The Dragon Prince Book One: Moon by Aaron and Melanie Ehasz has been announced! I was the cover and interior artist for this. Thanks to my wonderful agent Kathleen Rushall, Scholastic AD Betsy Peterschmidt, and Wonderstorm for making this happen! It’s available on Amazon now! (Its available for pre-order on Amazon, but I don’t get any money from the sales).
I stand up, remembering the hot springs that Diavolo mentioned.
A bath sounds good, after climbing the mountains and the drinking session I need it.
Diavolo told me in great detail about it, so I find it very easy.
The only way I can mark it as occupied is with a towel.
I take note of taking my sword with me, just in case.
The bath takes away all my tension. It feels great being clean again.
So many strange things happened to me yesterday. My life has been turned upside down. Yet I can’t help but feel excited.
It’s a strange feeling.
I wonder what kind of solution Diavolo will come up with.
If dragons and humans are truly able to work together then, this is the test for it.
After I put my armor back on I find Diavolo in the kitchen, he is preparing food.
“Good morning. I hope you are up for some eggs this morning.” He smiles brightly.
I almost feel like I’m in a strange Inn.
“Sounds great.” I give him a polite smile and sit down. It’s almost like he didn’t reveal that he is a dragon last night.
“How have you slept?” He asks as he puts plates with omelets on the table.
“Pretty good considering everything.” I fill my cup with some water and look at the delicious smelling meal.
“I should have carried it to bed, but it didn’t feel appropriate to me.” Diavolo looks a bit troubled.
“I appreciate that.” I think it was the best decision to make.
“Let’s eat. I got these extra for us.” Diavolo smiles proudly.
“That is very nice of you. You are a great host.” I start digging into the omelets, it tastes just as good as it smells.
“Thank you, coming from you this means a lot.” Diavolo is rightfully proud.
“Where did you learn to cook?” I doubt that dragons usually do that.
“I learned it from a very nice human. He took me in when I just started learning about humans. A curious fellow, but he taught me a lot.” Diavolo smiles at the memory.
“Sounds like a great guy.” I smile at him and finish my portion.
“I wonder what I should bring to our journey.” After eating Diavolo ponders over this.
“Some provisions, a first aid kit and camping equipment are a good start.” I have listed a few necessary items.
“I can just share a tent with you right?” Diavolo asks innocently.
“No.” I simply refuse him. “I’ll help you pack.” I sigh, feeling like this won’t end well otherwise.
So I pack a backpack for him and we are ready to head out.
“Do you know where that fire dragon lives? I followed the route it took, but all the dragon marks just led me to you.” I still have no idea how that happened.
“It’s probably the one that has its territory right next to the mountain. It likely used the mountains to hide its true goal.” Diavolo seems to know the dragon; this will be helpful.
“Okay, in that case we should head down again.” It shouldn’t be too hard to go back down the path I came from.
“There are a lot of vicious plants on the side you came from. Let’s go through the forest on the other side.” Diavolo makes a great point.
“Makes sense. Let’s do that.” I have no objections, fighting plants can be a bigger issue than the dragon itself.
Diavolo seems very happy about this. It’s a bit strange, but I ignore it for now.
“Sweet, we are going to use the big entrance. I usually use it to fly out, but I suppose that’s out of the question while I’m hiding my true identity.” Diavolo is somewhere between happy and sad.
“I guess you are disappointed that you can’t show off?” I can only guess.
“Well, I thought it would be cool if you would ride on my back and I’d impress you with my flying skills.” Diavolo smiles, sure of himself.
“Maybe another time, for now it’s best we don’t draw unnecessary attention.” I wonder how it is to ride a dragon, but that has to wait.
Diavolo nods a bit sullen.
With that he shows me to a path down the other side of the mountain.
The village in front of me is burned down to a pile of ashes.
“The dragon went too far this time. It burned down the entire village. Will you help us?” The village elder begs me, down on his knees.
“Don’t worry, as a dragon knight it’s my job to hunt and kill dragons that harm humans. We were already paid by the king in advance. You have nothing to worry about.” I smile at him to reassure him.
“Thank goodness. We can’t thank you enough.” He bows once again.
“Please tell me in what direction the dragon flew after it did this?” I try to be patient, but one can never be sure if the dragon might attack again.
“Of course, it went towards the mountains. We aren’t sure exactly where it went. Probably Mount Doom.” The old man points towards the peaks behind the village.
Of course the dragon had to hide in the mountains.
“Thank you very much. I will be off now. Please stay hidden until the dragon is slain.” I give him a warning that he will likely ignore and make my way to the mountain.
Luckily enough I had plenty of training so even my heavy armor isn’t much of a hindrance for me. I was also coming prepared for this hike.
I tighten my sword on my back and walk up over steep paths and reach Rocky territory before nightfall.
I camp and look for any signs of a dragon in the area.
Signs like burned bushes, claw marks, carcuccues with marks maybe some excrements.
A few trees have some old claw marks but nothing fresh.
I rest the night and continue my track upwards.
I find relatively fresh marks on the side of a cliff. The dragon certainly is big.
The path up that particular mountain is steep and in bad shape. It’s proof that the locals avoid this mountain.
The weather up here is rather unsteady. It will be hard to fight the dragon in this area.
Well, any area is bad, due to their size, strength and durability. They are not easy to defeat.
I should try to find it’s nest if I can, if it has one.
The difficult path ends on a small platform.
I scout the area and there is a cave entrance on the other side.
The entrance is too small for a dragon, but I can see a few bite marks on surrounding stones. This is proof that the dragon comes here regularly.
Maybe this will make a good spot for an ambush.
I need to check the cave. I might be able to hide there until it comes back. Or at least make a base for me.
If the dragon is living even higher up this mountain, Imountain, Imountain, I will need to climb.
My thoughts get interrupted by a sudden gust of wind. The weather is changing. I guess I have no other option than to use the cave tonight. It’s not that bad.
I hurry and enter the cave. It’s bigger than I initially thought.
Outside, the storm starts to rage. At least it’s safe now.
I go a bit farther into the cave and noticed that someone smoothed the walls.
Before I can ponder over that I hear steps approaching me.
I turn around and see a rather impressive looking man. He wears strange armor that I have never seen before.
I get into a defensive stance, just in case.
He lifts his hands next to his head. “Hey there, no worries I won’t attack you. I was just wondering who my visitor might be.” He seems friendly enough.
“So you live here?” It seems rather strange to me.
“I suppose I’m what you’d call a hermit.” He seems so nonchalant, despite my full armor.
“A hermit? What’s with that armor then?” I eye him with suspicion.
“The mountains can get dangerous. I don’t know if you are aware, but this is dragon territory.” He explains with a smile.
His explanation makes sense to me.
“In that case have you seen a fire dragon around here?” I continue to question him.
“That’s the most common type isn’t it?” He surely knows his dragons.
“That’s right. I’m looking for one that burned a village down the mountain.” I come straight to the point.
“There are no fire dragons in here at least, but mind telling me if you are going to kill them once you find them?” He asks me a question in return.
“I’m a dragon knight so that’s my job.” I think that’s pretty obvious with my armor.
“I thought so. How about some dinner then?” He just nods and moves on.
“I should move on when the dragon isn’t here.” I can’t believe he just invited me to dinner.
“You are free to do so, but it seems the storm will rave until morning at least.” He points out the obvious. “So feel free to stay in my humble home.” He is generous I suppose.
“Thank you for your hospitality. May I ask for your name?” It would be pretty impolite not to ask at this point.
“Of course. My name is Diavolo, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.” He offers me a smile and his hand to shake.
I feel a bit reluctant, but I shake his hand anyway. “It’s a pleasure.”
“Let’s go into my kitchen.” Diavolo seems friendly, but I can’t bring myself to fully trust him.
I still follow him, while being on my guard.
He leads me deeper into the cave, it looks like multiple rooms have been carved out alongside the long corridor. It looks old and it’s so much bigger than expected.
One of the rooms is indeed a place for cooking. It has a small hole in the wall, so we don’t have to worry about suffocation.
Diavolo has prepared a soup. It smells surprisingly good.
He gives me a bowl and scoops one for himself. He also grabs a bottle and two cups.
“There you go, I got no chairs, but you can sit on the stones over there.” Diavolo points to a group of stones that indeed resemble chairs and a table.
“Thank you.” I go and sit down. Then I remember the bread I have and decide to share it with Diavolo.
I take it out of my bag and break it in half. “Please take this as thanks for the food.”
“Ohh, that is very kind of you.” Diavolo takes the bread with a big smile.
The soup is warm and fills my stomach very nicely. “That was very delicious.”
“You flatter me. I enjoyed today’s meal more than ever. So I should thank you.” He seems genuine.
Maybe my distrust is misplaced.
“So now that we are friends, let’s drink.” Diavolo fills a cup for himself.
“I wouldn’t say that, but I’ll take a cup.” A bit of drink can’t harm.
Diavolo fills my cup with a honey colored liquid. “What is this stuff anyway?”
“It’s Mead, I made it myself.” He seems rather proud of it.
I carefully take a sip. “It’s good.” Better than expected to be sure.
We have to do a bit of climbing, but it’s not too bad overall. There are a few nice views along our way down.
We make fast progress, it seems like Diavolo has unlimited stamina and his strength is enough to carry all of our supplies with ease.
This makes the tedious path easier on me.
We make it to a small village by the time it’s evening. There is a small pup that also serves as an inn.
“We should rest here if they have empty rooms, don’t worry about the payment.” I have enough money on hand for a couple of weeks if needed.
“I hope they have something to eat too.” With that Diavolos stomach rumbles.
I laugh. “Same here.” Walking this much made us both hungry.
I open the door, and we are greeted by the laid buzzing of the place. It’s a huge difference to our treacherous travels all on our own.
We find a table in a corner.
“What a lively place. I wonder what kind of food they serve.” Diavolo seems extremely pleased.
“As long as it’s food, I have no complaints.” I’m not very picky.
The waitress comes to our table. “What can I do for you tonight?” She seems pretty nice.
“We would love dinner and a room for the night.” I give her a polite smile.
“We only got our daily meal, but I vouch for it and we got a room, no issues.” The waitress looks almost sorry.
“Sounds great, we will have two of those and some beer. Or would you rather have something else for a drink?” I just ordered without a second thought.
“Sounds splendid. Can I have a double portion please?” Diavolo smiles with a hint of embarrassment.
“Don’t worry, for a big boy like yourself, the cook will add extra anyway. If you’re still hungry, we’ll double the order. ” The waitress wInks at Diavolo. Probably an attempt to flirt with him.
“How very nice of the cook. Please thank him.” Diavolo doesn’t pick up on her flirting at all.
The waitress doesn’t seem to mind either way.
We don’t have to wait long for our drinks.
Some people are shooting curious glances at us, but mind their own business.
Diavolo seems to enjoy his beer way too much, since it’s empty by the time our food comes.
The portions are both huge. Diavolos’ portion easily rivals a small tower.
“I hope this will be enough to feed a big boy such as yourself.” The waitress continues her relentless flirting.
Diavolo still seems clueless about it. “Thanks, it looks great.” His eyes sparkle at the sight of the food.
My stomach is also rumbling.
We both start to dig in. It’s just as delicious as it smells.
Diavolo has a big smile the entire time he eats. It’s like he is eating the most delicious meal he ever had.
It’s a very enjoyable sight.
We both clean our plates.
“Was that enough for you?” I say in a slightly teasing tone.
“Yep, I’m all full now. The food here is amazing.” Diavolo leans back and finishes his beer.
The waitress comes back to clean our table. She seems to be very pleased that we both finished our plates. “Can I offer you some dessert? We got some fresh apple pie."
Somehow that sounds amazing. "I’d like a piece. How about you?"
Diavolo chuckles. "Aren’t you full? Well, I have a slice too then.”
“Well we need a lot of energy for our upcoming battle.” I don’t like to think about it right now, but we aren’t here for fun.
“Are you two soldiers?” The waitress has caught on to my comment and uses the opportunity to feed her curiosity.
“No, I’m a dragon knight. He is my travel companion.” I quickly correct her.
“You aren’t here to defeat the mountain king are you?” She looks at us with vary eyes
“I don’t know who you are referring to, but we are here to defeat a fire dragon that destroyed a village.” I never heard of a mountain prince before.
Diavolo seems quiet awfully all of a sudden.
The waitress seems relieved. “All right then.” She doesn’t even bother to explain anything.
“Have you heard of this mountain king before?” Diavolo is the only one I can ask.
“Well…” He seems a bit uncomfortable with my question.
Then someone from the table next to us chimes in. “The dragon king is the great protector of this mountain. He is a huge but gentle dragon. He is somewhat of a local deity."
"I have never heard of that dragon, sounds impressive, but don’t worry I only hunt dragons when they kill humans.” I assure the locals.
He nods at me. “Dragon knights do important work. I know some people whose house got destroyed by a dragon."
"There are some good ones and some bad ones. Just like with humans.” Diavolo seems still a bit different from his usual self but his words are the same as always.
“Let’s drink to that. A round for them it's on me.” The local man gives me a pat on the shoulder.
I smile, feeling slightly awkward.
Soon enough others start to share their stories of dragons.
Some are just sightings others are of random destruction but also tales of great feasts the mountain king did. Like freeing the river from a huge boulder that fell into it.
All of these stories are told with a healthy amount of alcohol.
Please tell me I still have Dragon Prince/Ruthari fans following me? It’s been a whole year since I last drew my boys and I’ve missed them SO much.
This WIP is dedicated to a kind stranger @legend-of-the-fandoms who slid into my DMs the other day and gave me that push I needed to start drawing these two again. And now I can’t wait to finish this one. Thank you ❤
Hello! Here’s a preview of my piece for @alchemyartgroup ’s Echoes of Thunder zine! Everyone’s works looks wonderful!! And I hope you get a chance to treat yourselves a copy of it!
