcend; however, with Lorcend possessing the magic of all those within Fargona, neither side was able to gain the upper hand. Finally, the Dragon Lords knew there was only one way to bring an end to the battle. With the last of their magic, they used an ancient spell of purification that was able to seep past Lorcend's defenses. It tore him apart from the inside out, leaving him nothing but dust to be blown away on the wind. When the ashes of the defeated sorcerer disappeared, the Dragon Lords were nowhere to be seen and the icy cavern in which Skolgar slept was once again sealed.

Though Rand Lorcend was no more, the magic he had drained from the land was lost with him. In the following years, sorcerers and Dragon Tamers became a thing of legend; until today.

Plot

After all these years, magic is slowly beginning to return. Sorcerers, though no where near as powerful as their counterparts from the past, are beginning to flourish once again. Forgotten spells are being uncovered and relearned. There are even rumors of Dragon Tamers, though there is little proof that these rumors are true.

Not all is well, however. While magic has slowly been rising once again for the past 5 decades, there are those who remember the old stories of Rand Lorcend and fear that another may try what he did; because of this, they fear and shun any form of magic. That's just the tip of the iceberg, though. In the past year, sorcerers have been dropping dead where they stand, with no signs of ailment within or without their bodies. Those who fear the return of magic wonder if perhaps they dabbled in some dark, evil spell that took their life; others believe that some outside source is causing their deaths, though they can't say what it could be.

The dragons are becoming restless as well, in more ways than one. While some are simply nervous and always seem to be watching for something, there have also been multiple incidents where a dragon has attacked the human population without either warning or reason. Even the normally peaceful fae have been found guilty of maiming innocent travelers. Stranger than this, however, is that some strange sickness seems to be taking the lives of many dragons.

With the deaths piling up, King Johar has been spurred into action. It is his belief that the Dragon Tamers, the bridges between humans and dragons, hold the key to putting an end to these incidents and discovering the reason behind them. Thus, his Majesty has sent his own Royal Guard out to investigate the rumors of Dragon Tamers, so that he may recruit them to his cause.

Who Are You?

The rumors of Dragon Tamers returning are true, and you are one of those Dragon Tamers. Whether or not you have already discovered this for yourself, your Bond is on its way to you; or perhaps you have already found each other.

Terminology and Lore

Map of Fargona

Dragon Species

Appearance: Adkilar is a hulk of a man, standing at 6'7" and weighing 283 lbs., with most of that weight coming from his immense muscles. His jaw is rough and square, and his facial features are chiseled. He wears a bushy but relatively short beard on his face that comes together with his sideburns and mustache to form one large mass of facial hair. This hair is naturally the same black color as the hair on his head, which is kept very short. Long days under the sun have left him with dark brown skin of a similar color to the brown of his eyes, and long outings at sea that end up longer than perishable fruits and vegetables can be stored have resulted in encounters with scurvy and a few missing teeth.

Fashion is of little concern to Adkilar (although even if it were he doesn't have the money to actually buy nice clothes), so he usually only wears a simple pair of tan pants and a brown, knee-length tunic over a beige linen shirt, both made of wool. A pair of sandals woven from rope adorn his feet, and a rope belt holds his pants at his waist. He also carries a cloak made from a bear pelt for protection against the cold or the rain.

Personality: While once a loud, proud and exceptionally cheerful young man, time and suffering has worn Adkilar down. While he still tries to keep a smile on his face around others, his voice has lost the booming quality it once had and many moments alone are spent in reminiscence. Adkilar has no purpose in life, and some might say he is simply waiting for death. There are no plans for his future besides travelling and spending time with Nahuatl, his only companion. He can still appreciate the present well enough though, always enjoying new sights, good drink, good conversation, and a good game of cards.

Travelling so much gives him a lot of time to think and reflect, and he has found much wisdom this way, something which he is always willing to share. He hopes that maybe his advice can help someone before they end up like him, with nothing to look forward to. This fatalistic attitude does trouble Nahuatl, and he often finds himself "arguing" with the dragon over his state of mind.

History: Adkilar was born and raised in the village of Itim, and was the latest in a long line of fishermen. Most of his early years were spent learning the family business from his father and living an otherwise normal existence in the little trading village. Time passed, and eventually he was old enough to join his father's crew on their fishing vessel. It was the beginning of a difficult and dangerous life, but also a proud and fulfilling one.

The small crew was up before dawn and, after a hurried meal, was out on their boat checking nets, bait, sails, and more before they set out. The first rays of sunlight peeked out from the horizon by the time the crew was out on the Issathon Bay. They searched for good spots from their experience and knowledge of their prey and got right to work casting their nets once they found them. They towed their nets for a few hours before it was time to haul them back up. The fish were separated and placed into barrels, then the nets were re-checked before the entire process was repeated. By afternoon, the ship and its crew were on their way home with the day's haul. They needed to make haste, else the fish would begin spoiling. Finally, by day's end, all the fish had been cured, salted, or put on ice in preparation for it to be taken to market another day.

This was the way Adkilar lived for several years, and when his father died he took charge as captain of the fishing vessel to continue his father's legacy and carry on the family business. By this time, he had found a wife and had four children of his own, with more to come. However, this wasn't the only change in Adkilar's life. Magic had slowly been coming back to Fargona, and by this time there were a few people who held enough within them to be called sorcerers. This didn't affect the fishermen immediately, but after several more years more and more of these magic users appeared throughout the land, including some in Itim. The son of another fisherman discovered ways his magic could be used to help his father, and he unknowingly caused a revolution among the fishermen. He crafted various spells that spread amongst other sorcerers in the village who were soon hired by other fishing crews, and the new techniques fished some of the best spots in the bay dry.

Adkilar was stubborn and had refused to give up the methods his father had taught him for these new, magic-focused techniques, but by the time he decided he was losing too much business to his pride there were no more sorcerers capable of the fishing spells to be hired and the fishing spots he frequented had been tapped out. He spent a year trying to find new spots as well as attempting to learn magic himself. While the former of the two was a failure resulting in a pitiful season for his crew (which now included his eldest son), the latter was mildly successful as he discovered he could indeed perform magic. Unfortunately, it did not seem that he had enough of an affinity for the skill to use the new techniques properly, nor did he have the time to practice since he was still the captain of a commercial fishing vessel, so he simply devised some of quick spells he could still perform that helped him do what he already did a little better.

Unwilling to give up, Adkilar simply decided that if the nearby spots were no good anymore, he would simply have to search further out. Reaching the Tasdenen Ocean, Adkilar finally found some success, but it was not enough to make up for recent losses. He needed more, so he went even farther out. Fortune finally seemed to smile on him as he found the best haul he'd ever gotten, well worth the cost of the new nets necessary to fish in deeper waters, as well as the ice boxes necessary to keep the fish from spoiling until he returned.

Even without a sorcerer in his employ, he managed to match the other fishermen thanks to the new fishing spots he'd found in deep water. The distance from port didn't prove to be as much of an issue as he thought it would be. At least, that was the case until one fateful day when a sudden storm hit. Adkilar realized it was coming a little before it hit, but the ship was too far out to make it back in time to avoid it. The storm swept the crew far out into the ocean before crushing their ship under powerful waves and letting the ocean drag it and them under. The last thing Adkilar remembered before losing consciousness was a the shadow of a large fish approaching him, probably to make him its meal. Unconsciousness brought with it an overwhelming influx of emotions, perhaps the rumored "life flashing before his eyes" experience, before complete darkness took him.


Adkilar woke up on a beach, wondering if he had dreamed the entire event or if he had passed on to the afterlife. Suddenly though, he got a feeling that he might be wrong, as well as a sense of concern for...himself? After dealing with more confusing emotions that were starting to seem like they weren't entirely his, he felt a premonition that something was approaching. Turning in that direction, he saw a massive creature that seemed like a cross between an eel and a shark. He knew it was neither, though. They were almost never seen on the surface, but he knew well that it was the dragon known as the Bakunawa. Unfortunately, that didn't make things much better since dragons had recently been turning hostile for no apparent reason.

Suddenly, Adkilar got another feeling that it meant no harm. He finally pieced it together. These sudden, foreign emotions came from the Bakunawa in front of him. He began to speak to it, and responses seemed to come in the form of these same feelings and premonitions. He took advantage of this to ask about his situation. It took some effort to figure out what all the emotions he was presented with meant, but he was able to gather that he had been saved by the Bakunawa and brought to this island. He could not figure out exactly how long he had been there though except that it had been a long time.

While Adkilar wished to go home as soon as possible, starvation, dehydration, and slight muscular atrophy forced him to stay on the island a few more days as he restored his condition. He had to be healthy enough to make the trip home, as it would undoubtedly be a trip that would take days. Much of his time besides gathering food, water, and firewood was spent working on a raft to take him home and talking, or rather communicating, with the Bakunawa. Sorting its emotions with his own became easier the more the two interacted, until it was almost as if they were actually talking.

It was through these "conversations" that they had agreed that the best way for Adkilar to return home would be for the Bakunawa, whose name he learned was Nahuatl (rather, Adkilar listed off random names until he got the feeling that the Bakunawa liked one), to pull along the raft as Adkilar would not be able to keep his water breathing spell active long enough to ride Nahuatl home underwater and he weighed too much to glide home on him. Adkilar spent almost two weeks on that island and the pair was finally ready to return to the mainland. He considered Nahuatl a friend by now and could not just leave him, nor did Nahuatl feel a desire to leave Adkilar. The two set out onto the ocean and made way for Itim.

It would seem that Adkilar had been away from home far longer than he had expected. He got the news of everything that had happened while he was gone from his youngest daughter Alma. He knew he'd been out at sea two, nearly 3 days before the storm hit and that he had stayed on the island 11 days, and he now discovered that it took him 5 whole days to wake up after the incident. In that time, he and his crew had been declared officially dead and he'd been blamed for it. It caused hell for his family. His wife grew sick from sadness, stress, and lack of sleep and eventually died, and all his living sons left town. Only his daughters, married to men of the village, remained. He'd lost not only his business and friends, but his family as well.

Alma gave Adkilar some money and recommended he leave town before more people found him, which he promptly did. Before leaving, though, he went to the shore and promised Nahuatl that he would come back for him. With his children scattered all over Fargona with lives of their own, Nahuatl was the only one he really had left. Thus, Adkilar made his way to Issathon with only a little money and the clothes on his back. He lived in Issathon for several years, making a living doing construction, gambling, drinking, and visiting Nahuatl at the nearest shore every once in a while. His primary goal was making money, and he turned out to be a pretty good gambler and overall lucky guy.

Adkilar purchased a modest house in the city with his winnings and also purchased a good amount of wood and steel, which he used to build an utterly massive wagon. After making enough to buy a pair of oxen as well, he returned to the shore where he visited Nahuatl and he asked him to join him on land where the wagon would serve as his home and transportation, at least when there were no large bodies of water nearby. After that, Adkilar sold his house and returned to Itim one last time to give the entire small fortune he had accumulated from gambling in Issathon to the families of his former crew.

Until now, Adkilar has spent his life travelling the world with Nahuatl for no real reason than for travel's sake. He is usually able to find food and water out in the open for himself, but he always needs some money to afford enough food for his oxen and Nahuatl. To get it he simply gambles with what little he kept. On the off chance that he loses it instead, he always has his muscles and magic to earn him enough anyway, though gambling is just more fun. He never stays in one place for more than a few days. Rumors have spread about what he carries in the wagon he brings everywhere, and some people have even begun to spin urban legends about him. He makes no attempt to dissuade them, and just goes on his merry way.

Currently, Adkilar's travels bring him to Honim, where he and Nahuatl are enjoying the waters of Emnys lake.

Spells known:
Hydrokinesis: Adkilar can move water with his mind. While it is possible to control the amount and direction of the water moved with only his mind, it puts much greater strain on him and is easier with the use of his hands. Increasing the amount of water, the speed of its motion, and the complexity of its movements all drain Adkilar's magic at a faster rate. He is currently only able to move a couple dozen gallons at best, though.

Water Breathing: Contrary to the spell's name, it does not actually allow him to breathe water. Rather, it conjures a field around Adkilar's head that allows him to rebreathe his air. It cannot be cast underwater though, as the field needs to contain air in the first place in order to circulate it.

Empower: Adkilar's strength increases proportionately to the amount of magic put in when casting the spell. The spell requires a constant input of magic as long as it is active, and greater strength increases drain his magic at a greater rate. Exerting himself more when in an empowered state leaves him much more tired and sore when it wears off.​

Appearance: Nahuatl is fairly small for a Bakunawa, reaching only a little past 12 feet in length and only weighing 2545 lbs. He is also fairly thin, making him appear slightly more like a serpent than a fish the way many Bakunawa do. His fins are, however, larger than average. This, coupled with his smaller size, allows him to glide through the air much more easily than others. Nahuatl's scales are of a dark gray color, but they still have a decent luster that gives them the appearance of steel. The webbing on his fins is a slightly lighter gray.

Personality: Nahuatl is fairly calm and quiet, having been tempered by age just as Adkilar has. He does not believe that all he has left for him is death the way Adkilar does, though. Having been given access to the entire surface world, something unheard of for a Bakunawa, Nahuatl wishes to study other dragons and discover what exactly is causing them to go berserk. This is usually what he spends his time doing when Adkilar lets him out into rivers and lakes. He often sends Adkilar a desire to understand his surroundings so that the man can give him the lay of the land when he doesn't have access to a nearby body of water and still wants to do research.

When he is not trying to study other dragons, Nahuatl is usually relaxing in his wagon or having a conversation with Adkilar. He does not approve of Adkilar's negative attitude and wants to see Adkilar find something to strive for. During arguments, he usually takes the more optimistic stance against the former fisherman. However, he does realize how futile his efforts probably are understanding full well the depths of Adkilar's despair.​

Dragon Tamer

"To prove that we're the best is my ambition!
And I won't let anyone stop us!"​

Dragon Bond​