1 Tale of Heroes

Long ago, war raged out between the species of Earth. Angels and Demons fought for dominance over the planet. Caught between the two, Humans faced danger at every turn.

The Humans, unable to match the strength or power of the other races, sought out strength in other methods. They developed tools, weapons, and other sophisticated technology to give them an upper hand in life.

Unfortunately, though, this wasn't enough. Lacking in numbers and morale, the humans continued to dwindle into near extinction. One human, a young man by the name 'Arch' sought to change that.

Arch told the other humans that he would seek out the Dragon who ruled over Monsters and ask him for his aid. They called Arch foolish, for nobody who has ventured into the Dragon's lair had survived. This wasn't enough to dissuade the man.

Arch, the foolish yet brave man, ignored the mockery of the others and set off to seek the Dragon. The journey was rough and dangerous, though he pushed on without fault… and, eventually, he made it to the Dragon's lair.

Written straight into the deep slate of the cavern, this conversation was recorded as the first interaction between man and deity.

"Dragon? Are you here?" Arch questioned out towards the lair, which seemed to be devoid of life and light. Darkness and Ice washed over the simple armor he had worn, and he felt a glare spike him through his soul.

"Why have you awakened me, Human?" The Dragon spoke to him.

"I need your help," Arch replied with a pleading tone, holding his head up high to meet the gaze of the huge beast before him. Scales as deep as onyx reflected the shine of his torch, and the eyes of the dragon flickered in random colors as it stared through Arch.

The Dragon pressed its maw into a wicked smile, "What do you desire, the youth of Adam?"

"The Angels, the Demons, they are going to kill us all. Humans and Monsters alike." Arch responded as he placed his belongings down slowly.

"You shall perhaps." The Dragon closed its eyes, "We shall never fall to the rusty weapons of God or the broken words of a Devil."

"Now is not the time for pride, Sir Dragon," Arch complained, striking the claw of the Dragon lightly with his fist to regain its attention. The Dragon felt the blow, no matter that it didn't hurt, and opened its eyes again.

"Son of Adam, why have you struck me? Do you not fear me?" The Dragon asked curiously with a low growl. Multi-colored flame etched the sides of its mouth as it almost prepared to burn Arch to death.

"I fear you. I fear many things." Arch replied with a smile on his face.

"Then why? Is it not fearlessness that makes a Hero? Is that not the desire in your heart?" The Dragon spit out a light flame to intimidate Arch, who brushed it aside with a blast of wind.

"I don't have fearlessness. I have something much more important though, and that's courage."

The Dragon was confused, for it had never believed fearlessness and courage to be two separate things. To a monster, the words Arch relayed would more or less be taken as the ramblings of a fool… though, the Dragon knew something was off with this human. Mumbling in a low growl, the Dragon replied "Is courage not the same as fearlessness?"

"No," Arch replied. "Fearlessness is the lack of fear, whether with foolishness or overwhelming bravery… but, Courage is the acknowledgment of Fear and the decision to cast it away for something more important!"

"HAHAHA!" The Dragon laughed as Arch revealed his beliefs. Deeply bellowing out great applause towards Arch for the evaluation he had given it, its laughs turned into a pained cough which The Dragon then quietly ended and sighed. "Ha… Human…"

It continued; "You have enlightened me on something, thank you. In return, I suppose I will consider helping you."

"Thank you, Sir Dragon." Arch happily replied with a victorious smirk.

The Dragon raked its claws against its scales, tearing off a few of the front plates of its body in a simple motion. The black scales turned to a gold color as they fell to the ground, and shimmered in the low light.

A small, silver token with a large red symbol on the sides floated from behind the dragon and rested by Arch's belongings.

Finally, the Dragon loosened one of its smaller fangs from its maw and wedged it out with its claw.

"First, I have given you my scales. Bring this to a forge master, and ask him to make you plate armor." The Dragon dusted the large scales towards Arch and slightly chuckled when Arch struggled to carry one. The Dragon then turned towards the large coin.

"That is an Evolution Token. A Legendary Artifact for monsters. It can transform any monster into a higher species, should they fulfill some conditions. For Humans, its effect will be… potent, to say the least."

"And this Fang..." Arch questioned as he dropped the scales and approached the giant tooth.

"Bring this to an Alchemist, mold it into a blade. My Fang is the only thing on this planet that can pierce both the shield of heaven and the vile barrier of hell." The Dragon retreated down deeper into his lair, leaving Arch alone.

During that moment, Arch took the Token and became something much greater than Human. Greater than Myth, Stronger than legend. Arch, in a brief action, became a 'Hero'. Not in name, but in species.