Dragon AU
Setting: Medieval, fantasy
Summary: Dragon Knights are soldiers who form a psychic bond with a dragon hatchling upon the completion of their training, and ride them in combat against the many monsters and creatures that threaten their respective kingdoms. Knights are able to telepathically communicate with their dragons, thought hatchlings at first are only able to broadcast vague words of their emotional and physical state. They mature into adulthood quickly however, making both Dragon and Knight formidable on the battlefield.
Arian was orphaned at an extremely young age, and his parents were both notorious thieves (who fled the kingdom entirely after a robbery went bad and ended in a brutal murder). Though innocent, Arian carries the stigma of being a child of two foul people, and is unable to find an apprenticeship with anyone once he becomes too old to stay in the orphanage. Despite being frail, his only choice is to enlist as a Knight, and endure training for the chance at receiving his own Dragon.
When he finally graduates and the hatching ceremonies begin, he and each of his classmates choose their egg from the nursery. Arian’s is last to hatch though, and as day turns to night, and morning again, it’s obvious something is wrong. When a captain holds the egg up to the morning sun, they find the inside of the egg is empty; an infertile specimen. As all eggs are heavily and carefully monitored, and infertile one has never made it to a hatching ceremony before. This is taken as a bad omen, and Arian is placed under an even more judgemental gaze. When he hears talk of possible banishment, he leaves the kingdom on his own.
Exhausted, frustrated, and depressed over his horrible situation, Arian struggles to even make it to a neighboring village. In his vulnerable state, he mindlessly wanders into a forest, where he stumbles upon the one thing his terrible luck would permit: A Leviathan, the most dangerous of creatures humanity has ever faced, so large it could swallow a Dragon whole. They’re rare, but tales tell of a single Leviathan being able to raze an entire kingdom to the ground and leave nothing but death in its wake.
It’s injured, however, with spears sticking out on numerous parts of its body - most noticeably the base of the wings and legs. But it can move, at least enough to snuff Arian with ease… but it merely sighs and regards the small human with a tired sort of interest. In a surge of overwhelming sympathy, Arian approaches it, finding it horrible that it could suffer such a fate just because it was born as something people feared. Over the course of about a week, Arian sets up camp next to the Leviathan, and steadily helps it remove the spears and cleans off its open wounds. Amazingly, it doesn’t just refrain from attacking Arian, it actually responds with an astounding level of gentleness, even when it whines and growls as Arian pulls out a deeply embedded blade.
Once the Leviathan is healed enough to leave (and Arian contemplates just how good of a decision it was to help in the first place), something peculiar happens; a warmth surges through Arian’s chest, and a psychic bond is formed just as a Knight would do with a Dragon hatchling. Not only have bonds only even been made with fresh hatchlings within the first few seconds of life (never adults, much like imprinting), but they’ve only ever been with Dragons.
Telepathic communication is opened, and the two nervously talk with one another. Arian learns that Leviathans are just as intelligent as Dragons (and subsequently, humans), but are hostile because far too often, humans encroach on lands they consider sacred, or breeding grounds. Due to the psychic and emotional connection, Arian sympathises with their plight, but the Leviathan (Eren, obviously) in turn sympathizes with the humans and deems it unnecessary to kill if it’s possible to communicate their differences.
Arian returns to the kingdom that cast him out on Eren’s back as the first and only Leviathan Knight.
Within the next year, Arian and Eren fall in love, but it’s strained due to their difference in size and species. But during a particularly harsh battle in which Arian nearly dies, their bond strengthens to its utmost level, and they Sync - a state in which the bond is at its strongest, and is something very rarely achieved even by the oldest, most adept Knights (who usually become warlords or kings). As with Dragon partners, this allows Eren to tap into latent magic such as white flame that only harms his enemies, and transformative magic that allows him to don a human form.
Arian and Eren are able to more fully express their love; and while they attempt to keep it a secret, they eventually learn that the handful of Synced partners in the kingdom have similar relationships.
Summary: Dragon Knights are soldiers who form a psychic bond with a dragon hatchling upon the completion of their training, and ride them in combat against the many monsters and creatures that threaten their respective kingdoms. Knights are able to telepathically communicate with their dragons, thought hatchlings at first are only able to broadcast vague words of their emotional and physical state. They mature into adulthood quickly however, making both Dragon and Knight formidable on the battlefield.
Arian was orphaned at an extremely young age, and his parents were both notorious thieves (who fled the kingdom entirely after a robbery went bad and ended in a brutal murder). Though innocent, Arian carries the stigma of being a child of two foul people, and is unable to find an apprenticeship with anyone once he becomes too old to stay in the orphanage. Despite being frail, his only choice is to enlist as a Knight, and endure training for the chance at receiving his own Dragon.
When he finally graduates and the hatching ceremonies begin, he and each of his classmates choose their egg from the nursery. Arian’s is last to hatch though, and as day turns to night, and morning again, it’s obvious something is wrong. When a captain holds the egg up to the morning sun, they find the inside of the egg is empty; an infertile specimen. As all eggs are heavily and carefully monitored, and infertile one has never made it to a hatching ceremony before. This is taken as a bad omen, and Arian is placed under an even more judgemental gaze. When he hears talk of possible banishment, he leaves the kingdom on his own.
Exhausted, frustrated, and depressed over his horrible situation, Arian struggles to even make it to a neighboring village. In his vulnerable state, he mindlessly wanders into a forest, where he stumbles upon the one thing his terrible luck would permit: A Leviathan, the most dangerous of creatures humanity has ever faced, so large it could swallow a Dragon whole. They’re rare, but tales tell of a single Leviathan being able to raze an entire kingdom to the ground and leave nothing but death in its wake.
It’s injured, however, with spears sticking out on numerous parts of its body - most noticeably the base of the wings and legs. But it can move, at least enough to snuff Arian with ease… but it merely sighs and regards the small human with a tired sort of interest. In a surge of overwhelming sympathy, Arian approaches it, finding it horrible that it could suffer such a fate just because it was born as something people feared. Over the course of about a week, Arian sets up camp next to the Leviathan, and steadily helps it remove the spears and cleans off its open wounds. Amazingly, it doesn’t just refrain from attacking Arian, it actually responds with an astounding level of gentleness, even when it whines and growls as Arian pulls out a deeply embedded blade.
Once the Leviathan is healed enough to leave (and Arian contemplates just how good of a decision it was to help in the first place), something peculiar happens; a warmth surges through Arian’s chest, and a psychic bond is formed just as a Knight would do with a Dragon hatchling. Not only have bonds only even been made with fresh hatchlings within the first few seconds of life (never adults, much like imprinting), but they’ve only ever been with Dragons.
Telepathic communication is opened, and the two nervously talk with one another. Arian learns that Leviathans are just as intelligent as Dragons (and subsequently, humans), but are hostile because far too often, humans encroach on lands they consider sacred, or breeding grounds. Due to the psychic and emotional connection, Arian sympathises with their plight, but the Leviathan (Eren, obviously) in turn sympathizes with the humans and deems it unnecessary to kill if it’s possible to communicate their differences.
Arian returns to the kingdom that cast him out on Eren’s back as the first and only Leviathan Knight.
Within the next year, Arian and Eren fall in love, but it’s strained due to their difference in size and species. But during a particularly harsh battle in which Arian nearly dies, their bond strengthens to its utmost level, and they Sync - a state in which the bond is at its strongest, and is something very rarely achieved even by the oldest, most adept Knights (who usually become warlords or kings). As with Dragon partners, this allows Eren to tap into latent magic such as white flame that only harms his enemies, and transformative magic that allows him to don a human form.
Arian and Eren are able to more fully express their love; and while they attempt to keep it a secret, they eventually learn that the handful of Synced partners in the kingdom have similar relationships.