So, you've decided to stay another night? It’s just as well - I revel in the company of others. A traveler meets many people on his journeys, but the road always beckons. Another story? Let me think...ah yes. This one should do nicely.
There was once a village that thrived on farming. After every harvest season, when the crops were sold, the village would prosper. A festival was held every year to celebrate a successful yield. But one year, a dragon came to ravage the town and pilfer their profits. The following winter was rough but the gods saw fit to allow the villagers to survive. Perseverance kept them going and with the threat of the dragon passed, they grew their crops once again. But when the harvest festival came once more the dragon returned to pillage their town.
This cycle of growth and loss continued for three more years until the village was in decay. The land was scarred and the people were weary. If the dragon returned once more, the village would not survive. During the month before the harvest festival, a traveler happened through the village. He was taken aback by the generosity of those who had so little to give. Their plight became his plight and he promised to hunt down and slay the dragon. Though the villagers did not doubt his sincerity, they did not hold out hope for his return. They harvested their crops and prepared for the worst. But when the harvest festival came, the dragon was nowhere to be seen. The man returned and they celebrated him as their savior. The dragon was no more.
The dragonslayer stayed and led the village into prosperity. The villagers were happy for a time but dragons were not the only monsters among men. The dragonslayer, having gained the villagers’ loyalty, began to abuse his power. It was subtle at first - increased taxation, harsher laws enacted. But the village quickly fell into poverty as the tyrant dragonslayer prospered.
The villagers had survived harsh winters, poor crop yields, famines, and dragon attacks, but betrayal was something they would not abide. On a cold winter night, a crowd gathered and raided the tyrant's manor. Even the lord’s personal guard stood aside - he was defenseless. As the villagers condemned him to death, the dragonslayer simply laughed. For you see, he had never slain the dragon at all. Realizing that a desolate village offered no spoils, the dragon had concocted a plan to ensure his own prosperity. The dragon had used his dark magic to conceal himself as the very savior that stood now before the crowd. In that moment, the dragonslayer’s true form was revealed. He burst through the keep and lifted into the air.
The village was razed and the survivors fled into the night. With the village destroyed, the dragon abandoned the land there in search of new prey. In time, the land became fertile again, villagers returned, and the town was rebuilt. To this day, the villagers celebrate the dragon’s harvest. It is a time in which they celebrate life but also remember what they have lost.
People are nothing if not stubborn. There will always be darkness in the world, my friend, often overwhelmingly so. But as long as the smallest spark of hope survives, the light will one day shine again. You’ll excuse me if I retire for the evening. There are long travels ahead.
The Paladin's Story: Hope was written by Daniel Weinell and illustrated by Maribel Navarro.
