There once lived a tribe with of humans deep within the wooded boughs of a dense forest, these humans had claimed the land and all upon it as their own, but little did they know of the land itself as the creatures that prowled moved under shadows of darkness, so that no man would see them. One of such villages thrived off  of the collection of small creatures for food, such as rabbits and squirrels.
One day, a man from this village tracked a hare too deep into the wood and became lost. This man would come to discover something that would change how he saw the forest forever. Whilst this man was tracking the rabbit into the ever denser forest, he had gotten lost, the rabbit, fleeing into a burrow was safe from him and he was lost in this labyrinth of branches. He searched around for hours trying to find an escape, before eventually finding a pond, this pond was one that he recognized, though he was still far from his home and his tribe. This lost man decided to walk to the pond and try to catch some fish when he heard a branch snap behind him, he saw a silhouette of a large beast, at this sight he lost all interest in fishing and took off in a run, before he left the clearing he turned around and saw the creature, a magnificent sight that had yet instilled terror into his soul.
He had seen a dragon, and he had to return and warn the chief. He sprinted back to the village and to warn the other villagers about this creature. The chief, having heard tales of fearsome dragons that pillage and kill for nothing but greed and pleasure had decided to forbid anyone from returning to that area of the forest, but the man knew of an exceptional hare hunting spot not far into the wood, and decided that going there wouldn't be that bad. He planned to go there tomorrow to try and earn his keep. He sat awake in the night wondering just what he saw, a creature of that scale, in the woods that they called home? How had they never seen it before? Had it been that diligent as to not be seen by the tribe folk? All these questions ran through his mind as he fell asleep.
He rose at the break of dawn, and decided to travel out early to get the jump on all the rabbits that would be out looking for food. He traveled to this hunting spot and crept around it. He crouched low and began to watch, before long a rabbit came along in the small patch of clover he had been hidden next to, this hare, unsuspecting began to eat the glossy green plants that littered the opening. The man, spotting his chance decided to dart out and snatch the rabbit. When he was about to, the rabbit looked in his direction and ran, as if he had seen some ferocious beast. The man sat down in defeat and began to wait for another creature that could be considered dinner. While he was sitting there, he felt a warm breeze on the back of his neck, curious as to where this was coming from he turned around, only to find himself staring down a wolf three times the size that he was, and he said a quick prayer in the hopes that it may protect him. A few seconds passed and when he opened his eyes the frightening creature had disappeared.
Thankful, he turned and began to walk away, however, turning had made him run headfirst into a tree, when he looked up he saw that it in fact was not a brown log with limbs and leaves, but a rough surface with sharp edges. He began to study this texture more closely, and noticed that it was swaying. This surface was not anything that he had seen before, he looked more closely only for it to sway again, and for the second time did he feel a warm draft on the back of his neck. He turned around and fainted, for it was the same beast he had seen at the water's edge the day before. When he woke he was yet still in the small clearing, slumped over against a tree.
Not fully remembering what happened he looked around, and as he did he picked out a pair of magnificent violet eyes from the tangled shrubbery in the opposite side of the little hovel.
These eyes were much more human-like than any creature's that he had seen before. And while he looked at them, the creature turned and returned the gaze piercing his very soul.
Although he was a very renowned member of the tribe because of his lack of courage and ability to be wracked with fraught at a moments notice, this petrified him. This creature though, had continued to stare into his eyes, not attacking or harming him for some time, so he decided to take a step forward. This single step took more effort than anything he had done in all his life, and it was going against every instinct that he had. The dragon did not flinch or shrink back, and continued to watch the man with growing curiosity.
After many minutes did the man reach the center of the clearing, for which the dragon took it's first step out of the shadows. This sudden movement caused the man to flinch, and noticing this the dragon retreated back into the darkness. Before they had done this, the man was able to spot more of the mighty beast. This creature was both the colors of fields of lilac, and the darkness of night, and it had traces and accents of gold lining that had shimmered in the bright sun. They continued to wonder why this creature hadn't attacked if all the things he was told were true. He then sat in the clearing, and watched the clouds go by, forgetting that the beast was still there, watching him.
The creature, in all it's beauty set foot into the sun once again, slowly approaching the man. They were so lost in thought that it wasn't until the dragon was feet away that he noticed them. He was shaken up, but not sensing immediate danger sat and looked at the creature. He then returned to the clouds for a moment.The dragon took another step and was now only a foot or two away. The man reached out and touched the creature hesitantly, not thinking and just acting. He rubbed the creature's snout like he had seen the other tribesmen rub their horses from time to time. The dragon was taken aback by this action, but did not move backward or retaliate, it just stood there.
The man then noticed that the sun was down past the trees and stood up. He looked at the beast and it understood, he took one last long gaze at it before he walked off in the direction of the village. But when he walked away he could sense that it was still watching him, as if it was trying to understand something. He walked out of view, and the beast sighed, it was both concerned and relieved about the human that it had seen twice now. He was not a very large man, and anything but observant or strong. They were glad that they found him before he became food for the Greatwolf that was over him. She contemplated as she faded back into the shadows of the night, what the future may hold. The man, now entering the village was questioned by the others as to where he had been, to which he replied that he was out fishing and just had terrible luck. The other villagers brushed this off as just another flaw of his, before resuming their own duties.
He returned to his home for the night, still thinking about what he had seen in the forest.He fell asleep to questions about the dragon, and dreamt about them, trying to figure out what they had wanted from him. They set their mind on finding the beast again, so that he may know the answer to this burning question.
He woke early and snuck out of the village, knowing not where to start in the search for this large and threatening beast as no one had ever seen it before. He took a bow and a quiver, just so that he may get some small game whilst he was out. He started out on his trek, checking behind him along the way to make sure no one had followed him. He continued to wander about the forest and became more and more invested in looking for this magnificent creature. He scoured high and low for the better of dawn, and had just settled down for a rest before continuing in the heat of early midday.
At the same time that he had been exploring, he had also been mapping out the path that he had taken, so he won't get lost. Whilst he was sitting and resting, he came to a decision, he would travel back to the place that he first saw the beast. He stood up and began to push through the overgrown brush once more. The man walked and walked, and after an hour of fighting off boughs and other small shrubbery he came to the small lake from which he saw the creature. He sat down beside the lake, with his back to a tree and waited. He began to feel drowsy from all the walking that he had done before he sat down, and he set the bow and quiver beside him and rested his head on the tree behind him. The man fell under the spell of sleep, and when he woke the sun was almost at the top of the trees, showing that he had been asleep for multiple hours.
He looked around and spotted nothing around him, no sign of the beast that he had been searching for. The man sighed, then looked into the woods behind him. Through the verdant leaves and dull wood he noticed a large opening in the ground, much bigger than himself, but not big enough for his home to fit in.
This hole was sheltered from the elements by an overarching hill, and it was filled with straw and leaves. He then spotted one other item among all these leaves and dried grass. He lowered himself into the hole and retrieved a glowing pendant, embellished with gold and inscribed with a saying in Latin - "ex nihilo nihil fit" which he could roughly translate after much struggle to "Nothing Comes From Nothing". He contemplated why this item was buried deep in the middle of the forest.
He was climbing out of the hole when he heard a large crash, and he ducked into some brush and peered in the direction of the noise. It was the small pond, but all was still, he  stared at the surface and watched it begin to bubble. This was a curious discovery, since the water was not warm enough to boil. The man inched closer to inspect the water and noticed that it had began to steam, showing a steep increase in temperature.When he got to the water's edge he felt a blast of heat, as something had broke the surface, showering him with scorching liquid. This liquid brought such strong pain that he  fell unconscious, unknowing of what had struck him.
He woke later, feeling cozy, as if he was in his cottage at home. He darted up, remembering what had happened and looked around, he was in the hole he had found earlier. Had he crawled here without remembering? No, his hands were still clean, and his bow and quiver were beside him, which he had left in the bushes by the pond.Moments later he was greeted by the same beast's gaze poking out from under the straw beside him. This startled him and he would have never seen them if they would not have shifted, and did not expect them to be so well hidden. He came to a realization at that point, that this was it's home, and he had intruded on it once before. Checking his satchel he slowly removed the pendant of which he had taken before. The creature seemed to know about this for it just watched, not taking its eyes off the man.
It was at this point that the dragon moved very suddenly, it had stuck out it's neck, as if trying to tell the man something. After this it hooked the gemstone in its claws and put it to his neck, he understood at that point what it wanted, it wanted him to wear the item. Very slowly he took the item from the creatures claw and hooked it around his neck. After a moment of surprise he realized that he heard a faint voice in his mind. This was the voice of a woman, one of which he had not heard before. This voice was very tranquil and eloquent, and it held much compassion. He had noticed that the beast beside him had sunk back into the straw to sleep, and he did the same.
When he closed his eyes the voice became louder, and he could distinguish what it was saying. It was speaking to him, from off in the shadows of his mind, it was calling to him. This woman called him deep into the darkness of his mind, where no other thoughts had dared venture, onward and onward, before coming to a small cottage, made of sturdy logs and topped with a roof of matted and dried straw.
He walked up to this house and knocked on the engraved wooden door that sat on hinges of shimmering iron. The woman's voice rang out, and he had little time to examine the engravings on the door before it opened. They were of verdant nature, plants and small creatures in a large open field. Trees, grass, and shrubbery lived, and amidst that flourished rabbits, foxes, and other beast-life. All of these were carved visibly by hand, deep and elegantly.  The door was made of dense cherrywood, giving it a slight pink color, and showing the needed force behind the carvings.
The woman which came to the door to answer the man was a tall figure with eyes all to familiar to them, rolling purple, ranging from the colors of royalty to the rolling fields of lavender near their village. Her hair was a deep black, which at the time laid at rest upon her shoulders, She had a frame of both beauty and gentle-lovingness, and the man was swept away by this woman. He was again pulled back to reality by her voice, she spoke gently, and much clearer than the whispers that he had heard prior. They spoke for much time, within the large cabin, both sharing views without speaking much, and sharing compassion that neither knew they had.
It was only upon the fading of this dream-world that the man understood, he was speaking to the great creature from which he accepted the amulet. This beast was a gentle and caring creature, far from the terror stories of which he was told by the village elder, and when he woke, he was greeted by their gaze from across the little hovel. Smiling, he returned the gaze, now understanding the true feelings of this majestic beast.
He broke from this stare and looked around the small indentation, spotting something that they had not seen before, it looked like a large rock made of granite, but it had a peculiar shape about it. He inched closer to inspect the stone, only to be stopped by the large dragon's tail, they looked concerned. They gave the creature a quizzical look, extremely curious as to what it was, and the beast very hesitantly put down it's tail. Still very curious, he would inch closer, very slowly as to not upset the beast of which they were still cautious.
When they got to the smooth rock, they looked at it very closely.  They would glance over and see the large creature watching them very closely, the man would be put off by this, not understanding what the stone was. He reached over and tapped the surface very gently, and they heard a slight squeak in response, like that of a mouse. The man would tap the stone again, hearing the same sound come from it. Looking over at the dragon, they would be extremely confused. The woman's voice spoke in their head, telling them to be gentle with their child.The man flinched, their brain racing "Their Child"? That would make the stone an egg, of which they had never seen before. Once they understood this, they  realized why they had been so hesitant to let the man so near to it, and what the squeaking they heard was.
At this time, the sky was becoming dark, and they did not wish to return to the village at this time. As if knowing what they were thinking about, the creature made more room in the small cave-like hole for them, so that they may stay if they wish. They gave a look of silent thanks to the beast, as the thought of making the trek back to the village in the dark terrified them. Laying their head down they fell into the deep abyss of sleep, and back into the world of their mind. Finding themselves back in the cabin, they would look around for the woman that they had met prior. Spotting them in a wooden chair towards the edge of the room, they would walk over to them, sitting in a similar chair near to hers. Through the silence she spoke.
"Why do you continue to stay?"
He turned away, thinking about this question, why did he stay? For minutes he thought, trying to think of a reason, and then one came to him.
"You're just so nice, and so thoughtful."
She turned away swiftly, having not ever heard a complement holding so much honesty. Looking back, she thanked him for sharing this kindness with her. They both became silent and were wrapped deep in thought.
Hours passed, with the occasional question surfacing with more truthful responses and nervous actions. One stood out among all as being a heavy question to the woman.
"Why are you hiding alone out here?"
The woman looked at the floor, obviously this question had brought about some pain for her. Turning away, the man began to speak.
"I'm sorry for intruding so much an-"
"Stop, I..."
She would pause. Thinking of what she wanted to say. The woman would speak again.
"Humans, much like yourself... Have never gotten along with any beast, none that show any side of hostility."
He sat back farther in his chair, this was true, they had always pushed any creature out that came too close, but why was it that she had  shown herself to him, no one had ever seen her before, so why him?
"You are of pure heart, you would not hurt any creature that you saw remorse within"
She spoke as if she knew what he was thinking, and he sat, trying to take in this answer. Yes, he had not harmed any creature other than those he needed to survive, passing by any that he did not find necessary to harm. A noise suddenly came from the where the woman was, and he looked up to see her fading.
He looked down to see himself doing to same, seconds later he was back in the small hovel. He was right where he fell asleep, looking up he saw the creature, which was watching her egg intently. Peering closer he spotted a small crack along the crown of the egg. They backed away slowly, careful as to not disturb it.
Looking to the dragon they decided that they must return to their home for a short while, as if they did not the townspeople would begin to worry. The dragon nodded, not taking her eyes off the egg in the hay. As he trekked back through the forest he encountered many small creatures, of which he passed thinking about what the woman had said. Returning to the village entrance he spotted smoke coming from the town. Upon entering the village through the small gate, they spotted heaps of ash, covering the places in which there were buildings before.
Suddenly the man heard a weak voice, and looking over spotted the elder under a wooden beam, surrounded by a pool of blood. The man asked what happened and their only response was,
"Continue our way of life..."